Manoj Shah's new play, Mohan's Masala, comes with a disclaimer for staunch historians and Gandhians. The Indian theatre director is quick to point out that the light-hearted one man-show about the early life of Mahatma Gandhi is rooted in fiction to avoid ruffling feathers.
First staged in the Indian freedom fighter’s mother tongue, Gujarati, at the National Centre of Performing Arts in Mumbai, the production gained enough success to convince writer Ishaan Doshi and Shah to develop an English translation they are staging at Ductac tomorrow and Friday.
“Gandhi has always been interpreted in one dimension,” says Shah.
"Everyone talks about the Mahatma, but our story is that of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi before he became the Mahatma, an unrecognised part of Gandhi's life," says Shah, the founder of Ideas Unlimited Theatre Group. "Even when you see Richard Attenborough's Oscar-winning biopic, Gandhi, there isn't the slightest hint about his childhood and his journey towards becoming the Mahatma. We've seen the success story but our play is about his disaster and failure, which made him what he was – the Father of the Nation."
Mohan's Masala, as the name suggests, is an imagined fiery and humorous take on Gandhi's teenage years, guided by the few known historical facts and information taken from Gandhi's autobiography, The Story of My Experiments with Truth.
Actor Pratik Gandhi’s monologues lead the audience through Gandhi’s youthful experiences – from his time in India to his temporary stay in South Africa.
“We had very few anecdotes from his life to build this story,” says Shah.
“Even Gandhi’s own autobiography has only a few pages dedicated to his childhood. That was my starting point, and it made me curious about finding out more.”
To develop the character, Shah also researched the lifestyle and culture of the time in Porbandar, in the Indian state of Gujarat, where Ghandi was born.
"I found out what kind of dialect and language they used. I tried to understand the culture of that time in Saurashtra [a region of western India] and I've built on that," he says. "I even went through Indian Gandhian Narayan Desai's book Gandhi Katha and author Giriraj Kishor's work, along with essays from foreign authors and criticism about him."
From the research, Shah and Doshi developed a personality sketch of Gandhi’s childhood and teenage years. The process took two-and-a-half years.
“Porbander was one of the biggest trading ports in India at the time,” he says.
“I took inspiration from the books written about this once thriving place in Gujarat and fused my character into that. As a dramatist that was a fantastic challenge, to create a new soul out of nothing.”
Indian artist Atul Dodiya, known for his historical and political imagery, created the play’s set and backdrop, which features images of a young Gandhi in black and white.
Perhaps most satisfyingly, Shah says he got a “thumbs-up” from Gandhi’s extended family. “I had invited his family members and they absolutely believed the character,” he says. “The fiction has worked because of our research and the understanding of what could have been his childhood.”
Shah describes the story as one of a common man. “It was so interesting to explore his day-to-day activities, relationships with friends, parents and neighbours when he was staying in Porbander,” he says.
“How he was schooled, how he wasn’t the brightest student and wouldn’t really participate in games and sports. And it was that kind of boy who transforms himself to become a national hero. “The story is about finding the hero within us. All of us have that potential, but only few can convert that ability into heroism.”
• Mohan’s Masala will be staged tomorrow and Friday from 7.30pm at Ductac - Mall of the Emirates. Tickets are from Dh150 on www.ductac.org
aahmed@thenational.ae
