Mahesh Dattani ‘plays’ it forward

“Life is too short for compromises. Do what makes you happy instead of focusing on what other people view as symbols of success,” says Bengaluru’s eminent playwright, stage director and filmmaker Mahesh Dattani. His latest offering Me and My Plays will hit the stands on January 16.

The opening essay deconstructs his public persona without delving too much into his intimate personal life. It also takes a peek at Bangalore (as it was called then) in the 60s, when it was considered a pensioner’s paradise, where musical dramas were staged and the young Mahesh was enamoured by the power of this medium He talks about his unsuccessful attempts at being an actor and candidly admits that his ‘nasal voice and effeminate gestures’ came in the way of his success.

“If you write your memoirs, you need to be as honest as possible. I could have been more honest but that is part of my personal life and not relevant to my public persona,” says Mahesh.   

He also pays a touching tribute to his father, who loaned him the princely sum of Rs 4,000 as it was hard for Mahesh to find sponsors for his new age concepts. He says, “Sponsors were only willing to support clumsy versions of Broadway musicals like the Sound of Music. That’s when my father supported me. In fact, there is a family joke that I still owe him. But I deliberately have not repaid him as I want that debt to spill over to my next life. I meant what I said because my father has been a huge support system,” he adds.

His nostalgic account of the old ‘Bangalore’ even as he traces his journey in the world of theatre makes for a spell-binding read. The gripping essay is followed by his first stage play, Who Moved my Purdah, a powerful and moving account of an actress’s life. Nadia, the protagonist appears to have much in common with the late actress Zohra Sehgal. “She was an inspiration in terms of the journey to India post partition, her bond with her sister and her life here. But when I wrote the play, I had actress Lilette Dubey in mind. In fact many of Nadia’s quirks, are taken from Lilette’s personality including the way she spoke to her secretary,” says Mahesh. The play traces the journey of a popular actress, now in her 80s, who is forced to come to terms with the harsh realities of the present, where she is no longer in demand and deal with the unpleasant truths of her past.

The play has generated different reactions in different cities. “n Mumbai, Nazia’s quirkiness appealed to the audience, whereas in Delhi, there was pin drop silence as the audience could relate to the partition trauma,” he says.

His second play in the book, The Big Fat City, highlights the loneliness and financial constraints of living in an expensive city like Mumbai. It is also a black comedy where a couple and their neighbours get involved by default in a murder that takes place in Niharika and Murli’s home. TV actress Achint Kaur played the lead role and candidly admitted to taking her time to understand the essence of her character. “Achint is very honest about  her approach  to the play. She is not a trained theatre actress. She has an intuitive approach and yes she cracked the play by the third performance and was fantastic,” he admits.

Not one to rest on his laurels, Mahesh is already working on his musical production, which he hopes to stage soon. “I can’t talk about it right now but yes like all my other productions, I hope to stage this in Bengaluru too.”