Class 6 Arts (Kriti-I) Chapter 18, In the Company of Theatre, introduces the fascinating history of India’s travelling and resident professional Company Theatres of the 18th to 20th centuries and their lasting impact on Indian drama and cinema.
What Class 6 Art Chapter 18 Covers
Popular Company Theatres, Shows & Stories traces how professional repertory troupes—such as Surabhi Theatre (Andhra Pradesh/Telangana), Gubbi Veeranna’s Company (Karnataka), Balgandharva’s Maharashtra Natak Mandali, Parsi Theatre and Kolkata troupes—lived, rehearsed and travelled together performing mythological, historical and social plays with grand painted backdrops and live music.
Decline of Company Theatres & Present-Day Theatre examines how the rise of cinema and television challenged travelling theatre companies and highlights surviving repertories (like NSD Repertory, Rangayana and Surabhi) that keep live theatre thriving today.
Exercises in Chapter 18
- Studio Activities, step-by-step creative exercises, and peer/self-reflection prompts.
Read Class 6 Art Chapter 18 Online
More Chapters
- Previous: Chapter 17: Let’s Design
- Next: Chapter 19: Stories of Shadows and Strings — Puppetry
- Hindi medium: Class 6 Arts Chapter 18 PDF in Hindi (Kriti-I)
- All Art chapters and the other Class 6 books: Class 6 NCERT books 2026-27
- All Class 1 to 12 NCERT Textbooks: NCERT Books PDF (Class 1–12)
- Every book chapter by chapter: NCERT chapter wise PDF
FAQ
What was a ‘Company Theatre’ in Indian theatre history?
A Company Theatre was a professional troupe of actors, musicians, technicians and stagehands who lived, travelled and rehearsed together like a large family, staging ticketed plays across towns and villages.
Name two famous historical Company Theatres of India mentioned in Chapter 18.
The Surabhi Theatre troupe (founded in 1885 in Andhra Pradesh, famous for magical stage trickery) and Gubbi Veeranna’s Gubbi Channabasaveshwara Nataka Company in Karnataka (alongside Balgandharva’s Marathi musical theatre).