Charmed by a 100
the number grew. As the word spread, around 500 charmers from across north India connected with us.”
Getting the snake charmers to play the been synchronously was a challenge, says Roysten.
“It is a solo act and these people are not comfortable playing in groups. We rst did a trial with 30 to 40 of them and then gra- dually added the remaining numbers. Some of them are heads of their villages from across the northern states. When we started rehearsing, it was a nightmare, but nally we did succeed.”
“The best part is though they are no musicians, they magnicently picked up the tunes and Hundred Charmers was born.”
On a train ride
Aacross
Edinburgh, Roysten heard Scottish pipes playing across every mountain and street to celebrate Scottish Day. “I still remember the e¥ect that had on me. I wanted to recreate something along similar lines with beens and snake charmers.”
Though this is their debut in Bengaluru, the ensemble has travelled abroad with the same show. Roysten is known for his unique productions including The Manganiyar Seduction, Weaving Voices, and The Kitchen.
From award-winning plays to stunning, largerthan-life musical productions that let rare traditional Indian music forms and artists take center stage, his diverse range of work has won him national and international acclaim.
An NSD graduate, Roysten
has worked in theatre for over three decades. “I never thought of using it as a springboard into the world of cinema. As an art form, theatre does fantastic things that cinema can not do and vice versa. Theatre has its magic and I am fascinated with what one can do with it.”
Roysten founded the Indian Shakespeare Company in 1995, and his initial work mostly re§ected the name of his company. Later, he changed lanes to create stage productions steeped in Indian folk art and music. He gives the credit for the change to artist Rajeev Sethi.
“I was doing Othello: A Play in Black and White, which at the time was a contemporary theatre work to came out of India. It won many international accolades. I was also curious about Indian theatrical folk forms such as nautanki. Rajeev introduced me to traditional performances. He took me to a slum in Delhi called Shadipur Depot, which housed around 200 artisan families. I witnessed a lifetransforming performance despite the extreme poverty.”
At that point, Roysten asked himself why he was looking to the West for inspiration when there was so much happening right here. “That is when I started exploring folk arts that could lend themselves to theatre. We have so much skill and talent in India that contemporary art or artists struggle to get.”
A Hundred Charmers, presented in association with Jaaga, will be staged at Chowdiah Memorial Hall, at 5pm and 8pm on May 4. Tickets on BookMyShow.
I started exploring folk arts that could lend themselves to theatre. We have so much skill in India that contemporary artistes struggle to get.