The golden era comes alive
Movies like Madhumati (1958) and Mughal-eAzam (1960) have created an indelible mark on generations, both past and present. Their over-the-top flamboyance caught our attention and taking us back to the 1950s era is a new play, titled Dhappa. It is written and directed by Akshay Mishra and follow the life of Shyam, a writer-turned-director on the lookout for his muse. He finds it in a dancer called Iravati, who is the sister of Kumar, a down-on-his-luck actor, known for being bad.
Talking about the inspiration behind penning this play is Mishra’s nostalgia about the days past. He prefers stories from the era gone by and is unable to “connect” with today’s generation. “Somewhere, I miss the strong bonding that existed back then. Isliye meri jitni bhi stories hain, puraane zamaane se hain, jahan mobile phone ya internet ka zikr nahin tha,” he says.
When kids play luka chuppi and catch each other, they say ‘dhappa’, Mishra shares, adding, “Dhappa mere zehen main ghoom raha tha. Play main maine ek metaphor ki tarah use kiya hai. It is like a realisation of what went wrong in your life and where you went wrong.”
Senior actor Puneet Issar will essay the role of Shyam. Talking about his role, he says, “I have played largerthan-life roles. When I was approached for this play, I thought it would be interesting and contrary to the stuff I have already done. It (the role) is based on directors from the 1950s-60s, like Bimal Roy, Guru Dutt, when they used
to call the shots. I was intrigued and wanted to break my mould. People will see me in a new avatar here. The play is emotional, yet soft.”
A trained Kathak dancer, actor Sharon Chandra will essay the role of Shyam’s muse, Iravati. While her training came in clutch, this Fijian has taken inspiration from actors like Helen, Vyjayanthimala, Roshan Kumari and dancer Saswati Sen to choreograph the dances in the play.
She says, “They have done Kathak at that level and with this play, I am not trying to emulate them, but be inspired by their work. It was difficult slipping into the Kathak shoes, but I have been training. I have four to five dances in the play and some of them are pure dance pieces, while some are mixed with a monologue or poetry.”
The play will include live music with 11 original songs and thumris that were composed by Mishra himself and will be performed by his long-time friends, singers Radha Srivastava and Amit Srivastava, along with percussionist Ajit Kumar Srivastava.