Kozhikode: A school which represented Kozhikode in state level art festival for 17 years has been forced to backtrack from participating in the drama competition this year.
Reason: The drama, Kitab, which bagged first prize in the district-level competition, has 'hurt' the religious sentiments of a community.
The original writer also disowned the drama, saying his ideas were distorted and portrayed a particular community in bad light.
Memunda Higher Secondary School in rural Kozhikode was a favourite of the drama lovers and for more than a decade it did not let them down.
For the past 17 years, the school represented the district and won top prizes in the state level too.
However, this year school authorities announced after repeated threats on social media and protest marches to the school it would not perform the controversial drama.
“Soon after the drama, 'Kitab', won prizes for best drama as well as the best actor (female), there were criticism from various corners. We find that certain references in the drama have hurt a particular community. However, it was not intentional. We understand the need to maintain the democratic and secular values in an educational institution and hence decided not to perform the same drama in future,” principal Krishnadas P K and headmaster Remesan T V said in a statement.
The state school youth festival would be held in Alappuzha next month.
The school will compete in other events where its students have qualified from the district-level.
It has not decided to present another drama in the state festival. A decision on whether the school could stage another drama or send another team has to be taken by the deputy director of education.
However, director Rafeeq Mangalassery, a native of Chettippadi in Malappuram, who has been training the students of the school for the past three years, can not digest the move.
He understands the pressure and accepts that the school authorities were sensible enough in convincing him as well.
He is irked by what he calls “the 'silence' of the secular writers and social activists”.
Even writer Unni R, on whose story the drama was based, had dismissed the drama by saying that 'Kitab' portrayed a particular community as 'uncivilised'.
“Not only that they did not support the drama, many criticised the narratives and techniques used in the play. This is a shameful act. I expected the support of at least the secular writers and activists. This is out of fear. If they can raise their voice for 'Meesha' (a controversial novel by S Hareesh, that was withdrawn from a leading Malayalam weekly after protests), why are they not supporting 'Kitab'? In fact, Unni is the one who portrayed a particular community as uncivilised in his work,” Rafeeq said.
