Mareez | |
---|---|
Written by | Vinit Shukla |
Date premiered | 16 November 2004 |
Place premiered | Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai |
Original language | Gujarati |
Subject | Mareez |
Genre | Biographical play |
Official site |
Mareez is a 2004 biographical play about mid-twentieth century Gujarati poet Mareez, written by Vinit Shukla and directed by Manoj Shah. One of Shah's long-running productions, it premiered on 16 November 2004 at Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai.
Directed by Manoj Shah and written by Vinit Shukla, the play narrates the life of Mareez. The play has been adapted by the author from Mareez's biography Mareez: Astitva Ane Vyaktitva (2001) written by Raeesh Maniar. The representation of Mareez has been influenced by Vincent van Gogh's autobiographical work Dear Theo and Charles Bukowski's biopic Barfly . The set features six paintings painted by Gulam Mohammed Sheikh. [1] [2]
The play premiered on 16 November 2004 at Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai. [3]
The original cast included: [4]
Mareez is one of Shah's long-running productions. [1]
Utpal Bhayani was impressed by Dharmendra Gohil's acting and called "Mareez was in his veins". He also praised director and writer for connecting Mareez with Manto and Ghalib. He also praised performances of Dayashankar Pande, Nayan Shukla and Kumkum Das. He also praised costumes, production, music, audios, backdrops and lighting. He found Mareez's Mushairas with other poets from which he became well known, missing from the play. [3]
Deepa Punjani of Mumbai Theatre Guide praised the performances, direction, writing and production. She found the presentation of various phases of Mareez's life interesting and engaging. She found the "drama of Mareez's life indulgent" but found the play "fresh" and important for literature and performance. [5]
Journalist Ashish Vashi praised Dharmendra Gohil's performance and called it "most remarkable and mesmerizing aspect of the play". [2]
In May 2023, Mohsin and Lalua, sons of Mareez, issued public notice regarding the lack of consent from them for the play. They sought compensation as the owners of intellectual property rights of Mareez. They had objected to the fictional events as well as private events from their father's life portrayed in the play. [6]
Prithvi Theatre is one of Mumbai's best known theatres. It was built by Shashi Kapoor and his wife Jennifer Kapoor in memory of Prithviraj Kapoor, Shashi's father, who had dreamt of having a "home" for his repertory theatre company, Prithvi Theatres, belongs to the Kapoor family, one of the most influential actor and director families in Bollywood. Prithviraj Kapoor founded 'Prithvi Theatres', a travelling theatre company in 1944. The company ran for sixteen years. Ved Segan was the architect who designed and built the Theatre with the supervision of Jennifer Kapoor. Jennifer, (Trustee) supervised the building and running of the theatre until her death in 1984. In 1978 Prithvi Theatre opened in Juhu, Mumbai. Shashi Kapoor was the Managing Trustee, the daily affairs are looked after by Kunal Kapoor (Trustee) with a small but efficient team. Prithvi Theatre has shows every day of the year, hosts an annual Summertime programme of workshops and plays for children, the Memorial Concert on 28 February, an annual Theatre Festival in November, and many partnership programmes promoting language, poetry, international cinema & documentaries, performing arts – which are free to the public.
Theatre of India is one of the most ancient forms of theatre and it features a detailed textual, sculptural, and dramatic effects which emerged in mid first millennium BC. Like in the areas of music and dance, the Indian theatre is also defined by the dramatic performance based on the concept of Nritya, which is a Sanskrit word for drama but encompasses dramatic narrative, virtuosic dance, and music. Historically, Indian theatre has exerted influence beyond its borders, reaching ancient China and other countries in the Far East.
Mareez, born Abbas Abdul Ali Vasi, was a Gujarati poet, mainly popular for his Ghazals. He is popularly known as Ghalib of Gujarat. He left studies in young age and started working in rubber shoe factory. Having been interested in poetry, he took up journalism but remained financially unstable throughout his life. He wrote Ghazals published in collections but many of his works remained uncredited which he sold during his financial difficulties. His popularity escalated after his death.
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Hu Chandrakant Bakshi is a 2013 biographical one-man play about Gujarati writer Chandrakant Bakshi, starring Pratik Gandhi. The play is written by Shishir Ramavat and directed by Manoj Shah. It was premiered on 15 June 2013 at Prithvi Theatre, Mumbai.
Dr. Anandibai Joshi is a 2017 Gujarati-language one-man play about Anandibai Joshi (1865–1887), first Indian woman physician, written by Gita Manek and directed by Manoj Shah. Mansi Prabhakar Joshi played the role of Anandibai in the production. The play premiered on 2 December 2017 at the National Centre for the Performing Arts, Mumbai for its Center Stage Drama Festival 2017. Unlike Shah's other one-man plays, this play features a woman character for the first time. It was later staged in Hindi and Marathi language.
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