Charanrekha

The traveller, played by Ramendu Majumder (M) tells about the experiences during his journey across the country in the play Charanrekha

This was what Humayun Ahmed's Ekushey special drama Charanrekha aimed to show. Aired on ATN Bangla on the day of Ekushey, the drama is a moving invitation to explore the beauty and bounty of the country. Humayun has cleverly used the image of a traveller to attain his goal.

The play presents a traveller named Monwar arriving at a village. Monwar is travelling on foot across the country having started from Tetulia. His aim is to reach the last point of Bangladesh along its border with Myanmar. He is on the mission of knowing his motherland--exploring the diversity in its beauty.

In the course of his journey, he comes in contact with the family of Imtiaz Mridha, a very rich man of the village. Imtiaz has a son named Majid whose wife has gone to her father's house after a quarrel with him. Majid has two daughters. The first scene of the play presents a weird competition, typical of Humayun Ahmed's stories. Majid, with his daughters on his sides, sets out on a challenge of drinking 50 glasses of water at one sitting. His triumph however makes him a little ill.

After discovering Monwar and learning about his mission, Imtiaz Mridha takes Monwar to his house. There Monwar is given a warm welcome. Imtiaz sends his son to bring back his wife so that she can meet "such a noble man" like Monwar. The traveller tells the family some of the interesting experiences during his travel. Imtiaz Mridha gets immensely influenced by the idea of travelling across the country and he also plans to set out with Monwar.

Majid asks his wife to lock Imtiaz so that he cannot leave with the traveller the next morning. Instead of doing so, she herself wants to join her father-in-law in exploring the country. At the end, however, the whole family sets out on the expedition.

The cast included a newcomer, SI Tutul, also the music director of the play. Tutul was quite successful in playing the role of Majid. Challenger played the role of Imtiaz Mridha while Ramendu Majumdar played the traveller. Tutul's music was also appropriate to the theme of the play.

The play was very simple yet successful in conveying the grave message of patriotism.