Centre stage: Your spring theatre calendar
Editor’s note: The splainer team has put together a list of the best theatre coming your way this season, from storytelling specials to adaptations to intimate interactive experiences. Check out our spring theatre calendar for performances you must catch in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Kolkata.
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Mumbai
Toba Tek Singh (Hindi)
Set three years after the partition of Punjab, this play, based on the famous short story by Saadat Hasan Manto (published in 1955), follows inmates in an asylum in Lahore as they are relocated after the dust has settled. It’s an incisive, satirical glimpse into the tragic, inescapable post-Partition violence. Many have attempted to tell and retell this much-admired story over the years, and it never loses its relevance.
When: April 3
Where: Rangshila Theatre
The Monk and The Warrior (English)
The Supergeographics, in association with NCPA, bring us Mahesh Dattani’s ‘The Monk and The Warrior’—it’s a queer love story, a reimagined tale blending western and Indian history, that follows Bodhisattva and Alexander The Great through historical events, but with a little twist each time. Traditional stories are revisited and recontextualised through a queer lens in this sprawling play, confronting the conflict between ambition and achieving nirvana.
When: April 2 – April 5
Where: Experimental Theatre, NCPA
A Fish Ate My Cat (English)
Written and directed by Yuki Ellias, this play tells a story about family and growing old. ‘A Fish Ate My Cat’ embraces the whimsical and the playful, providing plenty of laughs through its narration. Littered with light moments of laughter, the play builds a fantasy world to ask questions about ageing.
When: April 25
Where: Prithvi Theatre
A Golden String: Blake in Song & Word (English, Hindustani)
Theatre, music, poetry, and art come together in this grand production celebrating the works of William Blake, the great Romantic poet. Theatre heavyweight Naseeruddin Shah stars here, alongside singer Susheela Raman and her co-composer Sam Mills, as the trio present a theatrical interpretation and retelling of some of Blake’s finest poems, with art inspired by his work and spoken word forays interspersed with musical interludes.
When: April 9 – April 12
Where: Prithvi Theatre
Mohabbat Zindabaad (Hindi, Urdu, English)
Mohabbat Zindabaad is a one-man celebration of ‘mohabbat’ by Jai Singh. It’s a free-form autobiographical sketch of Singh’s life, taking the audience through the many encounters and experiences that have made him who he is, presented with flair, pathos, humour, and tragedy, with little regard for form or convention.
When: April 5
Where: Veda Kunba Theatre
Catch it while you can:
Kheyechish? (English, Hindi, Bengali)
In ‘Kheyechish?’, Bengali for “Ate?”, writer-director Meghna Roy Choudhury cooks live on stage in front of the audience, letting them into a world where food is more than just food. The play—a meditation on hunger, both literal and philosophical—is inspired by Bertolt Brecht’s poem, ‘The Shopper’, and developed with the support of the Niloufer Sagar Drama School Mumbai Alumni Production Grant. It’s a glimpse into the world of a struggling artist living in Mumbai, trying to make ends meet enough to manage dinner.
When: March 31
Where: AntiSocial
Delhi NCR
Clowns of Hamlet (Hindi, English, Japanese)
The tragedy of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, irresistible and captivating, returns to the stage again in the shape of ‘Clowns of Hamlet’, a Saitan Theatre Group production directed by Rajneesh Gautam. An Indian theatre company has been putting up plays in Japan for the past four years, drawing from Japanese creative sensibilities and Indian storytelling traditions. They’re performing ‘Hamlet’, nearing the end of their run with the play, when things start to go awry. The performed tragedies soon enough start to mirror the real-life experiences of the crew, and their lives begin to change…
When: April 5
Where: Akshara Theatre
Main Tenu Phir Milangi (Hindi)
What happens when three well-known and respected poets find themselves in a love triangle? In this play, a tribute to the beloved poet and writer Amrita Pritam, performer Laksh Maheshwari tells the story of Pritam’s life and loves, exploring her relationship with poet and lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi, and painter Imroz (aka Inderjeet Singh).
