Dilnaz Irani in Drama baby’s blues Directed by Ila Arun and KK Raina. Two shows of the play will be performed on April 8, 2023 at Ranga Shankara, Bengaluru Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Ila Arun is no stranger to Bengaluru. Earlier, the actor-director – best known as a folk and Hindi film singer – presented plays Miracle on Matunga Street And this is the way of love Which had been showered with accolades when it staged in the city last year. Overwhelmed by everyone’s love, his theater group, Surnai Theater and Folk Arts Foundation, is back with two more productions this month.
Drama, casts shadows And baby’s bluesWill be played at Ranga Shankara on April 7 and April 8 respectively.
“I fell in love with the Bangalore audience as they were very receptive and intelligent. It’s always good to explore the reaction of a crowd you’re not used to,” Ila says over the phone from Mumbai.
challenging tradition
Poster of Ila Arun Shadows behind. The play will be performed at Ranga Shankara in Bengaluru on April 7, 2023 Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
casts shadows The Hindi adaptation of the play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen is Evil spirit And this is his fourth play that he has adapted.
“The ghosts in the play are not something out of a horror movie. The play is about feudal pride, age-old traditions and taboos that do not change with time. They stalk, suffocate and haunt women generation after generation like ghosts,” says Ila.
While the subject is universal, Ila was excited to set it amongst a royal family in Rajasthan. “As I am aware of the class and caste dynamics in Rajasthan, I used it as a canvas and added my own strokes to paint this story.”
fall into madness
Actress Ila Arun performing in the play ‘Peechha Karti Parchhaiyan’ on the third day of the International Theater Festival in Jodhpur in March 2023 | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
baby’s blues (BB), on the other hand, is a faithful English staging of American playwright Tammy Ryan’s 2001 play about a woman’s descent into postpartum depression (PPD). It is the first play in India to talk about PPD and “deals with the reality-changing experience of new motherhood, rooting the play in my own emotional experience, but also steeped in clinical case research”. It is,” says Tammy, who battled PPD herself.
Ila calls the protagonist a victim of her own mental and hormonal health, pushed over the edge by a lack of emotional support from her family, who are equally clueless about the devastating effect of PPD. “In fact, I didn’t know what PPD or baby blues was until I bought and read this play in New York. Many doctors are clueless too,” says Ila.
Both the plays seek to criticize traditional ethos and ideas. Whereas casts shadows deals with the issue of domestic violence against women and suppression of their voice by traditional societies, baby’s blues Directly confronts the taboo subject of mental health while demolishing the image of holy motherhood.
decades old collaboration
baby’s blues Ila and has been co-directed by longtime collaborator KK Raina. casts shadowsMeanwhile, written by Ila and directed by Raina, while he also starred in the lead roles.
Ila Arun | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“We have a great understanding because of decades of cooperation. I wanted Raina to co-direct baby’s blues Also bring it into male perspective. He is an observant director who knows how to extract the best from the strengths and weaknesses of the actors. Together, we created a sensitive environment for the development of drama,” says Ila.
As a folk musician, sound design is crucial for Ila’s plays and she is all praises for the talented music composer duo Sanjay Daz and Amber Das. “I have written and composed two songs pkp, but the sound design and production by Sanjay and Amber add deeper layers to it. his work in BB It’s fabulous too,” says Ila.
She says that Salim Akhtar’s set and light design captures the various mental states of the protagonists.
Ila hopes that her efforts will reach audiences in the city. “I want all young mothers to watch two shows baby’s blues So they can understand the situation and be prepared for any eventuality.”
(Peech Karti Parachhaiyan on 7th April at 7.30 pm and Baby’s Blues will be staged on 8th April at 3.30 pm and 7.30 pm at Ranga Shankara, JP Nagar. Tickets are available online and at the venue)