Play 'Lucifer Rising' Stopped Due to Political Threats

Kathmandu. A play being staged at a theatre in Thapagaon was suddenly stopped on Sunday.

The theatre production company 'Majhuwa Bagar' issued a notice stating that it was forced to stop the play due to political threats. The notice read, 'Due to pressure from unknown political individuals, tendencies, and groups, we are forced to stop the show of the play 'Lucifer Rising'. We apologize for the inconvenience caused to the audience.'

Majhuwa Bagar was staging the play by renting the hall of 'A Theatre Nepal'. Although the reason for stopping the play was stated as 'political threat', it has not been clarified who made such threats and why. In recent times, the word 'Lucifer' has been used by critics of Prime Minister Balendra Shah to target him. Since the word is in the title of the play, many artists speculate that the play may have been stopped under government pressure. They are expressing their dissatisfaction on social media.

Theatre artist Anup Baral has expressed serious concern over the incident. He wrote on social media, 'Under the guise of protecting power, the state's act of curbing art and culture, stifling creative expression, or threatening artists is unacceptable under any circumstances. Art is a medium of questioning. When the state starts fearing questions, democratic values weaken.'

Theatre artist Diya Maskey has also shared Baral's opinion on Facebook.

Similarly, another theatre artist Raj Shah said that Nepali theatre will not bow down to anyone's pressure, threats, or temptations. He said, 'We heard from our elders about plays being censored during the Panchayat era, being beaten by goons while performing plays, and being arrested by the police. However, we have to face political pressure to the extent of stopping the play in our own time.'

Meanwhile, Saujan Senehang, the operator of 'A Theatre Nepal', said that he has no clear information about why the play was stopped. He said, 'I heard that the director Sahales received threatening calls from unknown numbers between 8 and 10 AM on Sunday. After that, he decided to stop the play in consultation with the artists.'

According to Senehang, some individuals had been expressing dissatisfaction to the director over the phone regarding the word 'Lucifer' in the play's title from the beginning. He added, 'It is not yet clear whether the threat came from the government side or from some group. The director has said that he will make a statement about this matter.'

He said that this is the first time such a situation has been faced since the theatre came into operation. When contacted repeatedly about this matter, director Sahales did not wish to come into contact.

What is the play 'Lucifer Rising'?

This play, based on the activities of powerful individuals, has been staged since Jestha 1. The play's subject matter is based on incidents that occurred in a slum settlement involving women against the backdrop of the 'Jengy movement' on Bhadra 23.

Written and directed by Sahales, the play encompasses the inner conflict of humans, power, demonic tendencies, and their impact on ordinary people. Actors like Anoj Pandey, Tara, Buddhiram Chaudhary, Milan Bahadur Khadka, Subratraj Silwal, and Adan Batilaga had acted in the play. The play was scheduled to be staged until Jestha 20.