20 brilliant singers and musicians, and 16 dancers, of the Malhaar choir — the Indian classical ensemble in Dubai — set the right note and courtly ambience as LED backdrops recreated the physical grandeur of Nawabi palaces on stage at Ductac, Mall of the Emirates.
Inspired by the life of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the last ruler of Lucknow, Malhaar presented the biggest production of its Jashn-e-Awadh series on Friday night. And did not disappoint.
Although a just and much loved ruler, Shah was an artist and preferred to be at Pari Khana (house of the courtesans) supporting music and dance rather than working in the government, which ran as a well-oiled clockwork because of his ministers. He was himself an accomplished, poet, playwright, singer and Kathak dancer. But this ideal life wasn’t really pleasing to the members of the British East India Company who saw the principality of Awadh as a golden goose with its fertile lands and rich heritage.
The virtual display of the palace brought an innovative and experimental approach to the set while prominence was given to performers rather than the props. All the musicians and singers were up front rather than back stage. Jogiraj Sikidar and Somdatta Basu put together melodious compositions of some of Wajid Ali Shah’s best poetry. Of the singers Priyanka Chakraborty, Sudakshana Mukherjee and Sreekutty Rupesh stood out with their renditions of Sataya Dil, Kabhi Ban Sanwaar Ke Aaye and Phulwaa Beenat Dar, respectively. Needless to say Basu’s Yaad Piya Ki Aaye, one of Wajid Shah’s best known ghazals, was the highlight of the performance. The melancholic strains of Ghulam Ali’s sarangi bring to life the sadness in Shah’s heart just as much as the joy of the courtesans as Shah enters the court.
Relevant values
Acting wise new actor Anupam Saxena chose to emote more with his voice keeping a stiff demeanour to depict the regality of his character. What he scores in is his singing of Shah’s ghazals Tadap Sagri Rayn Gujari and Sataya Dil. Jawaid Akhtar, who plays the narrator Kaashif Miyan, is the link that binds history with present day, making Shah’s values relevant. The play gives a message of brotherhood as Shah, a Muslim, celebrated Hindu festivals with just as much zeal. You find him doing the raas (Krishna’s dance) and swaying to the strains of Mann Kunto Maula at a dargah, just as happily.
Where the performance lacked is in its length. Despite excellent Kathak dancing and choreography by Vaishali Mhaisalkar and her team, at some points you feel the song and dance stretch too far and lose the point of the narrative. Especially in the second act when you want a crisp and fairly quick conclusion, songs that last five to seven minutes seem unnecessary. At the same time one cannot forget that Malhaar is, after all, all about song and dance.
