Mumbai loves old stories retold in theatre style

The history of theatre in Mumbai dates back to 1871, when the first-ever theatre company, Grant Road Theatre, came into existence. Ever since, Mumbai has become a hub of sorts where prolific theatre companies have experimented with different genres. If plays staged at Balgandharva Rangmandir in the last five years are any indication, the interest in plays based on old stories and events has peaked in the city.

Let us first talk about Jaya, an English play produced by noted actor and theatre director Lillete Dubey. The play was based on the Mahabharata and introduced opera singing in a mythological play in India. The play combined rock music with classical opera along with Hindi mantras presented through traditional dance forms of Kathak and Kalaripayattu. The story was told from the point of view of the eldest Pandava brother, Yudhistira. This unique play had 25 house-full shows at the Balgandharva Rangmandir in Bandra West, Mumbai. The play’s success took the team to the Middle East and Europe. Two more such plays that revisited history were Humare Ram with Ashutosh Rana and Mahabharat with Puneet Isar as the respective leads.

Another bold English play that was staged at the same auditorium was called Nathuram Godse Must Die. Produced by Sejal Dipak Painter, the play had an impressive line-up of cast and crew including Vikas Patil, Bharat Dabholkar, Mohana Azad, Dr. Deepa Bhajekar, Ananth Mahadevan, Kaustub Savarkar, Sandy Jangam, Mangesh Desai, and Rahul Dengle. Directed by Bharat Dabholkar, the play retold the story of a historic event that changed the course of modern India.
Noted Indian film and theatre actor Shabana Azmi played the lead in another experimental play called Broken Images. Padma Bhushan awardee Azmi plays the roles of twin sisters, directed by Padma Shri Alyque Padamsee. The play, written by Padma Bhushan Girish Karnad, had a long run at the Balgandharva Rangmandir before going abroad.

However, the Balgandharva Rangmandir is not only a place for serious theatre but has also played host to light-hearted comedies and love stories. For example, Ek Main Aur Ek Tu with Shweta Tiwari in the lead or Chandni Raatein with Mantra in the lead entertained the audience with laughs.

Noted Hindi film director Mira Nair took her film-based play Monsoon Wedding to the audience at the Rangmandir with house-full shows. Speaking of Hindi films, two more film-based plays that received rave reviews include Umrao Jaan and Devika Rani.

Tumhari Saaiyara, a Hindi solo play written and directed by Nadira Babbar and enacted by Juhi Babbar celebrated its 100th show at the Balgandharva Rangmandir.

London’s West End brought the iconic Mousetrap, a play based on Agatha Christie’s novel of the same name, to the Rangmandir back in 2019. With an all-British cast, the play attracted fans from all over the world.