BWW Previews: FAMOUS GUJARATI PLAY Saat Teri Ekvis Now In Hindi as #Womanologues

According to veteran theatre enthusiasts, the real sign of a maturing theatre audiences is when people want to see versions of regional Indian plays in a language they understand better. And this is what is seeming to happen off late in Indian theatre scene. The latest being - Manhar Gadhia - the respected theatre artist bringing his hit play Saat Teri Ekvis, now in its season 3 to the audiences in Hindi.

Entitled #Womanologues, one of the play's big strengths can be a volley of writers who have written the stories making it strong, impactful and tight so that the audiences remain riveted -- an extremely important quality for a performing arts show to be well accepted. Writers Abhinay Banker, Ketan Mistry, Raam Mori, Rahul Patel, Sanjay Chhel, Sanjay Trivedi have written the play while it is directed by the very talented Pratik Gandhi. The cast of the show is big, keeping in mind the stories but every character does justice to his role. The cast includes Ami Trivedi, Binda Rawal, Bhamini Oza Gandhi, Chitraleka Rathod, Namrata Pathak, Tusharika Rajguru and Veronica Gautam.

The play is an interesting set of monologues, with each story exploring the theme of desire -- an emotion we all wrestle with in our everyday lives. On the unusual choice of having not two but seven writers for the play, Manhar Gadhia says, "There's a lot of talent waiting to be appreciated. While collating for stories, I selected 7 prolific writers whose fresh approach to the subject will surely strike a chord in the minds and hearts of the audience. We chose some of the well-known faces from television and theatre as well as some new dynamic actors. To direct these fresh stories and talented lot, I selected Pratik Gandhi - a director's actor whose attention to detail and passion for the craft has been most impressive and so will be his new role as an actor's director."

Directing a cast of all strong women is not an ordinary task and director Pratik Gandhi seems to have taken the challenge to its hilt. On directing the play with such important messages he says, "s an actor, I have always been directed by some of the best people in the industry. I started performing monologues with the first season of Saat Teri Ekvis (Gujarati) and then came back to perform for the second and third season as well. I feel monologues hone an actor's skill, as one doesn't have any other actor to support one's performance, just props. So it pushes an actor to create that strong engagement with the audience for the span of the performance. As I wanted to gradually head towards directing and Mr. Gadhia showed faith in me and gave me this opportunity. For my directorial debut, we explored scripts revolving around desire from a woman's perspective. Directing #Womanologues was a challenge and an absolute delight. Be it Survival, Intimacy, Being Oneself, Motherhood, Love, To Be Born or Appreciation, each mood is different, so is it's energy. While some stories may evoke heart-warming smiles, others may evoke a soul-searching silence, but all will make one sit up and notice a woman's soul with a new perspective. "

The show is an interesting taker on feminism and whether you like the term or not it is worthwhile to listen to these powerful monologues that are sure to draw you to their worlds.

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