In today’s world of Bollywood and social discrepancies theatre is slowly taking a backseat. But with scintillating plays being performed today, it is extremely difficult ignore the beauty of this medium. We look forward to keep you ahead in this department by compiling a list of plays coming soon that deserve a watch! Here are 8 names that you should get familiar with this month.
Piya Behroopiya
This is a Hindi adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night that combines cruelty with undeniable comedy and added (and most essential!) elements like unrequited love, cross dressing, mistaken identities, sword fights and more that glorifies the Shakespearean effect to its finest level. Directed by Atul Kumar, actors, Geetanjali Kulkarni, Neha Saraf , Mansi Multani, Trupti Khamkar , Sagar Deshmukh, Amitosh Nagpal , Gagan Riar, Saurabh Nayyar and Mantra Mugdh come together to create magic that will indubitably blow your minds away. For someone who had been hitched to Shakespeare, this play is an absolute must watch.
Language: Hindi
When: Saturday, 28 September at 6 PM
Where: Prithvi Theatre, Juhu
Entry: Rs 300
Between the Lines
Like always, Nandita Das has outdone herself with her brilliant composition, direction and acting. Set in contemporary India, this exhilarating combination of wit and drama evokes mixed emotions in audience’s hearts. The story revolves around an accidental murder case in which the couple’s personal and professional lives as lawyers gets intertwined; and as they both argue on the opposite sides of the criminal trial on a professional front, a very strong crack in their personal lives starts to appear. Still married and in love, Nandita Das and co-actor Subodh Mascara start having problems at home. How will they resolve their differences to find a new balance in their life? You can only find out after watching this play.
Co-written by Divya Jagdale.
Language: English
When: Saturday, 28 September at 7 PM
Where: Tata Theatre, NCPA
Entry: Rs 260-2000
A Peasant of El Salvador
This play highlights the political and social issues that are often ignored in our day to day lives; and nothing better than a live dramatisation of the issues that are being unknowingly ignored. A Peasant of El Salvador is one such example which attempts to create an awakening in the audience about one of such, often considered trivial, issues- peasant crisis. Writers Peter Gould, Stephen Stearns and director Quasar Thakore Padamsee bring out all shades of pleasant emotions required to sit through this touching and powerful story of a peasant’s survival in a densely populated country, El Salvador. Cast: Meher Acharia-Dar, Pramod Pathak, Suhaas Ahuja.
Language: English
When: Saturday, 28 September at 6:30 PM
Where: Hall of Harmony, Nehru Centre
Entry: Rs 200
Tuesdays with Morrie
Directed by Meera Khurana, Tuesdays with Morrie is an autobiographical story of Mitch Albom, illustrious journalist and Morrie Schwartz, his former college professor. It so happens that after sixteen years of graduating college, Mitch Albom accidently finds a path that leads him to his former professor who is now old and battling Lou Gehrig’s disease. He decides to pay him a visit but soon realises that one meeting isn’t going to be enough. This intense drama portrays a different kind of relation between a student and professor who discover the meaning of life in his final days. Cast: Aadhar Khurana, Akash Khurana, Lucky Vakharia.
Language: English
When: Sunday, 29 September at 7 PM
Where: Experimental Theatre, NCPA
Entry: Rs 300-400
Blame it on Yashraj
Written and directed by Bharat Dabolkar, this play showcases the chaos and maelstrom caused by the family when their only beloved daughter decides to marry a Muslim boy. With crisp, bollywood-esque performance, actors Anant Mahadevan, Jayati Bhatia, Anchal Sabharwal, Punit Tejwani, Smita Hai, Gaurav Sharma, Palash Dutta and Neel Gagdani have done a praise worthy job in portraying the impetuosity of a typical Punjabi/Bengali family while giving away their daughter to a ‘family of terrorists’! Even though the plot is transparent and a tad predictable, the whole experience of watching a drama this intense live is something you shouldn’t miss out on.
Language: English
When: Sunday, 29 September at 6:30 PM
Where: Tata Theatre, NCPA
Entry: Rs 500-1500
Sound of Silence
The title talks volumes about who the play could possibly be based on. And if you have guessed already, yes, it is Ludwig Van Beethovan. Written by Roshan Treasuryvala, Sound of Silence depicts life events inspired by the heart-warming life story of the legendary music composer Beethovan who lived in the 18th century. With partial deafness at 30, he effortlessly went on to create evergreen symphonies that lived for centuries. His work has created history that no man can erase, making him the father of music. Watch his life being dramatised live on stage by notary theater actors Sandeep Prabhakar, Neha Sareen, Gurinder Pawar, Sanjeev Vatsa, Archana Pania, Graham Dsouza, Jervis Dias, Ashish Thadani, Vedant Malik, Sonali Chhabria and Amit Gilani with a magical touch by director, Poonam Sareen.
Language: English
When: Sunday, 29 September at 7:30 PM
Where: St. Andrew Auditorium, Bandra
Entry: Rs 500-1500
The Frying Pan
The only thing actors Abhishek Pattnaik, Murtuza Kutianawala (also director), Sadhika Syal and Sujay Mirchandani (also writer) have in common when they meet at an anger management class except their indefatigable anger is the course completion certificate that they desperately await. They come from different walks of life; a spirited yoga instructor, a failed entrepreneur, a lonesome car salesman and a Syrian foreign exchange student hence making the conversations in the classroom interesting on a much higher level .This outright comedy amusingly portrays the most dangerous emotion known to man – anger, which is also what makes this play unique and worth a watch.
Language: English
When: Tuesday, 1 October at 8:30 PM
Where: Canvas Laugh Factory, Palladium Mall
Entry: Rs 500
Cut Cut Cut
Is a comic portrayal of the confusion, chaos and commotions that characterize the rehearsals of Pierrot’s Troupe’s plays. It’s everything you want to know about the real drama that takes place backstage and the problems actors face while getting ready for a perfect delivery of dialogue on stage. Directed by Dr. M. Sayeed Alam, this hilarious act looks almost real with hints of comic outburst played by Tom Alter, Vijay Gupta and Dr. M. Sayeed Alam himself. An absolutely must watch, this act looks into the prospects of theater performances with jocular twists.
Language: Hindi
When: Sunday, 13 Oct at 7 PM
Where: Swatantriya Veer Savarkar Sabhagruh, Shivaji Park
Entry: Rs 200-500
Hindi or English, all these plays have a very Indian touch to them. No matter which play you choose to attend, the experience they will leave you with will be memorable, I hope. And if you’re oozing passion for theater, how about sharing your reviews with us? Comment below or email them to story@mumbaimagcom.