Gujarati Mid-Day
Ek Kalakaar, Ek Director, Ek J Natak Tran Bhashama
By Gujarati Mid-Day
7 June 2016
The Gujarati Mid-Day devoted a full page to the historic event: one actor, one director, one play, three languages, one day. Under the headline 'Ek Kalakaar, Ek Director, Ek J Natak Tran Bhashama' (One Actor, One Director, Same Play in Three Languages), the paper covered Ideas Unlimited's unprecedented achievement.
On Thursday and Friday at the Prithvi Theatre, producer-director Manoj Shah's programme 'Prithvi Masala Programme' featured the play Mohan No Masalo in its three avatars: Gujarati at 13:00, Hindi at an evening slot, and English at a late slot — all performed by the same actor, Pratik Gandhi, directed by the same Manoj Shah.
The article covered the full scope of the event: the Gujarati version written by Satya Mehta that served as the adaptation, the Hindi version by Mihir Bhuta and Arpit Jain, and the English original by Ishan Doshi. Each version, the article noted, carries different emotional textures — the Gujarati version feeling most intimate, the Hindi reaching the widest audience, and the English version carrying the original authorial intent.
The paper also highlighted the Limca Book of Records recognition for 'Performance of One Play in Multiple Languages in One Day' and featured photos of Pratik Gandhi in character as the young Mohandas, with Atul Dodiya's distinctive black-and-white backdrop paintings visible behind him.
Also covered on the same page: that Friday would see Ideas Unlimited perform three additional plays — Karl Marx In Kalbadevi, Mummy Tu Aavi Kevi, and the well-known Gujarati literary adaptation Gharisima Kaleidoscope — making it a marathon day of theatre.