Vijay Padaki takes inspiration from the classic Tagore short story for his new play, Kabuliwala Calling

Bangalore Little Theatre stages the production this week at Ranga Shankara
A scene from the play
A scene from the play

Rabindranath Tagore’s 1892 short story Kabuliwala is a poignant and moving tale about fatherly love, but one that also has a strong undercurrent of themes such as migration and national identity. Bengaluru-based theatre veteran Vijay Padaki’s new play Kabuliwala Calling is based on this story whose themes still ring true today, more than a hundred years later. Bangalore Little Theatre stages the production this week at Ranga Shankara. 

“Initially we wanted to do an adaptation of this play in 2011, for Tagore’s 150th birth anniversary year. But at that time we adapted another Tagore project, Robi’s Garden,” Vijay tells us, adding, “The Kabuliwala has now been taken up for his 160th anniversary, 120 years after the story first appeared.” The original short story tells the tale of a fruit seller from Kabul, Afghanistan who comes to Calcutta every year to sell 
dry fruits. On his daily rounds he meets a young girl, Mini, who reminds him of his own daughter back home. The two are very close, but over the course of the narrative, unfortunate circumstances make them 
drift apart. 

Kabuliwala Calling stars actors Maitreyi S, Naveen Tater, Karan Manveer Singh Dalal, Minti Jain, Ranjitha S and Murtuza Khetty and is co-directed by Vijay and Murtuza. The play looks at the story from a contemporary lens. It begins with a writer who is researching the history of the Afghans in India and in the process he is interviewing an Afghani man. This man recalls how Tagore knew his father and had based the story on him. The play uses this man to narrate Tagore’s story. Along with this, the production 
also touches on how these migrants have a difficult time in the country, and how tough it is to get documentation. 

Murtuza plays the role of Mini’s father. The actor tells us, “Though I can’t call myself a Tagore fan, I don’t miss any opportunity to experience anything Tagore. It feels really nice to be part of a story that you’ve read and seen many times in different forms. Acting in the play and co-directing it has made me look at the story very differently. It is not just about the bonds between a child and an adult, it is also about how people fear strangers from different cultures. But all that is needed for the bonds to grow is to learn more about them and not rely on biases which have crept into our lives based on hearsay.” 

Just before the pandemic, BLT was gearing up to celebrate its diamond jubilee and Vijay Padaki’s 80th birthday. “Alas, much of the celebration had to be put on hold because of the pandemic. Even Kabuliwala Calling had several rehearsed readings online. What it did was to prepare the ground for the full production. We are back on stage now. At last,” he concludes. 

Rs 250. March 13, 3.30 pm and 7 pm. At Ranga Shankara, JP Nagar

anagha@newindianexpress.com @anaghzzz

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