High drama

A traditional
musical and
an offbeat Tagore
play make their way to their city

EBUTING across city stages next
week are not one but two plays by
Mumbai-based Gillo Theatre
Repertory, which specialises in theatre
for young audiences. But artistic
director Shaili Sathyu is quick to
point out that adults will also find
the plays equally entertaining.
Tapping into the robust mythological
and literary wealth of the country,
Sathyu brings Hanuman Ki
Ramayan and She-He-Shey.
Different strokes
Adapted from mythologist and
author Devdutt Pattanaika��s book
Hanumana��s Ramayan by Ram Dayal
Sharma, a playwright, actor and
singer, who has just won an award
from Sangeet Natak Akademi for his
contribution to nautanki, Hanuman
Ki Ramayan is particularly interesting,
for its nautanki style performance,
where every line is sung. The
dialogues will be accompanied with
music from the harmonium and
naqqara, a kind of drum.
Directed by thespian Devendra
Sharma, the story traces the journey
of Valmiki and his pride at having
completed the epic Ramayana,
only to be told by sage Narad that he
rates Hanumana��s version of the tale
much higher than his. The plot follows
Valmikia��s quest to the
Himalayas where an aged Hanuman
now resides and what follows after
he reads the lattera��s text.
a�?Ita��s a very simple story. We have
not tried to complicate the original
plot. But the hidden message is that
of perspectives and how people have
their own versions of what has
transpired. We also aim to highlight
the importance of oral traditions,
tales that have been passed on from
generation to generation and how
people have made each story their
own,a�? shares Sathyu. After the play,
the team will talk about nautanki
theatre and stage a few short plays
that demonstrate the origins and
history of the genre.
Tale spin
She-He-Shey on the other hand is
based on Rabindranath Tagorea��s He:
Shey a�� a collection of short stories and
poems that he wrote for his granddaughter
while she was growing up.
a�?Shey is Bengali for a�?ita�� and Tagore
made up an imaginary friend, whom
he called Shey, for his granddaughter
and would tell her tales about this
friend, with her often joining him in
coming up with tales,a�? explains
Sathyu, sharing that she had to face a
lot of negativity from naysayers who
said that it was too challenging a play
to stage. a�?Shey is something that cannot
be described. Ita��s faceless, colourless
and shapeless, so people laughed
at me when I chose to do this,a�? she
says. But Sathyu managed to pull it
off with a neat trick, which she says
will not be revealed until you actually
see it on stage.
With mosquito nets as the backdrop
(as they hark back to grandparents
homes and storytelling sessions),
the stories are absurd and fantastical,
a departure from Tagorea��s other
works. Stories are told through dance
vocabulary, like abhinayas and
mudras, with the set inspired by the
authora��s sketches and paintings.
From the story of a jackal who wants
to be human to a foolish man who
believes in a sage who lives in a tree,
the narratives are entertaining,
Sathyu assures us. a�?I encourage people
to come and see a different side to
Tagorea��s writing ,a�? she signs off.
Hanuman Ki Ramayan, July 23,
7 pm, at India Foundation for the
Arts, RMV 2nd Stage. She-He-Shey,
July 24, 7pm at Seva Sadan,
Malleswaram.
Details: facebook.com/GilloGehri
a��Rashmi Rajagopal