Dolly Thakore's latest play looks at Mumbai from a queer angle: A clash of culture between the vegetarians and the non-vegetarians, reports Piroj Wadia.
Dolly Thakore's latest play looks at Mumbai from a queer angle: A clash of culture between the vegetarians and the non-vegetarians, reports Piroj Wadia
Dolly Thakore’s drawing room is crowded as she takes her cast of five actors through the scripts in their hands. Dolly, in her customary chair at the corner, fills in for the absent cast member even as she gives direction.
They are rehearsing for Feeding Crows, a play written by Meher Pestonji that looks at Mumbai from an unusual angle and explores the clash of cultures between the vegetarians and non-vegetarians.
The genesis of Feeding Crows came out of Meher Pestonji’s own interaction with her servant Savitri, who refused to stop feeding crows till she had to board up the kitchen window.
Savitri believed that the crow was actually the spirit of her dead husband. It was a belief shared by Meher’s friends too. The play also has a character called Savitri based on Meher’s maidservant.
There’s also another issue that the play trespasses into - one very close to the Parsi community. The debate between the traditional mode of disposal of the dead (the Dokhmeshin) over cremation.
The cast includes film and TV actors Arif Zakaria and Meher Acharya, stage actor Firdausi Jussawalla, among others. This play was staged yesterday on the final day of the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival.
According to Dolly, it’s the relevance of the play to the city’s culture that appealed to her and made her take it up for play.
“I liked the ending. It was this conflict that appealed to me. The play is very topical - the clash between vegetarians and non vegetarians,” said Dolly, adding, “The issue about the Towers of Silence versus the cremation is very true for the Parsis. I have grown up among them and have been influenced by their liberalism.”
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