What makes Mumbaikars love musicals so much?

Ever since Broadway musicals reached Mumbai back in 2015, the love for musical plays has only increased among art and cinema lovers. The National Center for Performing Arts alone hosts 700 musical events every year, while the Balgandharva Rangmandir has hosted more than 3,000 music-related events since its inception. Despite the high cost of production, musicals have found their footing in Mumbai. 

Over the years, musicals have seen a meteoric rise in Mumbai, with many multidisciplinary music and art spaces providing platforms to up-and-coming artists. These centers also regularly host theater festivals that further offer many opportunities for directorial debuts for musical plays. One of the biggest reasons why these musicals are becoming so popular is because of their production quality, storylines, and stage decor. Balgandharva Rangmandir in Bandra West, Mumbai, alone has witnessed some of the most well-directed musical plays in the past few years. 

For instance, back in 2017, the auditorium played host to a unique musical dance ballet called ‘Balle Balle’ produced by Wizcraft Entertainment. The ballet was based on the theme of Indian weddings and featured many well-known songs from Hindi cinema. The ballet, which had 120 artists, had a three-month run with more than 50 back-to-back shows at the Balgandharva Rangmandir. 

Another instance is Mogul–E-Azam, a historical musical play produced and directed by Feroz Abbas Khan. It has been considered one of the most acclaimed theatrical hits, featuring 150 artists and live singing by the actors. Noted fashion designer Manish Malhotra designed costumes for this play that also got noticed internationally for its storyline and creative stage settings. Mogul-E-Azam had a total of 30 house-full shows at Balgandharva Rangmandir. 

That doesn’t mean that only Hindi film producers have an eye for musical programs and storylines. A special musical play produced by Eastern Harmony paid tribute to flute maestro Pandit Shri Hariprasad Chaurasia. Titled ‘Bansuri Jab Gaane Lage’, the musical play was launched at Balgandharva Rangmandir.