A touching tale

Theatre company ‘FATS TheArts’, founded by Faezeh Jalali, is performing its new production ‘7/7/07’ (based on the written accounts of Reyhaneh Jabbari and directed by Faezeh) in the City in January. There will be three shows of ‘7/7/07’ at Jagriti Theatre on January 8 and 9 at 8 pm and January 10 at 6.30 pm.

The play premiered at the NCPA and Vinod and Saryu Doshi Foundation Centrestage Festival in December to an overwhelming and heartwarming response from audiences.

It is an ensemble piece devised by the company, from Reyhaneh’s written accounts. Created over six months, the piece uses physical theatre to provide a visceral and engaging retelling of her story. A crowdfunding campaign for this production was launched on Ketto and has so far raised Rs 3.5 lakhs.

On July 7, 2007, Reyhaneh Jabbari, a 19-year-old Iranian girl, was put behind bars
for defending herself against the man who tried to rape her. He died under mysterious circumstances with multiple stab wounds, although Reyhaneh had only stabbed him once.

After being arrested and enduring a trial that lasted seven years, she was found guilty of pre-meditated murder and hanged in October 2014.

During the last year of her life in prison, Reyhaneh wrote intimate and detailed accounts of her experiences and the unjust trial and verdict. Although Reyhaneh's story is an individual experience, it has a universal resonance.

 Her story highlights the disregard for basic human rights in the prison systems across the world, crimes against women in male dominated societies as well as the powerlessness of the individual versus the state. It is a story that transcends cultures.

Faezeh Jalali is an actor, director, choreographer, teacher and trainer with theatre degrees from universities in the USA. She has been a part of several plays in India and abroad. As a teacher and trainer, Faezeh conducts several workshops for students, professionals and corporates. She has done some films, television series and ad work; however, her first love has always been theatre.

The cast of 7/7/07 includes Suruchi Aulakh, Mahnaz Damania, Vikrant Dhote, Nikhil Murali, Himani Pant, Rytasha Rathod, Tanvee Ravi, Natasha Singh, Srishti Srivastava and Navaneeth Venkateswar.