Feroz Abbas Khan, as we told you before, has finally got the epic Mughal-e-Azam as a musical, says Debasrita Chakravorty
A timeless epic and an immortal tale of doomed love from the 16th century, the classic story of Mughal prince Salim and courtesan Anarkali is soon going to come alive on the stage as we reported back in June. The musical will be staged at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium from September 9-17.
The K Asif-directed classic film had stalwarts like Prithviraj Kapoor, Madhubala, Dilip Kumar and Durga Khote but not many from the younger generation have seen the movie — until now. This production is an attempt by director Feroz Abbas Khan to introduce them to the heart-wrenching tale. Khan considers the stage presentation of K. Asif’s masterpiece a success since in Mumbai, where it opened, not a single ticket was available for four seasons. Right from the grandeur of the clothing, mesmerising dance sequences, memorable dialogues and the opulence of ambience, this tribute has all the dramatic elements.
Khan, popular for plays like Tumhari Amrita andSaalgirah, had thought about adapting the 1960s’ film a long time ago. He says, “I wanted to share this great piece of cinema as a huge theatre experience. For audiences in Delhi, we are setting it up on an even bigger scale than Mumbai.”
Mentioning about the set-up, Khushroo Suntook, chairman, National Centre of Performing Arts (NCPA) says, “Mughal-E-Azam has large sets, a 175-member crew and requires a larger number of projections with a high-tech infrastructure. Delhi does not have a theatre that can stage a play of this proportion.The producer, Shapoorji Pallonji & NCPA, have, therefore, made a huge structure at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium.”
The live execution of music and dances on evergreen hits like Pyar kiya to darna kya and Teri mehfil mein kismet aazma kar are an exhilarating experience and will take the audience back in time. The choreography by Mayuri Upadhya matches steps with the original. “I wanted this classic to be as timeless as ever so I did not want to meddle with it. I wanted the choreography to be authentic without any sort of fusion. The base is kathak. There is a certain standard that had to be maintained. There is a balance of artistic skill and entertainment,” says Upadhya.
Designer Manish Malhotra’s costumes are in sync with the scale of the lavish stage set-up which has chandeliers, spherical domes, lean minarets, large halls, huge vaulted gateways and delicate ornamentation with intricate jaali-work. The combination of all this with the light projection will make the play a larger-than-life experience.
Talking about the stage presentation of Mughal-e-Azam, the director says, “I hope I will add a few more memories to those who have watched the original. First thing that I kept in mind is that I do this work with the greatest of respect for the original creator. This piece of work is the pride of our nation and I should take that as a legacy. I should make a production which, if not better, but at least should not be less than the pride that we feel for the work. I always felt responsible to carry out this work.”
He further adds, “There are a lot of memories attached with Mughal-e-Azam. So if I do anything that hurts the sentiments of the audience, it would be damaging. I was very conscious about that and it was a guiding principle for me. As this is a live performance. So the actors should have the discipline of theatre for keeping pace with the live movements.”
Commenting on the spurt in commercial success of theatre in recent times, Khan says, “The more we are getting disconnected from the real world, the more theatre is getting sought after. Human beings wants to see real humans and connect on the emotional scale.” As for freedom of expression in art, he adds, “I’m very clear that responsibility precedes freedom. So I’m not worried.”
Photo: Pankaj Kumar