Tiatr Script Writing Competition

What is the Tiatr Script Writing Competition?

Tiatr Script Writing Competition is scheme number 20 of the 41 schemes run by the Tiatr Academy of Goa (TAG), the autonomous body set up by the Government of Goa under the Department of Art and Culture to foster and co-ordinate the activities of tiatr. TAG formulated this scheme, in its own words, in order to encourage a new generation of tiatr playwrights to script better quality tiatrs and to enrich the Konkani language.

Tiatr is the Konkani musical theatre form that has been staged in Goa since the late nineteenth century. It is built in acts called podd'dde, with songs called cantos or kantaram placed between them, and traditionally carries a comedy track alongside the main plot. What TAG is trying to protect through this competition is that traditional structure, which is why the scheme's rules specify the shape of the script in unusual detail.

TAG organises the competition every year under rule 1. Unlike TAG's performance competitions, which need troupes, venues and live audiences, this scheme needs only a writer and a typed manuscript, which makes it the most accessible entry point in the whole TAG scheme list.

What must the script look like?

TAG lays down the structural requirements in rules 2 to 4, and they are firm.

• Traditional tiatr format, with a minimum of 6 to 7 podd'de (acts).
• At least 4 cantos (songs).
• Comedy inter-related to the main plot. A comedy track that runs parallel without connecting to the story does not satisfy rule 3. The one exception: in a religious tiatr, comedy may be absent altogether.
• Written in Konkani in Roman script. Rule 4 fixes both the language and the script.
• Themes as specified by TAG. Rule 9 says the themes will be as specified by TAG, so the announcement for each edition is where you find the year's theme.

The application form asks you to state these structural facts yourself: how many podd'ddes the tiatr has, how many cantos, and whether the comedy is related to the play. A script that does not meet the minimum on any of these three counts is declaring its own ineligibility on the form.

Who can and cannot enter the competition?

You can enter if:

• You are a Konkani tiatr playwright of any age. Rule 8 removes the age limit entirely.
• Your script is original: written by you, and neither published nor performed earlier.
• Your script meets the structural requirements: 6 to 7 podd'de, at least 4 cantos, comedy tied to the plot (or a religious tiatr with no comedy), written in Konkani in Roman script.
• You can submit three typed copies of the manuscript with the form inside the announced window.
• You hold a PAN card and an Aadhaar card, copies of which the form requires.

You are not eligible, or your script will be disqualified, if:

• The script has been published or performed earlier. Rule 7 excludes it and the form makes you declare otherwise.
• The script is written in Devanagari or in another language. Roman-script Konkani is the only accepted form under rule 4.
• The script carries adverse remarks in any form against governments, individuals or institutions, or anything against caste, creed or religion in the script or in the song lyrics that may hurt anybody's sentiments. Rule 12 gives TAG the right to disqualify such scripts if proved.
• You send fewer than three typed copies or send them after the announced closing date. Rule 6 requires three copies within the given time.
• The script falls short of 6 podd'de or 4 cantos.

How to apply for the Tiatr Script Writing Competition

1. Watch for the year's announcement. TAG organises the competition annually and announces the theme, since rule 9 makes the themes those specified by TAG. Check the Schemes of TAG page and the local Goan dailies.
2. Download scheme 20 from tiatracademyofgoa.com. The PDF carries both the rules and the application form. Print the form.
3. Write the script to the required structure, traditional tiatr format, 6 to 7 podd'de, at least 4 cantos, comedy connected to the main plot, Konkani in Roman script.
4. Type and print three copies of the finished manuscript. Rule 6 requires three typed copies to accompany the application.
5. Fill the application form. It asks for your name, address, contact number, email, PAN number (copy enclosed), Aadhaar number (copy enclosed), the title of the tiatr, the number of podd'ddes, the number of cantos, and whether the comedy is related to the play.
6. Sign the four declarations printed on the form, that you have read and abide by the rules, that you have enclosed three typed copies of the script, that the script is original and has not been performed or published earlier, and that the information given is true. Date the form.
7. Submit the form with the three copies to the Tiatr Academy of Goa office at AS-1, 2nd Floor, Campal Trade Centre, Campal, Panaji, Goa 403001, within the time given in the announcement. You can write to tiatracademy@gmail.com to confirm the current submission method.

What do the winners get?

Under rule 5, the first three best scripts receive cash prizes as fixed by TAG, together with certificates. TAG has not published a fixed rupee figure for these prizes, so the amount is set by the Academy for each edition — ask the TAG office for the figure applying to the current year rather than assuming a previous year's amount.

