One world, one act

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Anhad performing a street play in association with Darpana Academy

‘Anhad’ means without limits. True to its name, Act Now for Harmony and Democracy (Anhad) knows no limits when it comes to spreading the message of secularism, human rights and communal harmony.

The Indian socio-cultural organisation, Anhad established in March 2003 as a response to 2002 Gujarat riots, has found a different way to put across their message. It has brought theatre to the people.
Be it crowded streets of big cities or narrow lanes of small towns or villages, the Anhad theatre group is reaching everywhere to make people aware of their rights.
Even an hour-long lecture cannot convey what a 15-minute theatre performance can put across, says Shabnam Hashmi, founder member of Anhad. “Theatre is a powerful medium and it has always been a part of my life. So involving theatre as a medium to send across our messages seemed to be a natural thing,” says Hashmi.
Anhad’s latest street play is called Behroopia, a story of two NRI kids who come back to discover that the ground realities of cultural and religious harmony in their country is much different than what they believed to be.
Anhad has performed countless such acts that raise social and communal issues in the street of Haryana, Gujarat and Kashmir also. Recently, seven street-play groups have been formed in Gujarat that are performing in various places in the state, says Hashmi.
The idea behind forming the group is not just to reach out to the youth but to go through them, says another founder of Anhad, Harsh Mander. “Apart from students and some professionals there are many social activists associated with the theatre group,” says Mander.
The group has also been running many campaigns. However, the going has not been easy. Attacks and threats have always been a part of life for those associated with the group. “When we were performing and campaigning in Amreli and Maninagar in Gujarat, our volunteers were attacked and threatened many times. Some were even slapped with sedition charges,” says Shabnam.
But these could not deter their spirits. “Anhad is an inclusive institution in which every one who stands for democracy, secularism, justice and peace can participate. Even in most remote areas our street plays always find an audience,” says another founder member and Marxian historian Prof. K N Panikkar.
Anhad also collaborates with other organisations and movements to reach out to people. The organisation has six members including Shubha Mudgal, Kamla Bhasin and Saeed Akhtar Mirza.