Several experienced theatre personalities are making a comeback to the stage this season.
Over the last few years, theatre in Mumbai has grown by leaps and bounds. Apart from the new faces, several experienced theatre actors are also choosing to make a comeback on the stage this season.
Navin Talreja, senior vice-president, O&M
Navin says his interest in performance arts always brings him back to his favourite medium (theatre). However, Navin had to get away from his passion to meet the demands of his job. Till about three-and-half years ago, he was active among theatre groups like Samarpan and the British Drama Group. Currently, he is part of the play The Mousetrap and hopes to continue his stint with the theatre group Theatrician.
Swapnil Joshi, TV actor
Back on stage in Dinyar Contractor’s play Teri Bhi Chup Meri Bhi Chup, Joshi admits his theatre career took a break after he got “really busy with my daily soaps”. In fact, Swapnil made the producer of the play wait for two years to give him his dates. While Swapnil says he hopes his commitments to television can leave him with spare time to pursue theatre, he admits that he is exhausted with the long hours that he had to spend rehearsing for his comeback.
Himani Shivpuri, TV and film actor
Co-staring with fellow TV actor Mouli Ganguly, Himani Shivpuri has made a comeback with a recently-premiered play Oye Band Baj Gaya. A National School of Drama graduate (1982), Himani did active theatre with NSD Repertory Comany in Delhi. She says she had almost reached a block in her theatrical career after playing leads in over 5,000 shows. She says, “It was like I had reached a plateau.” Himani also admits that she went full-fledged into television after she was offered a role in the serial Humrahi for which she shifted base to Mumbai.
Manoj Pawha, TV and film actor
Back on stage after 15 years, Manoj Pahwa credits Naseeruddin Shah for pursuing him to give the big screen a break and take to the theatre stage once again. After doing theatre in Delhi for eight years, Pahwa shifted base to Mumbai to earn some more money as he had a “kitchen and family to run”.
The actor confesses, “Around 1994, television was running prosperously and Hindi theatre wasn’t really paying much.” Manoj also confesses that after years in front of the TV camera, he had completely lost his confidence in solo performances until Motley gave him an offer to join their group. Recently, Pawha wrapped up his performance with the Motley Festival.
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