When: April 11
Where: Excelsior Auditorium, Sector 43, Gurugram
When: April 12
Where: NCUI Auditorium
Prem Kabootar (HIndi)
Based on a collection of stories in Hindi by playwright and actor Manav Kaul, ‘Prem Kabootar’ explores longing and memory, set in a world before our digital, smartphone-infested reality. The play tackles themes of innocence and coming of age, evoking in the audience a sense of nostalgia for simpler times,
When: April 19
Where: Little Theatre Group (LTG) Auditorium
Nothing Like Lear (English)
Theatre darlings and cinema stalwarts Rajat Kapoor and Vinay Pathak join hands again for this run of ‘Nothing Like Lear’. Kapoor directs while Pathak fronts this one-man modern adaptation of the Shakespearean classic, ‘King Lear’. Pathak plays the clown to perfection, bouncing between tragedy and tomfoolery effortlessly, bringing to life the complexities of this timeless character. He told The Hindu last year:
“Ours is a modern adaption of the play,” he continues, saying, “Rajat and I created this adaptation to look at the relationship between a father and a daughter; not just how it was in the Elizabethan times, but also with today’s generation. Not just in royal families, but in the common man’s life. What Lear stands for, what patriarchy stands for, can be beautifully explored with this adaptation, and we have been a little cheeky with it.”
When: April 10
Where: Kamani Auditorium
Catch it while you can:
HOLES: Even Through Cracks, Hope Breathes (English)
What purpose does imagination serve in the midst of despair and fear? ‘HOLES’ attempts to answer this question. Two siblings find themselves caught in the middle of an uncertain night, where what was once familiar is no longer what they think it is. The play toys with humour and drama, blending sound, movement, and imagery, exploring what it means to survive, and what is needed to survive.
When: March 29
Where: Choreotheque Dance and Pilates Studio
Bangalore
Playback theatre is a form of experimental, improvisational theatre (also known as improv) where the performers interact with the audience in order to learn more about them, and then proceed to re-enact the stories or incidents that the audience may have shared with them. In this particular performance, by First Drop Theatre, the stories centre around love, gender, and sexuality.
When: April 18
Where: Atta Galatta
Laddu (Hindi)
A comedy, written and directed by Amul Sagar, that explores the complexities of marriage through the lives of its two protagonists, Appu and Jugnu, both in separate arranged marriages. Where once there were dreams of love, romance, idealism, now there lies a depressing realism in the way they see the world. Through their stories, ‘Laddu’ presents a raw and honest portrayal of relationships and love in modern society, and how the path to happiness can be built.
When: April 25
Where: Samarthanam Auditorium
The Star (English)
When fate leads to Ramesh Babu becoming a film actor, he is thrust into a world which forces him to consider the magic of the ordinary. Based on the Satyajit Ray short story titled ‘Patol Babu, Film Star’, this play is a sweet comedy about second chances. It forces the audience to reflect and appreciate the smaller moments.
When: April 23
Where: Ranga Shankara
Catch it while you can:
Dirty Biryani (Hindi, English)
In this comedy-drama about three women who meet unexpectedly but serendipitously, we are taken on a journey through chaos, frenzy, and everyday womanhood, as we spend time in the lives of the three principle characters.
When: March 29
Where: Courtyard Koota
Memory of a Candle (English)
A performance that follows the messy format and chaotic internal workings of the protagonist’s mind, ‘Memory of a Candle’ lets us into Agni’s life, little by little, trying to solve the puzzle of who it is that he loves but cannot remember. In this fast-paced comedy-drama, we are presented with the question of what reality truly is, how one remembers it, and what hope can do for us in times of fear and uncertainty.
When: March 29
Where: Jagriti Theatre
Kolkata
Dekh Behen (English, Hindi)
Adapted from a 1993 play titled ‘Five Women Wearing the Same Dress’, ‘Dekh Behen’ is set in the midst of a big fat Delhi wedding. The bridesmaids—all in the same outfit—eat, drink, gossip, and bitch. And they find out that they have one particularly special thing in common. They all dislike the bride. Written, directed, and performed by a crew made up entirely of women, this play is a bittersweet comedy about mothers, daughters, girlfriends, sisters, and wives.
When: April 24 – April 25
Where: The Urban Theatre Project
Dekh Behen Part Two (English, Hindi)
A sequel to the first part, Dekh Behen Part Two takes place five years after the events of its preceding play. Set in yet another wedding—this time a vegetarian, alcohol-free celebration—the girls find themselves back and re-committed to having a ball of a time. Written and directed by the same women as ‘Dekh Behen’, this play celebrates female friendship and growing old.
When: April 26 – April 27
Where: The Urban Theatre Project
Raktakarabi (Bengali)
Actor Chaiti Ghoshal directs Tagore’s famous play ‘Raktakarabi’ (or ‘Red Oleander’), also playing the lead, Nandini, in this Bengali adaptation. The story, written by Tagore in the early 1920s, is about a kingdom where the people are treated as mere objects, serving solely to mine gold for the big bad king. Until Nandini shows up and, through love and persuasion, rebels against the structures and revives the spirit of humanity in society.
When: April 4
Where: Rabindra Sadan
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Liked this calendar? Check out our recent art calendar for this season, with current and upcoming exhibitions on view.
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