JKAACL Presents “Aaiena”: A Powerful Mirror to Society’s Uncomfortable Truths

Jammu, December 20, 2025: The cultural heart of Jammu was deeply stirred as the Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture & Languages (JKAACL) presented Triple “A” Performing Arts’ poignant Hindi play Aaiena (आईना) at the historic Abhinav Theatre under the Academy’s much-publicized Saptahik Rangdhara (Saturday Series), where the production emerged as a compelling exploration of human emotions, social pressures, and uncomfortable societal realities. Written by acclaimed playwright Rajeshwar Singh ‘Raju’, Aaiena delicately unveils the lives of women and girls navigating a world obsessed with self-adornment, outward appearances, and socially constructed ideals, while beneath this glittering surface the play probes the unpredictable currents of life, exposing emotional turbulence, uncertainty, and transformation, with the journey of Nirmala at its core, where even love itself undergoes profound change. The play strongly advocates authentic living, urging society to strip away pretence and confront reality with honesty and courage.

Designed and directed by Vijay Kapoor, Aaiena transcends entertainment to become a sharp social commentary, envisioned as a mirror reflecting the often-uncomfortable truths of society that are routinely hidden behind polished façades, while addressing critical issues such as the stigma attached to widowhood, the painful obsession with finding a “perfect match,” and the relentless pressure on women, including devoted wives, to conform to idealised images, making the production deliberately unflattering yet thought-provoking and socially urgent. The play featured a powerful ensemble cast with J.R. Sagar portraying Janak with dignity and command, senior journalist and actor King C Bharati emerging as the star of the show as Nishant through his commanding dialogue delivery and stage presence, Seema Kamal delivering a nuanced performance as Nirmala (1 & 2), Savita Sharma as Savitri, Rishab Yashovardhan as Raj, Aarti Bakshi as Rupa, and Pranvika Sharma as Child Nirmala all doing complete justice to their roles.

The directorial team was further strengthened by King C Bharati as Associate Director, whose extensive experience as a senior journalist, playwright, and seasoned theatre artist, coupled with his strong association with Deep Society for Visual & Dramatic Arts (DSVDA), added narrative depth and a keen understanding of the actor’s craft to the production. The intricate tapestry of Aaiena was supported by a dedicated creative and technical team, with poems by Rajeshwar Singh ‘Raju’, music for poems by Kuldeep Saproo, background music arranged and managed by Shazi Dilshad Khan and Ishu Bharati Pandit, lighting by Ravinder Sharma, choreography by Rohit Bains, song (Vachan) lyrics by King C Bharati, music and vocals by M. Sharda, set design by Vinay Daggar, costumes by Rekha Kapoor and Isha Bharati Pandit, make-up by Shammi Dhamir, properties by Janvi Kapoor and Poonam Sudan, and publicity handled by Sahil Bloria and Abhishek Kapoor, while overall management for Triple “A” Performing Arts was overseen by Raja Aamir Khan (President) and M. Akram Khan (Managing Director), with DSVDA providing crucial back-end support.

However, despite its artistic strength and audience appreciation, Aaiena was marred by serious organisational lapses as the auditorium was reportedly cross-booked on the same day for a school function, leaving the theatre team with barely any access to the stage before the performance despite being officially scheduled under JKAACL’s own Saturday Series, resulting in denial of technical rehearsals, light and sound checks, and even basic spatial familiarization not due to any lapse on the part of the artists but because of poor planning and insensitive prioritization. Theatre lovers who arrived with anticipation were left confused, some forced to return or wait amid uncertainty, while actors performed under visible anxiety, technicians worked in panic, and the morale of the entire team suffered, with months of rehearsal for an hour-long performance undermined by the absence of a sensitive and professional approach.

Reacting to the incident, noted theatre personality Suresh Sharma wrote on Facebook that several aggrieved and renowned theatre artists had complained to him that JKAACL now “sounds like JACKAL” to them, yet congratulated the performing artists for keeping Jammu theatre alive despite official irregularities and apathy, while Vijay Dhar, commenting on JKAACL’s official page, stated that the Academy’s approach had become immature, non-serious, insensitive, and irresponsible, adding that the quality of art and culture had been pushed to its lowest point. Playwright Rajeshwar Singh ‘Raju’, expressing anguish on social media, termed the situation “not theatre but a mockery of theatre” and highlighted that what should have been a meaningful theatrical experience was turned into an exercise in distress due to mismanagement, calling for a thorough investigation into how such lapses occurred within the Academy’s flagship series, as practices like these, he asserted, do not nurture theatre but erode trust, dignity, and the very spirit of cultural commitment.

Although everybody praised the Principal Secretary Department of culture Sh BM Sharma, IFS for his enthusiasm and active role in nurturing the culture but people had different views of the activities Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art Culture and Languages (JKAACL) for its mismanagement at lower levels and demanded a thorough investigation in the administrative structure and their activities for promotion of art culture and languages, particularly in Jammu.