Kannada play stopped midway by Hindutva activists in Karnataka

The play by Jayant Kaikini is based on Fiddler on the roof and features Muslim characters, and was being staged in Shivamogga district

A group of people, said to be associated with Bajrang Dal, stopped the staging of a Kannada play mid-way at Anavatti in Sorab taluk of Shivamogga district in Karnataka on July 3.

Rangabelaku, a Shivamogga-based theatre group, was staging Jategiruvana Chandira, a play written by well-known writer and lyricist Jayant Kaikini, at Veerashaiva Mandira in Anavatti. The play is a Kannada adaptation of Fiddler on the roof by Joseph Stein. The play began around 7.45 p.m. At 9.30 p.m., a group of people entered the hall raising slogans demanding that the play be stopped.

The protesters objected to staging the play ‘with Muslim characters’. They went to the stage and appealed to the audience to vacate the hall, forcing the theatre group to stop the play.

Rajeev Reddy, Police Sub-Inspector of Anavatti, told The Hindu that he received information that Sridhar Achar, a local Bajrang Dal activist, and a few others had stopped the play. “By the time policemen reached the place, the play had been stopped. As of now, we don’t know the reason why it was stopped. We will collect the information,” the police officer said.