Lillete Dubey brings the story of Gauhar Jaan back to stage with this thought provoking play

There were really three factors. First, when I set up my company, the main reason was that I wanted to tell Indian stories. I had worked for over 20 years with Barry John and Theatre Action Group (TAG), doing the classics like Shakespeare and while that journey was immensely enriching, I felt a strong urge to platform Indian writers and create original Indian work. I was constantly looking for stories such as novels, short stories that could be adapted for the stage. Secondly, I have a deep love for music. I trained in classical music for seven years in my youth, largely because my father was very fond of music. Though I don’t sing anymore, that love stayed with me. I enjoy almost every form of music, from hindustani classical to western classical and popular music. Somewhere subconsciously, I think I was also looking for a play where music could play a central role. And thirdly, I have always been drawn to women’s stories. It wasn’t a conscious decision, but when I look back at my body of work, many of my plays have strong female protagonists. All of this was probably at the back of my mind when I was searching for a new project. I was chatting with Mahesh Dattani when he mentioned Vikram Sampath’s book My Name Is Gauhar Jaan. I read it and immediately felt it could make a wonderful play. The book is vast, so adapting it was challenging but Vikram was very supportive. Mahesh, who usually prefers writing original plays, was also captivated by Gauhar’s story and agreed to adapt it. That’s really how it all began.

For me, music is never a standalone element. It’s always a layer, something that enriches the story rather than interrupting it. In Gauhar, the songs are completely woven into the narrative. They emerge organically from scenes, heighten emotions or lead into moments of dramatic transition. I listened extensively to her recordings and carefully chose five or six pieces that fit seamlessly into the structure of the play. Each song corresponds to a specific emotional or narrative moment. None of them exist as showpieces. We re-composed the music by keeping her original melodies and lyrics, because the archival recordings are over a century old and very scratchy. While we initially perfor med with live musicians, logistics eventually made that difficult. Now the actor sings live to a minus-one track, so the music still retains its immediacy and vitality

More than we’d like to admit, not much has changed. The competition, the struggle to carve a space, the pressure to constantly prove oneself — these are realities artistes still face. For women, the challenge is even greater. Balancing an intense professional life with personal expectations is something male artistes are rarely burdened with. Patriarchy still exists, even if it has taken subtler forms. Gauhar’s life reflects that imbalance very clearly, which is why her story continues to resonate.

My new play is Zen Katha. It was written by the late Pratap Sharma and tells the story of the 5th-century prince who went on to found Zen Buddhism and martial arts as we know them today. It’s a beautiful, layered story, set partly in South India and partly in China and I hope to bring it to Bengaluru very soon.