Eggs thrown at Group Theatre Federation's rally protesting halt of play at Shilpakala
The rally was held in protest against the demonstration that forced the academy authorities to stop an on-stage play midway last week
A group of people threw eggs at a rally that was protesting against the stopping of a stage play midway at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy earlier this week.
More than hundred theatre activists participated in the rally organised by Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation in front of the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in Dhaka this afternoon (8 November), reports Prothom Alo.
Group Theatre Federation Organisational Secretary (Dhaka Metropolitan) Tapan Hafiz told Prothom Alo, "Our rally was coming to an end when the miscreants suddenly threw eggs at us."
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Witnesses said the eggs were thrown from the back of the rally when veteran actor and playwright Mamunur Rashid was speaking at around 5pm.
After a few minutes of uproar, Mamunur finished his speech and the organisers continued the rally.
Mamunur said, "We will not end the rally. A play will be staged inside, we will guard from outside. I want to see what those miscreants do."
In protest of today's incident, Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation has announced protest rallies across the country on 15 November.
Earlier, on 2 November, the play "Nityopuran" by theatre troupe Desh Natak was stopped midway at the Shilpakala Academy after a group of people staged a protest in front of the academy's main gate demanding the play be stopped immediately.
The incident came under heavy criticism on social media.
The next day, Shilpakala Academy Director General Syed Jamil Ahmed told reporters that the decision to stop the play midway was made to ensure the safety of the audience. Given the circumstances, he feared that the academy itself might have come under attack, he added.
"Recently, 22 branches of Shilpakala Academy across the country came under attack. That weighed on my mind. With the audience inside the hall, I thought, what if the protesters attack them? Considering the safety and security of the audience, we decided to halt the show midway," he said.
