Paresh Rawal: For artistes like me, Prithvi is a temple

With memorable plays like Khelaiya, Dear Father and Krishan Vs Kanhaiya to his credit, it’s no wonder that Paresh Rawal is one of the most loved theatre actors in the country. As he closes this year’s Prithvi Theatre Festival in association with Bombay Times, with a Stage Talk session, the actor speaks to us about his life on stage.
How did your association with Prithvi begin?
As a child, I was mischievous and an attention-seeker, so acting came naturally to me.When I joined Narsee Monjee College, I started doing plays, along with a bunch of other students. And eventually we got to perform at Prithvi. I did a hugely successful Gujarati play, Khelaiya. From Feroz Abbas Khan and Shafi Inamdar, to Naseer bhai and Omji, there were many of us who used to perform there. It was a brilliant atmosphere. Performing at Prithvi was a novel experience, because unlike other theatres, it was very different — it didn’t have any curtains and the audience was at close proximity to the actors. Also, it was theo nly place that allowed us to experiment and do the kind of plays we really wanted to, within a reasonable budget. The ticket was only Rs 10 per person. And this is one of the main reasons why I bow down in front of Prithvi. Today, despite the sky-high real estate rates, they have managed to keep this theatre movement going. Whether it was Jennifer, Shashiji, Sanjana or Kunal Kapoor, they have all worked so passionately to maintain it. They never thought of making a multistoried building here. They could have easily earned crores. I know this is a melodramatic statement, but whenever I would visit Prithvi, I felt like I was resting my head in my mother’s lap. It was that peaceful and even today, I feel the same. It has a very positive and creative atmosphere. We need more Prithvis in the city. For artistes like me, Prithvi is a temple!
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What do you miss about the good old days?
Back then, we could do a play with a cast of 15 to 20 people. Unfortunately, today, nobody has that kind of time. The cast keeps getting replaced and that is very frustrating. Also, actors don’t want to put much effort in theatre, because they know there is no money in this medium. Earlier, people were willing and enthusiastic to work. We used to do plays from day to night. I have never seen that kind of atmosphere in Mumbai again. You’ve done more work in films. Do you regret not giving enough time to theatre? I have been doing professional theatre for the past 43 years. I have never felt like I left theatre because even today I do shows. I will never stop performing on stage. Unlike films, theatre allows you to experiment as an actor, which is fulfilling. Also, when I do plays, I assimilate all my life experiences and bring it to my performance. That is the magic and beauty of acting live. Films can provide money but even that can’t compensate for the joy and satisfaction one gets from doing theatre.
Which are your favourite stage performances?
I love all of Naseer bhai’s plays. He does theatre with such honesty, that he never thinks about the box office collections. He wants to just convey a script to the audience and there is a lot of piousness in his performances. I never had that sort of vision. Atul Kumar’s plays are also very detailed. In regional theatre, Arun Mukherjee’s Jagannath and Dr Shriram Lagoo’s Mitra are memorable. Then there was one play, Shivaji Underground, where the actors were farmers from Jalna district. They had never stepped on stage before, but the show was mind-blowing.
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Are you working on a new play?
I do have an idea in mind. For my next play, I want to take up a hard-hitting subject, just like Krishan Vs Kanhaiya. But it will make people uncomfortable, as it is a very sensitive topic. I believe the motive of theatre is to disturb the audience’s state of mind. A play should be thought-provoking.
Today at Prithvi Festival in association with Bombay Times
Carnival Synopsis: An assortment of their favourite scenes performed by Prithvi’s regular actors. Time: 4 pm PERFORMERS: Pratik Gandhi, Jaswinder Singh, Satchit Puranik, Merenla Imsong, Ratnabali Bhattacharjee, Suhaas Ahuja, Faisal Rashid, Kavin Dave, Shashank Vishnu Dutt, Hitesh Malukani, Anchal Podar, Prashant Amlani, Nikhil Desai, Rohit Das, Divya Jagdale, Joy Fernandes, Nivedita Baunthiyal, Manisha Shevade, Neha Sharma Iyer and Vinit Sharma Time: 7 pm PERFORMERS: Sudhir Pandey, Shishir Sharma, Natasha Singh, Manish Chaudhary, Sohrab Adershir, Rakesh Bedi, Sheeba Chadda, Ketaki Thatte, Amit Mistry and Chirag Vohra
Stage talk Synopsis: Actor Paresh Rawal will talk about his life and work Time: 6 pm
Sunday acoustic jam Synopsis: Acoustic performance by the students and faculty of the True School of Music, Mumbai Time: 11 am
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