'You can call me a retro junkie'

Director's cut

The kernel of Guru Dutt’s relationship with his wife fascinated me. I saw immense dramatic possibility there. So when my co-writer Sumana (Ahmed) came up with an idea to do something inspired by him, I immediately got on board,” says playwright and director Saif Hyder Hasan talking about his play, Gardish Mein Taare.

The 80-minute long Hindi play, which has actors Arif Zakaria and Sonali Kulkani in lead roles, is inspired by the turbulent times and relationship shared by two creative geniuses – legendary director Guru Dutt and his wife, singer Geeta Dutt (played by the two artistes respectively).

“The play, which has been built and researched over the years, is just inspired by their relationship. Yes, it is set in a particular era of the 50s, but in the end it is a story about a broken marriage. The play highlights the situations that arise when the relationship between a husband and wife go wrong, and how they handle it. Everything else is incidental; after all it is a universal emotion,” Hasan tells
Metrolife.

He takes a pause, and says, “It can be anyone’s story.”

Hasan, whose association with theatre began in 1997, has also directed Ek Mulaqat based on the love story of literary icons Amrita Pritam and Sahir Ludhianvi. On being asked what makes him go back in time, he laughs and says, “You can call me a retro junkie.”

He, however, is quick to add that both plays are about “unfulfilled love, death, and music” and together they form a “package”.

“I do not consider them as period pieces as they are human stories. Here, I am not talking about the love between Jehangir and Noor Jehan. My plays are set in a particular time but are contemporary in nature. And since they are set in a particular era, the body language and dialogue are distinct. Of course, you will not expect a couple in the 50s to say something like ‘Get the hell out of here’ during a fight... That’s the only difference. In the end, they are human stories that talk about bonding,” he says.

Gardish Mein Taare will be staged at Sri Sathya Sai Centre Auditorium, Lodhi Road on July 23 and 24 at 7 pm.