The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Hoping to take English theatre to a new level

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 02, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Hoping to take English theatre to a new level

Staff Reporter

The festival will showcase "a rich cornucopia of talent" It will provide "an ideal interface for young theatre enthusiasts to interact with senior professionals in the field"

FESTIVAL TO SHOWCASE TALENT: S. Umapathy of Prince Jewellery, Shekar Khosla of Bru, V Kalidas, Chief Advertisement Manager, The Hindu , and Ramesh Babu of Ayush at the press briefing for The Hindu MetroPlus Theatre Festival in Chenna i on Monday. — Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

CHENNAI: "By organising The MetroPlus Theatre Festival, we hope to take English theatre to a new level in Chennai," said V. Kalidas, Chief Advertising Manager of The Hindu .

Addressing a press conference along with the sponsors of the festival, Mr. Kalidas said English theatre would benefit a great deal by being associated with MetroPlus, which has emerged as a popular lifestyle supplement.

Stating that tickets for the festival are being sold at a "brisk pace," he said the festival, by bringing theatre groups from Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore together with those in Chennai, would showcase "a rich cornucopia of talent."

"An ideal interface"

The two-day workshop would also provide "an ideal interface for young theatre enthusiasts to interact with senior professionals in the field," he said.

"The festival will attract a discerning audience," said Shekhar Khosla, Regional Sales and Marketing Manager — Foods (South) of Hindustan Lever.

It was the kind of audience that would appreciate the taste of Bru Malabar, which is title sponsor for the festival, he said.

Mr. Khosla said he was proud and happy that the brand was associated with the MetroPlus and the theatre festival.

Ramesh Babu, Hindustan Lever's Sales and Operations Manager, spoke about Ayush Therapy Centres and their role in reviving the ancient healing sciences of India.

Right segment

He said the Ayush brand would reach the right segment of the market by being associated with the event.

Perfectly timed

S. Umapathy, Manager (Human Resources) of Prince Jewellery said the festival was perfectly timed. And although August was a lean season for the jewellery sales, the theatre festival would lend his company a profile during the period.

Another associate sponsor, Bose Corporation, India, was unrepresented at the conference but send its best wishes for the event in a message from Ratish Pandey, General Manager.

Mukund Padmanabhan, The Hindu 's Associate Editor, spoke on the format of the festival and the reasons for organising such an event.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu