Hope much do we know about Mahatma Gandhi's life as a five-year-old? The play Mohan's Masala by Ideas Unlimited delves into the life of young Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, focusing on events spanning from his birth in Porbandar to his life's tipping point in South Africa — and developing the qualities that led him to become the Mahatma.
'Even in his autobiography, just a few pages is dedicated to his life between age of five and 22. From the little information that was available, I discovered that many of the Mahatma's ideas and values started developing from a young age,' says director Manoj Shah. 'We started working on a play about Gandhi, and I looked at all events that took place in Porbandar during that crucial period. Three criss-references matched the facts.'
The play was recently performed at Shanmukhananda Hall, followed by a year-long sabbatical. 'But there's something new in it for everyone. Audiences at both venues were touched. You can find glimpses of interspersed relationships and English in Kalbadevi or Hindi in some way,' says Shah.
The play, initially written in English, was first performed in Gujarati and 'audiences encored and requested the Hindi version, and then adapted the play to be performed in three languages.' The Gujarati script is by Satya Mehta, Hindi by Mihir Bhuta and Arpit Jain, and English by Ishan Doshi.
Pratik Gandhi, who plays the lead, says the production was made in Hindi to reach a larger audience. 'We performed in English in Kalbadevi and Hindi in NCPA. Manoj Shah sir wanted to reach a wider audience. This time, we decided to go ahead and perform back-to-back in a first-of-its-kind attempt on one day,' he adds.
The play has been entered in the Limca Book of Records, says Shah, adding that Pratik Gandhi (who plays Mohan) 'is like a potter's wheel — each language will present a challenge for him, and he performs with such ease.' The original music rendered by Parthiv Gohil and vivid imagery has been designed by Atul Dodiya — and has the audience the privilege of watching.