Mamata’s unique method of campaigning for West Bengal polls, Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal, 2016 Assembly polls , Didi, Jatra , Trinamool Congress (TMC) , Jayatu , play , Bengal, West Bengal Assembly Election 2016
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- Category: West Bengal Latest Election News and Updates
- Last Updated: Tuesday, 01 March 2016 15:57
Mamata’s unique method of campaigning for West Bengal polls, Mamata Banerjee, West Bengal, 2016 Assembly polls , Didi, Jatra , Trinamool Congress (TMC) , Jayatu , play , Bengal, West Bengal Assembly Election 2016
In the run-up to the crucial 2016 Assembly polls, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has devised a unique canvassing tool for her party. This time, Didi has scripted a play (jatra) to reach out to the maximum number voters in rural Bengal.
Written by Banerjee, the 25-minute play Jayatu would highlight the achievements of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) government over the past five years including CM's pet Kanyashree scheme for educating girl students, Yuvashree, distribution of rice at subsidised rates of Rs 2 per/kg, distribution of free bicycles to youths, financial assistance to folk artists and the social upliftment of the Muslim community in Bengal, party sources said.
This unique method of campaigning was taken up to reach out to rural folks as well as the educated urban electors who really dislike wall graffiti and the over-used conventional methods of asking for support. The TMC is hoping for a successful campaign by encashing into jatra's universal appeal.
Jatra is a very popular folk-theatre form of Bengali theatre spread throughout most of the Bengali-speaking areas of the Indian subcontinent including Bangladesh. The show, to be enacted by theatre artistes, will be performed at least 2,000 times during the poll campaigns in rural Bengal (at block levels). The number of performances could also be increased during election time. The play would be directed by theatre personality-turned TMC leader Bratya Basu, who is the state tourism minister now.
Initially, the name of the play was Mamatamoyee Bangla (Compassionate Bengal) but later it was changed by Didi herself to Jayatu. Sources said the CM has written catchy jingles, short songs and poems which would be used in the discourse showcasing the state government's role in developing 'Brand Bengal'.