Over 40 eminent people, including writers, artists, and actors and directors earlier associated with theatre repertory Rangayana, have written an open letter condemning the recent statements by Rangayana’s current director Addanda C. Cariappa who in an interview to an RSS-linked media platform alleged that all previous directors of Rangayana barring two had “Maoist” leanings. “Rangayana has never been restricted to either the left or the right and is an autonomous cultural institution beyond these divisions, supported by the people from all walks of life. People of Karnataka did not see those who have worked there before either as leftists or rightists. They thought and worked for the advancement of theatre. We demand that Mr. Cariappa and people like him should not devalue Rangayana and the Bahuroopi theatre festival organised by it,” the letter said.
Senior musician Pandit Rajeev Taranath and theatre personalities S. Surendranath, B. Suresh, Venkataramana Aithal, Achyut Kumar, and others have signed the letter. Those formerly associated with Rangayana — C. Basavalingaiah, Bhagirathibai Kadam, Raghunandana, Mime Ramesh, Noor Ahmed Sheikh, and Santosh Kumar Kusanoor — are also among other signatories.
.jpg?w=600)
