New Delhi, March 26 The 21st Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META) concluded with "Je Janlagulor Akash Chilo" and "Mithyasur" winning awards for best director and production, respectively.
The awards ceremony on Wednesday at Kamani Auditorium marked the end of a week-long theatre festival that saw 10 productions competing across 13 categories, including production, direction, stage design, choreography, costume design, and ensemble.
"Je Janlagulor Akash Chilo," directed by Saurav Palodhi and produced by Thakurpukur Ichheymoto, received awards for best director, ensemble, and stage design. The award for best actor in a leading role (female) was jointly awarded to Turna Das for "Je Janlagulor Akash Chilo" and Dusha for "Something Like Truth".
"Mithyasur," directed by Ajeet Singh Pallawat and produced by Ujaagar Dramatic Association, won awards for best production and best actor in a supporting role (male) for Sahil Ahuja.
The play's scriptwriter Pranay Pandey shared the award for the best original script with O T Shajahan, who wrote "Dhomi Kitha Kitha Dhomi".
The 10 productions at the 21st edition of META, instituted by the Mahindra Group and produced by Teamwork Arts, reflected themes of mythology, politics, activism, social issues, and ideology in Hindi, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi, Hindustani, Bundelkhandi, Sanskrit, English, and Gibberish.
"META 2026 has once again reaffirmed the incredible talent and creative courage that define Indian theatre today. This year's festival showcased a diverse spectrum of stories and voices from across the country, underscoring theatre's ability to provoke thought, foster empathy, and spark meaningful dialogue," Jay Shah, Vice President, Head, Cultural Outreach, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said in a statement.
A major highlight of the evening was the conferring of the META Lifetime Achievement Award on veteran actor-filmmaker Amol Palekar, in recognition of his extraordinary contribution to Indian theatre and cinema.
The award for best actor in a leading role (male) went to Mario Barzaghi for "The Old Man and The Sea – Kathakali of Morrow", while Ipshita Chakraborty Singh won the best actor in a supporting role (female) for "Kadambari".
Sandeep Yadav won the best light design award for "Y – What Refuses To Fade", Kaizad Gherda received the best sound and music design award for "Chandani Raatein", and Ashish Deshpande won the best costume design award for "Karunashtake".
The best choreography award went to O T Shajahan, Dileep Lal, and Subhash Das for "Dhomi Kitha Kitha Dhomi".
"The awards night marked not only the culmination of the festival, but also a celebration of the artists, designers, writers, directors, and performers whose work continues to push the boundaries of storytelling and performance in India," Sanjoy K. Roy, Managing Director of Teamwork Arts and festival producer, said.
