ECTA Inc.

A Non Profit Theater Company

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Phera

A Scene From Phera
“Phera” (The Return) is a  play in Bengali  which deals with the eternal struggle which every immigrant in USA has to go through in order to balance between the strong attachment to their home land and the economic and social demands of life. The play tells the story of a young immigrant whose family is dependent on his dollar remittances, decides to go back to his country and faces strong resistance from his loved ones. "Phera" is written and directed by Sudipta Bhawmik.  The play has received rave reviews from the audience and the press. 

Synopsis:
Sukomol, the protagonist who lives and works in USA, suddenly, arrives at his home to the utmost surprise and joy of his parents Satyasadhan and Mrinmoyee and his sister Sikha. Later in the afternoon, Sukomol breaks to his would-be father-in law Ramapada and his mother that he has come back for good and would like to work in India or possibly set up a chemical plant in his hometown. Mrinmoyee is delighted at the prospect of her son staying back in India, but Ramapada rebukes him for his naivety and foolishness. Being a failed politician himself, Ramapada reminds Sukomol of how impossible it is to build anything in West Bengal with its business hostile political environment.Sikha
At this moment comes Bibhas, Sukomol’s childhood friend and gives him hope by promising that he will make all arrangements to make Sukomol’s dream a reality with the help of the local member of the legislative assembly. However, in the very next scene in an interesting twist, Bibhas confides to Sukomol that all that he had said was pure bluff, just to settle a score with his political rival Ramapada. He advises Sukomol to go back to USA and even pleads to take him along. Sukomol gets another jolt when his fiancée Krishnaa makes it very clear that her only goal in life is to go to America, and if Sukomol decides to stay back in India, she’ll do it alone. However, the final blow comes when Sukomol overhears his father who almost breaks down at the possibility that the flow of dollars is about to stop. Satyasadhan, who himself is an immigrant from Bangladesh (then East Pakistan), struggled all his life to take care of his family, his parents, his brothers and sisters. He never had the chance of enjoying the slightest of luxury. Now, with his son working in USA and with his regular dollar remittances, Satyasadhan has started to get used to the better things of life, the small luxuries like traveling in a rented car and having a luxury bathroom. He dreads at the possibility of losing his current life and going back to the days of hardship. Only, Mrinmoyee, the eternal mother, tries to defend her son’s decision to the last moment.

 Sankar Ghoshal and Lili Majumdar

The play was first staged at the Kallol Natyasammelan on Dec 13, 2003. Later the play was staged at several locations in New York, New Jersey, Boston, Maryland and Philadelphia.

The English version of the play, "The Return" was produced and staged by NEAT in Boston in 2008.

 Cast and Crew:

Satyasadhan  :   Sankar Ghoshal

Mrinmoyee      :   Lilabati Majumdar

Sikha                :  Tandra Bhowmick / Gargi Mukherjee

Bibhas             :   Indranil Mukherjee / Ujjal Mukherjee

Sukomol         :    Pinaki Dutta

Krishnaa         :    Aparajita Das

Ramapada     :    Sudipta Bhawmik

 Lights/Sound/Stage: Subhodev Das, Jayadratha Bhowmick

 Testimonials

"Phera is the best Bengali play that I have seen in New Jersey." - K. P. Das, Manalapan, New Jersey

"Sudipta has shown the courage to say the bitter truth. A really touching drama." - Alolika Mukherjee, New Jersey

"Phera was a very well appreciated play today. Personally, each dialogue, sequence, and the overall play was a superb experience for me. This was the first time I enjoyed a play in USA which is a local effort. Good Luck." 
Sushmita Dutta, New Jersey

"It's superb! First time in USA, I witnessed writing and acting like this. Every character is so unique. Let's go for a century! I look forward to more plays like this from you."
Chandra Nath, Delaware

"I really liked the play. What I especially liked was that each and every character had ample scope for acting. Thanks to the dramatist. Also thanks to the actors and actresses for giving us so much pleasure."
Richa Sarkar, Philadelphia

"I liked the play very much. Reality is the best dose you can give to your audience. It is very difficult to speak the truth, but you have done that wonderfully. We'll hope for many more good plays from you."
Pradip Bhowmik, Ex-President Pragati, Philadelphia 

"An excellent production. The play really touched our heart." - Bhavani Mukherjee, New Jersey

"The play was talking about my experiences. I could not hold back my tears." - Arun Pal, New Jersey

"It was a tight and well executed production. Good Job" -Arunansu Dasgupta, New Jersey

"A flawless production." - Prabir Basu, New Jersey

Sukomol and Krishnaa
 


 

 

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28 McBride Way
Bridgewater, NJ 08807