The life story of Kashmiri legendary poet Habba Khatoun was retold through a play “Zoon”. The play was staged at Bharat Bhavan on Sunday, marking the grand closure of 38th foundation anniversary.
Written and directed by Purva Naresh, the play is set in two eras 16th century and the present day, the play unravel the love story of the poet, originally named Zoon, and Yousuf Shah Chak, the warrior king of Kashmir, who she eventually marries.
The year is 1570. Yousuf Shah Chak, the warrior king of Kashmir captivated by a peasant girl, falls in love with the beauty of her voice and the richness of her rhyme. She is Zoon (the moon). They marry against all odds. Their love, destined to be short lived, is thwarted by a jealous Akbar, the great emperor. Renamed Habba Khatoun, she goes on to become the legendary last poet queen of Kashmir.
In 2019, in a maidaan somewhere in Kashmir, the stage is set for a dramatic retelling of Zoon's legendary tale.
Five young college students wait to be assigned their roles for the show. Why have they caught the attention of a soldier stationed nearby? In another corner a mysterious woman sits silently. Who is she and what is she doing there? Little do they all know that the drama will unfold before anyone even gets onto stage.
As Kashmir’s past and present collide through the richness of song and poetry, be enthralled by this compelling and dramatic reinterpretation of the story of Zoon, the nightingale of Kashmir.
The director uses the device of a play within a play for the dramatic retelling of Habba Khatoun’s tale. Her poems and writings gave voice to the ordinary man and woman of Kashmir.