Rule 11 adds a second and larger benefit that many entrants overlook. If a prize-winning script writer gives TAG a No Objection Certificate to print the script in book form:

• TAG prints the script at its own cost.
• The script writer is paid a one-time honorarium fixed by TAG, in addition to the prize money.
• The script writer is given 200 copies of the published book.

For a working tiatr writer, that publication route is often worth more than the prize itself, it puts a printed, citable script into circulation, which is exactly what the scheme's stated aim of enriching Konkani sets out to achieve.

How are the scripts judged?

Rule 10 says a panel of judges will judge the scripts and their decision will be final. TAG does not publish the marking criteria, the names of the judges or a breakdown of scores for this scheme, so the practical guidance is simple: meet every structural requirement in rules 2 to 4 exactly, keep the comedy tied to the plot, and stay clearly inside rule 12 on content.

What are the common reasons a script is rejected?

• Only one copy submitted. Three typed copies are mandatory under rule 6.
• The script has been staged before, even once, or has appeared in print.
• Fewer than 6 podd'de or fewer than 4 cantos.
• Comedy that does not connect to the main plot, in a non-religious tiatr.
• Konkani written in Devanagari rather than Roman script.
• Content that breaches rule 12: remarks against a government, an individual, an institution, or against caste, creed or religion.
• A missing PAN or Aadhaar copy. The form asks for both to be enclosed.
• Arriving after the closing date announced for that year's competition.

TAG also reserves the right, under rule 13, to make any changes in the rules, so download the current scheme PDF before entering rather than working from an older copy.

Where do I raise a grievance about this competition?

Contact the Tiatr Academy of Goa on 0832-2230738 (fax 0832-2230739) or by email at tiatracademy@gmail.com. The office is at AS-1, 2nd Floor, Campal Trade Centre, Campal, Panaji, Goa 403001.

Under the Right to Information Act, the Member Secretary of TAG is the Public Information Officer and the President of TAG is the First Appellate Authority, so a written RTI application about a rejected or pending entry goes first to the Member Secretary at that address. Note that rule 10 makes the judges' decision final, so a grievance is best directed at procedure, a missing acknowledgement, an unpaid prize, a pending publication honorarium, rather than at the result.

Key facts to remember

• Tiatr Script Writing Competition is scheme 20 of 41 run by the Tiatr Academy of Goa.
• TAG organises it every year, with the theme specified by TAG.
• The script must be Konkani in Roman script, in traditional tiatr format, with 6 to 7 podd'de and at least 4 cantos.
• Comedy must be inter-related to the main plot, except in a religious tiatr.
• There is no age limit for participants.
• Three typed copies of the manuscript must accompany the application form.
• The script must not have been published or performed before.
• Prize-winners who give an NOC get their script printed free, a one-time honorarium and 200 copies of the book.

How to check your application status

The Tiatr Script Writing Competition runs entirely offline, so there is no portal login, tracking ID, or SMS alert to check. An entrant has to follow up directly with the Tiatr Academy of Goa, and the follow-up looks different at each stage of the competition.

Right after you submit. Ask the person receiving your form and three typed copies at the TAG office to note the date of receipt, or to give you a signed acknowledgement of receipt. TAG's scheme document does not promise a receipt, so getting one in writing at the counter is the only proof you will have that your script arrived before the closing date.

While judging is on. Rule 10 leaves the judging entirely to the panel and does not set out a published timeline, so there is no midway status to check. Calling the office during this period will usually only confirm that entries are "under judging," nothing more specific.

When results are due. TAG announces the winning scripts itself, typically through the same channels it uses to announce the competition, the Schemes of TAG page on tiatracademyofgoa.com and the local Goan press. Watch those instead of expecting an individual notification, TAG's scheme rules do not commit to informing every entrant who does not win.

To follow up by phone or email. Call the TAG office at 0832-2230738 or write to tiatracademy@gmail.com with your name, the script title, and the date you submitted it. This is also the right route if you have won and are waiting on the honorarium or the 200 printed copies promised under rule 11, since the office cycles at TAG's own pace and there is no automatic payment timeline published.

If you get no response. Since rule 10 makes the judges' decision final, a written follow-up is more useful for procedural questions, an unpaid prize, a pending publication honorarium, a missing acknowledgement, than for disputing the outcome itself. Address a written RTI application to the Member Secretary of TAG (the Public Information Officer for the Academy) at AS-1, 2nd Floor, Campal Trade Centre, Campal, Panaji, Goa 403001, if the office does not respond to a direct query.