‘Bad influence on society’: Mosque committee, locals block theatre performance in Gazipur’s Kapasia

“Not only in Raniganj, no play will ever be allowed to be staged in all of Durgapur Union. We informed them of the decision,” says committee chief Sirajul Islam

Members of a mosque committee and other local residents have blocked a theatrical performance in Gazipur's Kapasia Upazila.

A performance of a play titled "Apon Dulal" was scheduled at the Raniganj Udayan Sangha ground in Durgapur on Thursday.

Raniganj Udayan Sangha, the organiser of the performance, said it had made preparations to perform the show and had held rehearsals for the last month. Local cultural activists have been staging performances of plays, musicals, and folk ballads on the ground for the last 52 years. The cancelled performance was to be the 52nd annual performance.

Khandaker Shahadat Hossain, a local theatre activist and organiser, said he and other members of the group had been at the local bazaar on Wednesday night when Raniganj Bazar Mosque Imam Azizul Haque, Mosque Committee President Sirajul Islam and others came and told them to cancel the performance. They also spoke of cancelling all other theatrical performances in the future. Later, the decorator’s staff came and dismantled the stage and the tents.

When asked, Imam Azizul Haque said: “Religious-minded people asked the organising committee not to stage the play as they are a bad influence on society. In these programmes, women theatre workers perform indecent behaviour, which has a negative effect on society. When we explained this to them, the organisers eventually refrained from staging the show for the betterment of society. No single person prevented them. Locals, especially dignitaries, decided to request the organisers to stop.”

Shahadat said: “Apon Dulal is a musical without any women characters. No actress was to take part in the performance. It’s a decent show. But they prevented us from staging it. All of our long preparations, labour and initiatives went in vain.”

Raniganj Bazar Mosque Committee President Sirajul Islam said, “These performances have a negative impact on society. We, as respected members of our community, decided to stop the staging of the play. Not only in Raniganj, no drama will ever be allowed to be staged in the entirety of Durgapur Union. We informed them of the decision.”

Asked about the situation, Kapasia Police Station chief Abdul Barik said neither the organisers nor those who opposed them informed police about the incident.