Mohanlal to return to stage with Kalidasa's play

The play will be first staged in Sanskrit at the Ujjain Festival in Madhya Pradesh in November, one of India's major cultural events in the town where Kalidasa lived and wrote his grand plays.

Mohanlal's earlier stage ventures include Bhasa's 'Karnabharam', which ran to full houses wherever it was staged. He had often said that stage gave him great creative satisfaction even while pursing film career.

"Lal is a fine, gifted and versatile actor who fits in well to depict the protagonist of Vikramorvaseeyam, Puruvaras," Panikkar said.

Panikkar's theatre group 'Sopanam' had earlier produced several classical plays including master pieces of Kalidasa. But this time, he is planning to produce Kalidasa's 'Malvikagnimitram', 'Vikromorvaseeyam' and 'Abhijana Sakunthalam' as a trilogy.

"The heroines of these plays reflect three dimensions of nature. So these have been conceptualized as a trilogy, though I have earlier produced them separately. Lal has agreed to act in the second play of the trilogy," Panikkar, the former vice-chairman of Kendra Sangeeth Natak Akademi, said.

Panikkar added that there is still a large audience for classical plays in India, especially for the great works of masters like Kalidasa and Bhasa.

"In Ujjain, we had a standing audience. We have had impressive turn out in cities like Kolkota and Mumbai whenever we went with our classical plays," he said.