Bringing Kasturba to Life

Ever since she burst upon the scene in Dev Anand’s ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’ in the early seventies as the Western-oriented, weed-smoking, hip-swinging Janice, the University of California-educated Aman, very much a SoBo-bred girl, had captured the public imagination as the epitome of the urban sophisticate

“The Mahatma, and less so Kasturba, have been featured in many productions. But this play, in English, unfolds as a love story between the two, from Kasturba’s perspective as a wife, through unwritten letters, with unfolding history as a backdrop. So it is completely original in that sense,” says iconic actress Zeenat Aman, about her upcoming play ‘Dearest Bapu, Love Kasturba’, in which she essays the role of the Mahatma’s wife.

Iconic actress Zeenat Aman will essay the role of Mahatma’s wife, in upcoming play ‘Dearest Bapu, Love Kasturba’.

Ever since she burst upon the scene in Dev Anand’s ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’ in the early seventies as the Western-oriented, weed-smoking, hip-swinging Janice, the University of California (UCLA)-educated Aman, very much a SoBo-bred girl, had captured the public imagination as the epitome of the urban sophisticate. Thus, she is the first to concede that it is an unusual casting. “It is challenging for me, and I know that nobody expects me to be playing Kasturba. But I was intrigued and challenged and I have a wonderful director in Saif Hyder Hasan, who has produced and directed 14 plays and Arif (Zakaria) who essays the role of Gandhi, is a very dedicated artiste. So it’s been an extremely positive experience,” she said when we spoke yesterday.

Aman, now in her late sixties and the mother of two adult sons – both professionals in the film industry – is that rare artiste, a 24-karat star in tinsel town, who, even as the highest paid and most successful actors of her era, was never known for her starry tantrums or diva-like behaviour. Unaffected by her success and unwaveringly grounded, she has never allowed her larger-than-life image to affect her in any way.

“I think you need a strong work ethic to participate in a project like this,” is all she says, underplaying the huge challenge of facing a live audience and memorising lines, for a medium that is relatively new to her.

Has she appeared on stage at all, we enquire. “Yes, 15 years ago as Mrs Robinson in ‘The Graduate’,” she says, underplaying the prodigious learning curve that she has gamely signed up for.

‘Dearest Bapu, Love Kasturba’ premieres at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) at Nariman Point in the last week of February.

TRUELIES

Word comes in that the recent end-of-year holiday cheer sadly does not seem to have extended to India’s food and beverage (F&B) industry.

“The Christmas-New Year period is usually what restaurateurs wait for. But this time, it was one of the worst in the Metro cities as premium restaurants were mostly empty and bookings had dropped by up to 50% at some locations,” informs an insider.

“It’s been a sluggish period in general, and only a small handful of F&B groups are making a profit, while the rest are heavily debt-ridden, and it’s a worrying time for an industry which was previously believed to be lucrative. This has led to a top Asian private equity fund cancelling plans to invest in the Indian F&B sector,” the insider said.

The current scenario may also lead to a consolidation in the sector as two rival Delhi-based restaurant groups, led by young entrepreneurs, are said to have begun talks to merge operations.

“It’s still in early stages and due diligent procedures are underway. If it does happen, it will mean more than 200 F&B outlets will be part of the new joint venture, says another F&B insider, adding, “While another high-profile Mumbai chef insists that the only way to stay afloat in this market is to man a kitchen and focus on the home delivery market.”

Overheard

“I dreamt there was only one float at this year’s Republic Day Parade.... Two guys sitting on a cow, and one Yogi cuddling a monkey. Fellow travellers like Canada Kumar, Ms Run Out, Sad Guru and Anupam K, were accompanying the float on motor bikes. Makes for a wonderful visual, doesn’t it?”

-A Mumbai grande dame’s recent post on social media.

It’s the principal of the thing

“We are in New York and were invited to a ‘happening’ theme party to bring in the New Year and the theme was ‘Come as your favourite Hollywood Character,” said Dr Indu Shahani, the founding dean of the Indian School of Management and Entrepreneurship president and chair of the Indian School of Design and Innovation, and the School of Communication and School of Management and Entrepreneurship.

“So, here’s presenting Sheriff Woody from Toy Story and Cleopatra,” she said about the get-up which she and husband, corporate honcho Ranjit Shahani sported which had been designed exclusively for them by the students of her design school. For many years, Shahani, as the principal of one of the city’s leading commerce colleges, had gained a reputation for her progressive approach to making education a fun and vibrant experience for her students, and one can see why.

When asked if we could carry the picture of the fancy dress theme, her response was characteristic: “Yes, for sure...... it will be exciting and encouraging for my students!”