Bidesiya (play)


Bidesiya or Baharā Bahār is a Bhojpuri play by Bhojpuri playwright Bhikhari Thakur. It is one of the several plays written by Bhikhari Thakur on women empowerment, migration and poverty. Owing to its popularity it becomes the folk theatre style of Bhojpuri region.
The play depicts the condition of women in Bhojpuri Society in 19th century, the problem of migration and poverty. The play was composed and staged in 1912 and published as a book in 1917.

Characters

The play Bidesia has primarily five characters:-
The play starts with Mangalachran which menas Prayer to god. After that the Sutradhar comes on the stage and introduces the audience with the Characters and story line of the play. After that the play starts

Story

The play starts with a conversation between Bidesiya or Bidesi and Pyari Sundari, where Bidesiya adduces his will to leaving the village and going to Calcutta for earning. His wife tries to stop him but he doesn't stop. After going to Calcutta He doesn't come for years and the Pyari Sundari waits for him to return.
One day a traveller was going through the village, Pyari Sundari asks him to send her message to Bidesiya. When Batohiya reaches Calcutta he sees that Bidesiya has married to a women named Saloni.

Performances

Bidesiya is staged every year in Nandikar's National Theatre Festival.

Popularity

The play became very popular in North Indian States like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal. Due to its popularity it became the folk theatre style of Bhojpuri region.
Hindi theatre also adopted the Bidesiya folk theatre style. Plays like Harikesh Muluk and Mati Gadi gained immense popularity using the Bidesiya theatre style.

Message

Bidesiya has put the problem of poverty, migration and their impact in a very entertaining form.

Legacy