17 March,2010 08:57 AM IST | | Ishita Sharma
Russian author Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol and Shakespeare meet in a Hindi theatrical productionu00a0-- Doobi Ladkiu00a0-- set in Bihar
It's Russia and Rome at romance. An abandoned child, a copier clerk and a forlorn girl child come together for a theatrical production that takes inspiration from three of Gogol's works, namely The Overcoat, The Nose and A Night in May, and also draws inspiration from Hamlet. As a number of sub-plots merge together, the play mainly brings forth the theme of standing up for one's own rights.
Weight and watch: The cast rehearses for the play
That sinking feeling
The play is about a self-centred father, who abandons his offspring to perpetual emotional and physical agony. He is exploitative and blinded by his greed. His own son rises in revolt against him and the curse is finally cured. Set in Betab Nagar mohalla in Bihar, the place has all kinds of characters living together u2013 barber, tailor, munshi, drunkard, and a constable. But, behind this seeming liveliness of the mohalla lies the tragic tale of the 'Doobi Ladki'. It reveals itself when a mother and a daughter (Gul) enter the mohalla to live there. Life takes a dramatic U-turn from there, with each and every character struggling to exist. More than the storyline, it is the characters that get inspired by Gogol's work, whether it'su00a0 the clerk Nakkal Nawees (The Overcoat) or the character of Chaudhary (The Nose). The cast includes Rakhi, Bhola Ram, Abdul Kadir Shah, Dwarika Prasad, Sukumar, Shaid-ul-Rehman, Anup Singh and Anamika, among others.
Hamlet revisited?
"The play takes inspiration from Gogol's work no doubt, but it also weaves a certain amount of Shakespearean drama. It's like Hamletu00a0-- a brooding person who rebels against authority. As far as the title of the play is concerned, it does not pertain to any individual, but society as a whole, which rises against anything that is wrong, much like Gogol's work, 'The Drowned Maiden'," delves director Bhanu Bharti. "Gogol's writings have relevance till date, and even though it was a creative challenge to mingle three of his plays together, it was quite a satisfactory method indeed," he signs off.
Doobi Ladki
When: March 18- 21
Where: Abhimanch Auditorium, NSD, Bhawalpur House, Bhagwandas Marg, Mandi House,
Time: 6.30 pm
Tickets: Priced at Rs 10, 30, 50 and 100, available from 11 am to 4 pm at NSD office
