Feature
Lucknow to host 9th season of India’s most astounding celebration ‘Repertwahr’
Lucknow: The Repertwahr foundation is ready to present the 9th Season of India’s most astounding celebration of performing arts. The pulse of the city has been captivated by some of India’s most celebrated performances for the past 8 years and this year they are back again with a lineup that will blow your blues away.
In the course of time, Repertwahr has stretched its own boundaries, presenting a scinitillating amalgamation of performing arts on a single platform. Repertwahr invites you to join in the celebrations at UP Sangeet Natak Academy, Lucknow from 20th to 24th December, 2018.
The festival this year will feature 20 ticketed shows, with more than 150 performers from all over the nation, most of whom will be performing their shows in Lucknow for the first time.
The festival team itself comprises of 200 professionals and volunteers who are bringing together a celebration of five days that expects to welcome more than 20000 people to attend the festival this year.
According to Repertwahr’s organising committee claim, they sold more than 15000 tickets in the past year, which in itself is a favourable sign for performing arts in a ascending megalopolis like Lucknow.
The Co-Founder of the festival, Bhupesh Rai says, “Repertwahr tries to bring on stage, performances that the viewers in Lucknow do not generally have access to. The shows presented at the festival are audience oriented.
City to host 9th edition of most astounding celebration of performing arts ‘Repertwahr’:
“The team aims at choosing performances which have an entertainment value but do not forget to leave a message. There is a huge risk involved in selection of the performers because the ball lies in the court of the audience.”
“Repertwahr focuses on making performing arts more subjective. This festival highlights the different flavours of performing arts” On the question of the ticket prices being high Bhupesh said that a ticket is value for money and time.
The managing team puts in their heart and soul in bringing up the best resources they have in the city and in order to make this effort professional, a monetary return along with the positive feedback of the audience, is necessary.
In the ninth edition Repertwahr plans to make a mark with well-known plays like Jab Khuli Kitab, Gazab Kahani, Shikhandi, Item and Hello Farmaish. For stand-up comedy, top talents like Gaurav Kapoor, Rahul Subramanian, Abhijit Ganguly and Manik Mahna will be gracing the stage with their presence.
The city that is well versed with laughter gigs of Raju Srivastava and K.P. Saxena is now ready to welcome the rising stars of the digital age. The heart soothing musical section this year includes Raghu Dixit, Anand Bhaskar, Madboy/Mink, Alif and Dualist Inquiry.
Repertwahr is definitely paving a way for performing arts. There is a Lucknow that celebrates its nostalgic inheritance and characteristic elegance and another that breaks the barriers of old paths. And between the two lies the entire spectrum of Lucknow’s intellectual and artistic journey.
Entertainment
Meghalaya Reserves Legalized Gambling and Sports Betting for Tourists
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.