Athoi Jal, a novel by Bibhutibhusan Bandopadhyay, was written in 1947, the year we achieved Independence. Like his other novels it too is a period piece, but here the period plays a latent role, on a hidden note. The conflict and confluence of cosmic with worldly, the basic tenets of Bibhutibhusan's works, are totally amiss in Athol Jal. It is passionately a love story, a thread of relationship between in-equals; in age, class and stature. It takes us to a wodd by passing the mundane of marital and extra marital, of societal and beyond, of moral and immoral. It is a far away land from the world of Pather Panchali, Aranyak or even Devjan.

Although Bibhutibhusan has kept me mesmerized since I was 7 or 8, it was during college years that I found friends who too were not spared by the magic spell that the great author could create in young minds. I can still recall a friend who often claimed that Bibhutibhusan's contributions to world literature surpass that of the works of greats like Pushkin, Balzac, Flaubert, Dostoyevsky, Chekov or Tolstoy taken together. A over-statement indeed though, the spell that Bibhutibhusan's works weaves is uniquely rare.

Athoi Jal is not a popular piece in that sense. But reasons for choosing such a work for stage production is essentially its basic structure which tells a tale that explores the meaning and mystery of life in all its intricacy though they always remain elusive. The life force behind the Purba-Paschim is the architect of this new venture. For stage adaptation of the novel I reposed my frost once again on friend and playwright Ujjwal Chattopadhayay. Earlier, he did excellently in adaptation for my previous projects namely meghe dhaka tare, Byomkesh from artham-anartham, Adya Sesh Rajani from Shyaml Gangopadhaya's novel, Ekush Gram for I natur's film Twenty One Grams. This time also Ujjwal finished the work in a very short time and we could start the rehearsal schedule early. The spirit and zeal of the Purba-Paschim members for every details and their dedication, a must for a good production, have energized me a great deal. I hope this joint efforts of Soumitra Mitre, the life force behind the Purba-Paschim and Malabika Mitre will receive critical appreciation from the theatre audiences of West Bengal.

Least I would like to talk about is the production, or about the acting and the other aspects of the play. The audience are the best judge and if we receive their appreciation and patronage, we will then cell it a success. - Bratya Basu