Taking life as it comes

It was in 2013 that we last met writer Javed Siddiqui and his actor-daughter Lubna Salim at the former’s office in Andheri. Back then, he had written a play called Kachche Lamhe, starring Lubna, Harsh Chhaya and Kiran Karmakar. Now, when we meet the father-daughter duo, it’s because the wordsmith has written yet another play — Gudamba — but this time, it’s a one-woman show helmed by his daughter. Theatre director Salim Arif, who also happens to be Lubna’s husband, has directed the play. 

LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER

Giving all the credit of coming up with the play to Lubna and Salim, Javed mentions that they requested him to write a monologue. “It was always a challenge but the fact that it came from them, made it all the more challenging!” he laughs. Dwelling on why they did that, Lubna says that she felt she was getting repetitive with her roles. “The last play that I did was Paansa, two years ago. I was going through a phase where I didn’t find anything exciting. Like Papa, I enjoy challenges and kept asking him to write something different and interesting. And then he came to my rescue, literally!” she smiles, pointing towards her father. The artiste believes that she is confident of pulling off a one-woman show because of the confidence Javed and Salim have shown in her. 

POINT OF VIEW

As 45-year-old Amina in the play, Lubna recounts her journey, starting with how as a young 18-year-old, she got married into a conservative Muslim family. Peppered by her insightful and, often, witty observations on everything from marriage, to her children, in-laws, relatives and society among others, the play shows her as a strong woman with a mind of her own. “It’s not like she doesn’t have choices but she chooses to do what does. There are challenges along the way but she learns from her experiences,” says Lubna. 

The writer sees this as an ordinary story of ordinary people. “However, the extraordinary in this is the way the narrator sees things. The significant thing I have tried to do here is to create a point of view,” he informs. 

With Gudamba, especially, he’s tried to convey the message that one can also laugh at their plights. “Whether it’s a sad situation or a happy one, Amina ne usko jiya hai, enjoy kiya hai and that’s the forte of the piece,” he adds. 

Talking about the title, Javed says that Gudamba is actually a dessert made of cooked jaggery and raw mango. “It’s sweet and sour, neither frozen nor completely liquid. Similarly, life is like Gudamba. It’s sweet and sour. Woh rakkhi bhi ja sakti hai, chakkhi bhi ja sakti hai aur baanti bhi ja sakti hai! (It can be kept, tasted and even shared). It’s when you try and set your life in a certain way, that it becomes difficult. Zindagi ko ussi tarah lena chahiye, jiss tarah woh aa rahi hai (You should take life as it comes),” he observes with a smile.

Gudamba on May 30, at Prithvi Theatre, 9 pm.