ARTISTS PAID TRIBUTES TO BHIKHARI THAKUR

ARTISTS PAID TRIBUTES TO BHIKHARI THAKUR

25-MARCH-ENG 3

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

PATNA---------------------------On the occasion of *Bihar Diwas* (Bihar Day), a five-day Women's Festival was organized at the Premchand Rangshala in Patna. A troupe of theater artists traveling from Arrah to participate in this festival—under the banner of "Rang Srishti"—paid homage to the legendary folk artist Bhikhari Thakur by garlanding his statue, which is situated within the premises of the Patel Bus Stand in Arrah. During this garlanding ceremony—organized under the aegis of the Bhikhari Thakur Social Research Institute—prominent theater artists including Ambuj Akash, senior artist Dr. Anil Singh, Shalini Srivastava, Chaitanya Kumar, Vyas Kamlesh Anand, Bharat Arya, and Narendra Kumar stated that a performance of Bhikhari Thakur's timeless folk play (*Tamasha*), *Videshiya*, is scheduled to take place at the Premchand Rangshala. They noted that they were departing for Patna immediately after paying their respects to Bhikhari Thakur at his statue. Other artists in the troupe—including Dipali Srivastava, Sanjay Singh, Sujit Srivastava, Hari Shankar Nirala, Sagun, Sankalp, Ashish, Kunal, and Krishna Ji Prasad—mentioned that the *Tamasha* is being directed by the veteran theater artist Sadhana Srivastava. They further added that the troupe has received special support from Narendra Singh (Founder-President of the Research Institute and a senior journalist) and Dr. Jaya Jain of Arrah; buoyed by this encouragement, they expressed confidence that they would proudly uphold the banner of Bhojpur in Patna before returning home.