The play Jaam-e-Shahadat (Glass of Martyrdom) is a theatrical adaptation of Saadat Hasan Manto’s story ‘Shaheed-Saaz’. The dark, humorous play staged by Bombay Theatre Group on January 6 and 7 at Lamakaan, takes the audience to the post-Partition era where people were inspired with the ‘idea of sacrifice and martyrdom even as they struggled to adapt to a new national identity.’
Post-Partition tale
A scene from the play ‘Jaam-e-Shahadat’ | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Adapted by Sanjeev Mehta and Maya Rao and directed by Narendra Sachar, the almost-55-minute play in Hindustani (Hindi and Urdu) has two performers — Narendra Sachar and Sanjeev Mehta. The play narrates the story of a small-time businessman and con man from Gujarat, who decides to go to Pakistan after a year of Partition. He does petty jobs, makes friends in the government and makes money through corrupt means. “Ek saal mein bahut paisa kamaa leta hai (In one year he earns a lot of money),” says director Narendra. The story moves forward as the conman decides to take up philanthropy. Without revealing much, the director says, “His way of philanthropy is disturbing and humorous too.”
Narendra first read Manto’s story while doing a workshop at Jyoti Nivas College in Bengaluru in 2018. “My first thought after reading the story was to stage a play,” he recalls, adding, ”Since it is a first person account, I didn’t want it to be just a story narration but create a theatrical production out of it.
A scene from the play ‘Jaam-e-Shahadat’ | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
The play that was first staged in Mumbai in 2023, has had 18 shows to date across Bengaluru, Dharwad, Mysore, Ahmedabad and Shimla, with minor tweaks to the script from time to time. After Hyderabad, the team travels to Pune to stage the play.
Bombay Theatre Group stages Jaam-e-Shahadat (Glass of Martyrdom) at Lamakaan on January 6 and 7 at 8 pm; Tickets: ₹200
