Khatijabai of Karmali Terrace
August 13, 7.15 p.m.
What do you do when a man drags his sobbing wife backstage, to prove the emotional power of their play to the actor and director? What a humbling experience, affirming the power of theatre, when she confesses to seeing her own mother in the monodrama! What an affirmation of the power of theatre when a strapping gentleman says: ‘This play is not about a woman!” because he sees parallels between Khatijabai and himself! What comical dismay when a disgruntled couple complain about the choice of names — the husband was Jafferbai as in the play, and they lived in a building called Karmali Terrace!
Quasar Thakore Padamsee, Artistic Director, Q Theatre Productions (QTP), has directed and produced plays, corporate shows, conducted theatre workshops and foreign tours, served as assistant director to Tim Supple in “A Midsummer Night's Dream”.
What impelled him to adapt Stella Kon's original text about the Penarkan community of Singapore to Mumbai's Khoja community? “There are amazing similarities. Both embrace change with an incredible ambition to get ahead while retaining a fierce sense of family duty,” he explains.
The British influence was another strong parallel.
Six years of performance has had actor (Jayati Bhatia) and the director imparting to ‘Khatijabai of Karmali Terrace' their own growth in maturity. The character has evolved with them.
Though Khatijabai remains true to Kon's portrait, Padamsee was hugely inspired by his own paternal grandmother in fleshing out details. It was not easy to recreate her world — in ambience, culture, mindset, mannerisms.
The focus was always on making this “mere housewife” unique — she was ordinary and yet fantastic, resilient, scheming and stoical. “How or why would a 20-something male be interested in this woman's struggle? That was our major pre-occupation,” Padamsee laughs.
Director’s Cut – Quasar Thakore Padamsee
In the age of nuclear families what made you go for a theme about a big clan?
The play is not about a clan, but about a woman whose fascinating journey starts in pre-independence India and ends almost today. She had nothing, but worked her way to become a powerful matriarch. Used to a house full of people, she has to come to terms with her children wanting to move away. What I foundmost interesting are the frequent shifts back and forth in time, as memories fade in and out.
How do you enrich a monologue with diversities?
Much information is conveyed through conversations with other characters. We discovered that Khatijabai talks to almost 45 different people during the play! How she talks to each — best friend, sister-in-law, son, husband, servant — is important. We borrowed a few elements from genres such as Odissi — not immediately identifiable as themselves — but enlivening the narrative.
The actor's contribution?
Khatijabai is completely Jayati Bhatia's creation. For me, they are the same. But only recently did I realise how hard I've been on her. The entire play is one scene, with detailed lighting cues; it has virtually no music or sound effects. The actor has to age, jump through varying emotional states and time zones. Never once did Jayati complain. This play lives with her. I enjoy watching her each time.
However, the monologue has another performer: lighting director Arghya Lahiri, a key contributor to the story.
