Jamshedpur: Dastangoi, the art of storytelling in Urdu, was organised under the aegis of SpicMacay, at Hill Top School.Ranapratap Sengar and Rajesh Kumar, reputed Dastangoi artists who have performed in India and abroad, rendered stories that kept students glued to their seats.They recited the dramatic text in a manner that held their audience spellbound for almost two hours.
They were dressed identically in white kurta pajamas with muslin caps. The two performers sat in the fore-stage, close to the audience to create an old world atmosphere.The word Dastangoi refers to the art of storytelling, it is a compound of two Persian words Dastan and goi which means to tell a Dastan.
Dastans were epics, often oral in nature, which were recited or read aloud, Dastans mapped new worlds and horizons.Sengar said that storytelling has disappeared and is not even revered as a valid cultural artefact. While theatre has survived and flourishes, pure storytellers, who went from town to town narrating fantastic tales, have vanished.
During the session the story was rendered in the most dramatic manner in Urdu, acquainting students with the nuances of this special art form. “Its oral recitation held me enthralled, for this was in fact the first time that I had heard the dastan being recited, as it was intended to be when it was first popularized,” said a student.