Theater lovers in the city can enjoy and free up their social calendars – the Bengaluru Theater Festival kicks off this weekend with an exciting ensemble cast including Naseeruddin Shah, Ratna Patak, Lillete Dubey, Pankaj Kapur and others. Are included.
Bengaluru Theater Festival (BTH) is coming to the city courtesy of Alchemist Live, the company also behind the Delhi Theater Festival. According to Prabhu Tony, COO and co-founder of Alchemist Live, Bengaluru seemed an obvious choice when it came to expanding the reach of the festival.
“We have been running the Delhi Theater Festival for five seasons and we wanted to expand the footprint of the festival and take it to other cities. Not only was Bangalore one of the names that kept coming up over the years, but we also got a lot of queries from people in the city requesting a similar festival there.
“I think Bangalore was a natural choice. And when we talked to artists and other people about it, we got a resounding “Yes!” found. So now we are here,” says the Lord.
a scene from Dopehari
Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
For their debut, BTH will stage Dopehari By Pankaj Kapoor, old World by Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah, and Salaam Noni Appa By Lillete Dubey, Yatin Karyekar, Jayati Bhatia, Rishi Khurana, And Gillian Pinto. Talking about organizing this lineup, Tony says, “These artists have been associated with us at Delhi Theater Festival (DTH) for quite some time now, and they were all very excited to be a part of the BTH inauguration.”
,old World by Naseer SAAB Whereas, the premiere is taking place in Bengaluru Salaam Noni Appa Based on the bestseller Lillete Dubey written by Twinkle Khanna. Dopehari It is based on the novel written by Pankaj Kapur. All our selections are unique in their own way – while old World has a sage and energetic vibe, and Dopehari is a unique one-man show, Salaam Noni Appa There is full action unfolding on the stage.
Prabhu says he wants to bring “all the vibrancy and vibrancy as well as the sense of community” associated with a music festival to the theater scene with his shows. “In this year’s edition of DTH, we had around 15,000 people in our theater across four venues, three days and 12-13 shows. Now, this is something we are bringing to Bengaluru, in the hope that we can introduce more people to this art.”
“When you want to experience theater for the first time in your life, you probably want to see the best,” he says, adding that in the coming years, he hopes to bring “different types and ways of theater” to people. Are. Experience.
a scene from old World
Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
being Human
Salaam Noni Appa is a heart-touching story of second chances, and it was adapted for the stage by Adhir Bhatt. It is about two widowed sisters who live together and what happens when one of them finds love in an unexpected way.
Lillet, who plays the lead role, says Salaam Noni Appa It is about the beauty of different relationships, “with her sister, the one she forms with someone younger than her and from a completely different background,” and further says that it is not limited by “what society believes.” It is a story of not being. Appropriate for you at a certain stage or a certain age.”
“Life never stops. Life is full of endless possibilities in every way, as long as you’re willing to step out of your comfort zone and take some chances. It’s about a relationship, but I believe it goes much further than that,” Lillet explained.
Salaam Noni Appa “It’s a lot of fun,” she says. “It’s fun with cheeky humor, it’s touching and kind of an autumn romance. It has all the elements that made it popular, but most of all, it is inspiring. And people always connect with something that is inspiring.”
Bengaluru Theater Festival 2024 | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Well, it certainly should be – Salaam Noni Appa Which started almost a decade ago, has started its 75th show in Bengaluru, having been staged several times in Mumbai, Delhi and other Indian cities as well as in Singapore, Dubai and other international locations.
“The play points out many little things with a light and clever touch. Although it is not a serious or deep drama, it is not frivolous either,” says the actor.
felt in the heart
The actor began his stage career as a teenager with Barry John in Delhi and founded The Primetime Theater Company in 1991.
“When I decided to set up my own company there were mainly two reasons. Firstly, I wanted a platform to showcase original Indian work; Even though it was initially written in the regional language, I wanted to do it in English. And secondly, my aim was to travel with those plays around the world because I wanted non-Indian audiences to see our work,” says Lillet.
She adds, “Both were difficult to achieve because very few plays were original in those days; Even the National School of Drama produced a lot of translations and adaptations of works written outside, of which about a handful were by Indian playwrights.
“My heart belongs to theater and film has always been a parallel activity, even though I thoroughly enjoy all my films,” she says.
It’s no surprise that Lillet and her troupe were thrilled to be a part of the Bengaluru Theater Festival.
“Whoever is doing anything to promote and encourage theatre, I have my full praise and blessings, as I am an ardent supporter of this art. Delhi Theater Festival is growing from strength to strength every year and Bangalore is one of those culturally vibrant cities. Hopefully, this venture will encourage them to set up branches in smaller towns of our country.”
Lillet is concerned about how many people are unaware of the “blood, sweat and tears” that goes into a theater production. “People would rather watch a movie than a play. However, more importance should be given to theater as it is a live medium unlike a mass medium with thousands of screens showing the same movie all over India. A show takes place in a theater in which an actor performs for an audience assembled that day. Obviously, you have to value it and the work that went into creating it.
The Bengaluru Theater Festival will be held from December 6-8 at the Good Shepherd Auditorium. Tickets & Schedule on BookMyShow.
published – December 05, 2024 04:53 PM IST
