Marathi playwright Chetan Datar passes away

Mumbai, Aug 2 (IANS) Well-known Marathi playwright and director Chetan Datar passed away here Saturday morning. He was in his late fifties.

A disciple of one of India's most revered theatre personalities, Satyadeb Dubey, Datar followed the route led by Marathi theatre stalwart, Vijay Tendulkar, writing and staging hard-hitting politically-charged plays of social relevance.

He wrote about 30 plays and directed 20 of them. He was one of few modern Marathi playwrights who gave experimental theatre a direction. He vehemently opposed the latter-day Marathi commercial plays.

'Saavlya,' 'Radha Vaja Ranade,' 'Gandhi Ani Ambedkar' and 'Jungle Mein Mangal' were some of the plays he was known for.

Occasionally, he also acted in plays which he directed.