This upcoming production by Arundhati Raja returns to stage this weekend, in Bengaluru

Many times, we struggle to find a middle ground in life and are often crushed between our ideals and relationships. This upcoming play — Bali: The Sacrifice by Girish Karnad, is based on the same idea. Being the English translation of his play Hittina Hunja, the plot revolves around a king, who is caught between his Jain queen who refuses to harm life and his mother who believes in sacrificial rites. He finds himself struggling to reconcile his love for the women in his life, his position as a ruler and perhaps the hardest of all, his faith. We get into a chat with Arundhati Raja, director of the play and cofounder of Jagriti Theatre to find out more about this production.

“I have done two other plays of Girish Karnad — The Dreams of Tipu Sultan and Yayati. Although the stories might not be similar for these plays, what I like about his characters is that they all are strong women. They want to do what they want and what they think is right for them irrespective of being surrounded by total patriarchal systems,” begins Arundhati.

When asked if she has brought any changes to the original script by Girish Karnad, Arundhati says, “When the playwright writes the story, it’s what is there in their mind and how they want these characters to be put together in the plot. But after that, it is always a directorial interpretation. When I work with the scripts, I try to bring the best out of them. So, I do a lot of discussions with the actors to know what they feel about their character and then putting everything together. It’s my interpretation but I don’t change lines and I don’t believe in doing that at all because the playwright has written what they want to be performed.”

The music for the play has been written by Ananth Menon, who is known for his blues and rock repertoire. “I have always liked working with him because he brings all his knowledge into a theatrical space. When you’re a musician, you have your way of thinking, but for him, he thinks dramatically. In terms of the costumes, I haven’t placed it in any particular time, neither had Girish Karnad, but the costumes are taken from traditional Indian costume ideas,” she adds.

INR 400. August 30, 7.30 pm & August 31 and September 1, 3.30 pm & 7.30 pm. At Jagriti Theatre, Whitefield.

Email: alwin@newindianexpress.com

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