BotTala to bring “Crutch-er Colonel” on stage

Theatre troupe BotTala has always had a distinctively socio-political approach to the selection of content for their productions, from the folklore-based “Khona” to the political drama “The Trial of Mallam Ilya” or their street play “Jotugriho” about the Tazreen Garments tragedy. Now, the troupe is set to bring another politically-sensitive work to the stage. Mohammad Ali Haider is directing the stage adaptation of eminent novelist Shahaduzzaman's “Crutch-er Colonel”, about the life of Liberation War Hero and one of the masterminds of the November 7 coup Colonel Taher, who was executed in 1976.

The troupe members recently went on a three-day intensive residential rehearsal programme outside the capital for the play, and are now continuing to put finishing touches. Troupe member Kazi Roksana Ruma informed that they are planning to premiere it this November. Aside from the original novel, some additional parts for the play have been written by Samina Luthfa and Soummo Sarker, while cast members will include Imran Khan Munna, Evan Riaz, Luthfa, Ruma, Toufique Hasan Bhuiyan, Nafij Bindu and Abdur Rahim.

Lieutenant Colonel Taher, who was a high-achieving officer of the Pakistan army, defected and joined the Liberation War, and was appointed the Sector Commander for Sector 11. After Liberation, he became a leading force in forming the leftist political party Jatiyo Samajtantrik Dol. He was an active player in the events of November 1975 that resulted in General Ziaur Rahman coming to power, who, after taking charge of the army, tried him in a military tribunal for high treason and murder inside the Dhaka Central Jail, and was executed on July 21, 1976. More than three and a half decades later, the High Court declared in 2011 that verdict of the military tribunal and the execution were illegal.