Dhaka: On the occasion of the 154th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, his noted dance drama ‘Shyama’ will be staged on 13 May at the Bangladesh National Museum main auditorium at Shahbagh in the capital.

Arranged by Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC), the dance drama is going to be performed by Warda Rihab and students of IGCC at 07:00pm.

Speaker of the parliament Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury will be present as the chief guest with High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Pankaj Saran as the guest of honour at the event.

The script and story of ‘Shyama’ is baseed on Tagore's poem ‘Porishodh’ composed by him in the Bengali calendar year 1343, inspired the book ' The Sanskrit Buddhist Literature of Nepal ' by Shri Rajendralala Mitra.

‘Shyama’ was first staged at the auditorium of Ashutosh College in Kolkata in 1936 and proved to be an instant hit. In 1938, Tagore had started to develop this into a dance work for the stage with the help of students at Shantiniketan. This was what he expanded and developed into the complete lyrical dance drama and renamed that as Shyama in 1939. The legacy of Shyama has continued ever since that day.

Shyama is essentially a romantic tragedy, though there are two love stories intertwined - that of Shyama and Bajra Sen, who at first are both in search of their initial partners. Then there is the unexpressed, unrequited love that Uttiyo has for Shyama which leads Uttiyo sacrifice himself for her happiness. Both romantic situations are likely to be painfully familiar to many.

The ‘Sakhi’ companions in Shyama are literally Shyama's companions but they are sometimes used by Tagore in metaphorical roles as narrators or as the subconscious of the main characters.

The drama narrates the story of a court-dancer, Shyama's love for Bajra Seri, a foreign merchant, who had his hopes high as he set off on his journey to find his bride. Indramanir Haar was what he had wanted to adorn his lover with. The 'Haar' (Necklace) was from Suborno Dip (Island) and was one of the most precious royal valuables. Soon, he is seen being chased by a royal guard. They come across Shyama and her acquaintances. Strikingly beautiful Shyama is pursued by many but her heart is set on Bajra Sen since their chance encounter. The royal guards arrest Bajra Sen and Shyama starts plotting how to rescue the object of her affection and soon comes up with a plan.

How far would you go for someone you love? Shyama sacrificed all she had for love, even manipulating Uttiyo, one of her suitors, to take the blame for the crime committed by Bajra Sen so that they could live happily together.

Warda Rihab, a Manipuri dance teacher at IGCC, is the dance director, dancer and set and costume designer of this performance. Warda's students of IGCC are also performing with her. Warda Rihab is a talented Manipuri dancer. She got her initial training in Manipuri dance from renowned Sharmila Banerjee, Tamanna Rahman and Belayet Hossain Khan at Chhayanaut, and later got advanced training from the renowned Manipuri dance exponent Kalavati Devi. She has given many performances in Bangladesh and abroad. She has also choreographed a number of Tagore's dance dramas.