Thanks to Hyderabad’s youth, the city’s theatre scene is buzzing like never before. Take for example 28-year-old Mihir Pujara, who had exactly this on his mind while bringing Sankalan Theatre group to life last year.
Talking about his journey from being a pharmaceutical professional to a theatre artist, Mihir says, “I came to Hyderabad few years ago, and since then, I’ve had the opportunity to work with many theatre groups; I have performed in plays written in multiple languages. But at the end of the day, I really missed my roots.”
This longing to go back to his roots urged Mihir to start something of his own. “So finally, last year I gathered some courage and jumped into it. I posted my idea on social media platforms and got a huge response from the community people,” he mentions. But that’s not all; Mihir even got all of his actors from that one, single online post. “With this huge response, I understood that I was not alone in my urge to bring out our culture to the forefront, there were many others who shared the same passion,” says Mihir.
Talking about the group’s latest play, Mihir says, “It revolves around a septuagenarian widow who wishes to go to the US. The whole set-up is based on 13 main characters, all of whom live in a society, and how they are doing their best to help the old lady clear her visa interview after three failed attempts.” The play, titled Jo a badha sathe to duniya le mathe, is an out-and-out comedy, which, at the end, touches the audience’s soul. Elaborating on their journey thus far, the lead actress of the play, Amisha Pancholi, says, “Being a mother of a class X student and acting as a septuagenarian was not easy. But it was my daughter who urged me to take it up and give it my best. ” When questioned about the relationship among colleagues, Amisha says, “Since April this year, we all have become a family, rehearsing every weekend.” Agreeing with her, Urvi Thakkar Pujara, an HR professional who plays a fitness freak in the play and Mihir’s real-life wife, says, “It all started off as Mihir’s dream to let Hyderabadis see the essence of a Gujarati play but now it has become my dream as well.”
