Mamata mourns death of theatre icon Ratan Thiyam

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday mourned the death of Manipur theatre icon Ratan Thiyam and extended her condolences to the actor's friends and family members. She described Thiyam as a true legend who put Manipur theatre on the global map. "His unique blend of tradition and experiment enriched Indian performing arts immensely and resonated worldwide," Banerjee said in a post on X. Thiyam, a Padma Shri awardee, died at a hospital in Imphal early on Wednesday after a prolonged illness. He was 77.

The theatre fraternity of West Bengal expressed grief over the demise of theatre icon from Manipur, Padma Shri awardee Ratan Thiyam, and stated that his death would leave a void in performing arts. Recalling his long association with Thiyam, eminent theatre personality from Kolkata, Rudraprasad Sengupta, recalled the time when Thiyam used to visit Kolkata often and stay back with him at night to discuss stage plays. Thiyam used to visit a theatre festival organised by Sengupta's group 'Nandikar' decades ago. "He was a very down-to-earth person and had no problems in sharing a small room with me as discussions ran till late at night," Sengupta told PTI. He had a keen interest in the theatre movement of West Bengal, Sengupta said. Sengupta said Thiyam's death would leave a void in the performing arts movement but hoped that others would carry forward his legacy.

Another prominent theatre personality and actor Kaushik Sen recalled his interactions with Thiyam during theatre festivals. Sen had met Thiyam at Nandikar theatre festival and also the one organised by his group, 'Swapna Sandhani'. "I remember both of us adapted Macbeth in our respective productions. I also had a chance to meet him at a seminar organised at the National School of Drama," he said. Both Sengupta and Sen said they had not gotten a chance to meet Thiyam, an internationally renowned theatre personality, for quite some time. "The last time, I think, I met him was when he had come to attend the Swapna Sandhani theatre festival in 2008-09. He had a distinct style of political theatre with influence from the rich heritage of Manipur," Sen said. He recalled watching a play by Thiyam on the Northeast.