This is the story of a music that was born almost three decades ago.
And like every story, this one also has a prologue.
As someone who stepped onto the stage with Barry John (the English-born Indian theater director who has mentored many Indian stars like Shah Rukh Khan) in the 1970s, Lillete Dubey has had a long, vast repertoire of theatre. For an ever-evolving medium. Yet, it was only after setting up her own Primetime Theater Company in 1991 that she was able to realize her long-time dream: to stage original Indian writing in theatre.
“You wouldn’t believe what a difference it makes when you’re Mira on stage and not Martha,” she begins, “The relatability it brings between the actor and the audience can’t be explained. This became the reason for setting up my company.” English was chosen as the primary language of expression to showcase Indian works widely.
Before long, Lillet’s love of music led her to search for an original work that contained music. This is where Sandeep Kanjilal, an MTech from IIT and self-taught musician, came into the picture. “She had this beautiful, tongue-and-cheek body of work Jaya based on Mahabharataas we know, Jaya The original title was Mahabharata And this also means victory. But at what cost? Whose victory?” There were many questions.
A scene from the drama Photo Credit: Natasha Hemrajani 2022
in 1998, Jaya Opened to full audience. It was a highly successful open air production; No less than a farce. But after 40 grand shows the curtain fell due to an unexpected tragedy.
“This is my passion project. It’s my blood, sweat, tears, money and love for music that went into this play,” says Lillet, “This play had to come back.”
After six months of hard work, with a completely fresh score, Jaya Is back on stage. “Its Jesus Christ Superstar meeting of Mahabharata meets Greek tragedy,” she laughs. Rock remains one of Lillet’s most eclectic styles of music personal to him due to its influence on his childhood and early adolescence. She laughs, “Jaya It is so contemporary that it starts with Yudhishthir singing a rock song!”
After following well-known musicians who found the medium of music complex, he finally met Ashutosh Pathak. Lillet recalls, “Like me, they found it challenging, nerve-wracking and exciting and they said, yes, let’s do it.” More than 100 artists auditioned.
A scene from the drama Photo Credit: Natasha Hemrajani 2022
“Now, the question was whether we want actors who can sing or singers who can act. I wanted a singer. This is an opera. It was my job as a director to get them to act,” says Lillet. After six months of regular rehearsals, the play is fully operatic, narrated only through sound, rap, poetry and full-length songs.
While many revisionist narratives Mahabharata It has been discussed repeatedly, Jaya An attempt has been made to present the epic as it is. the story begins with the end Mahabharata When Pandavas climb Mount Meru, but fall. The author has condensed the epic in two hours, which is a huge work in itself, without forgetting the philosophical, the spiritual or the romantic.
“We’re not trying to reinterpret it,” Lillet reminds us. We are not trying to preach. it’s too much MahabharataPresented in a very different way.” As far as the trailer is concerned, imagine, expertly choreographed fight scenes, spontaneous Kathak and Kalari on stage, and tough verses sprinkled in theatrics. The cast includes Tirthankar Poddar, Vikrant Chaturvedi, Megan Murray, Asif Ali Baig and Sherin Varghese to name a few, while the lighting is designed by Lynn Fernandez. Suzanne D’Mello is a vocal coach.
After the stupendous success of the Bengaluru show in August, Lillet is confident about how Chennai will embrace his magnum opus production. “South India really knows its epics.”
Jaya The performance will be held on 15th December at 4.30 pm and 7.30 pm at Sir Mutha Venkatasubba Rao Auditorium, Lady Andal School, Chennai. Tickets start at ₹499 on BookMyShow.
published – December 07, 2024 01:48 PM IST
