Two months ago, Mumbai’s prime theatre company Motley enthralled the city’s theatregoers with a two-week theatre fest at Juhu’s Prithvi Theatre. Now, the group spearheaded by the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Ratna Pathak-Shah, Benjamin Gilani and Akash Khurana, are back at Nariman Point’s National Centre for the Performing Arts with the second innings of the three-part festival, celebrating thirty years of committed theatre. The following week, the third part of the marathon series of plays will be staged at Dadar’s B N Vaidya hall. Now, meet the indispensable figure behind Motley – Jairaj Patil. Circa three decades ago, the 53-year-old theatrewallah started off as a make-up artiste. He soon plunged into Hindi films, which also marked his alliance with Naseeruddin Shah. Subsequently, Shah’s theatre company Motley, also came under his wings and ever since the commencement of the group in 1979, Patil has been nurturing it like his own baby. Besides playing Shah’s confidante and Motley’s God papa, the idiosyncratic man runs his own film production company, Bhagwati Samarth Pictures formed along with his partner Ajay Phansekar. He is also in the process of setting up an art auction house. On a clammy afternoon, at his office in Bandra, Patil talks about his splendid theatrical journey.
Reema Gehi
In retrospect how would you view your association with Motley?
Motley has made me the person I am today. I have been part of Motley ever since Benjamin Gilani, Roshan Taneja, and Naseeruddin Shah formed the group in 1979. I began with doing make-up for them and today I am involved with all the aspects of each and every production. I do whatever work that has to be done and that goes for all the Motley members. From backstage to ticketing to stage management, I have also designed the sets for some of the plays like ISMAT AAPA KE NAAM and ANTIGONE. I would do everything that is there in my capacity to make a play happen. It gives me great joy.
Did you always want to pursue theatre?
I don’t have a theatre background. In fact, no one in my family was ever inclined towards theatre. After completing my schooling I enrolled myself for a diploma in motor mechanics in IIT Matunga. However, a dear friend and colleague, Arvind, who was a make-up artiste asked me to assist him with his work. I took up the job and that marked my association with theatre. His deep passion and understanding of the arts made me fall in love with theatre. Later, I ventured into doing make-up for films and it was while working on Ismail Shroff’s film, where I first met Naseerbhai. I was working as his personal make-up assistant. Simultaneously, I started helping him with Motley. Over time I took up his secretarial work and then rest, as they say, is history.
Which would you regard as Motley’s most challenging production?
In recent times I would say ANTIGONE. Until the very last minute we weren’t sure of the set, but eventually we pulled it off. JULIUS CAESAR as well as ANDROCLES AND THE LION were challenging because of the large number of members in the cast. But every production has been challenging and unique in its own way. For many reasons I would regard WAITING FOR GODOT as a landmark production. Primarily because apart from being the group's first play it has been one production that has lived with us forever. And there are so many different stories to narrate.
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I remember a day before one of the several shows, Imaad (Shah), who at that time was essaying the role of the boy got chicken pox, so Ratna (Pathak Shah) went up on stage as the boy. (Laughs) Then, there was one instance when Imaad was on stage and his younger brother Vivaan was waiting in the wings. All of a sudden Vivaan wanted to go on stage and I had to hold him back. (Pauses) I also remember an incident when Akarsh (Khurana) was playing the part of the boy. During one of the shows he was waiting in the wings and a huge plank was sliding down. I was at the other side and I saw him holding the board. I ran from one end of the backstage to the other to catch it so that he could make his entry on stage. I guess such moments have made this play even more special than it already is. We couldn’t help but restage it for our recent festival.
What are you views on the present day theatre?
Theatre today is facing a great ordeal. Television has eaten up a lot of theatre. Hence, you don’t have theatre groups staging a play every day. So people have to spend a lot of time commuting to watch a play and the traffic in the city is a crawl. So for many, watching a play has become only a weekend activity. Besides there are hardly any performance spaces in Mumbai. We’re hoping to create a new set of audience in the Dadar-Matunga-Mahim belt by staging the third part of our festival in Dadar’s B N Vaidya hall.
What is Motley’s primary concern while staging a play?
As a group our primary concern is that we must all want to stage a play that we believe in. If the audience likes a play we continue to do more shows. If they do not we close it and we stage another play. We want to stage new plays every year. We have been fortunate that through the years Motley has become a self-sustaining group. Even now there is no increment in the fee, which each actor gets for the performance. Today there are about 60-65 members and volunteers with our group, from whom we only demand commitment and discipline. Everyone gets a standard sum. Even the money that we make from our ticket sales, we invest it in our next production.
Although you have always been in the company of such prolific actors, did their obsession for acting ever rub on to you?
(Laughs) I played a small role in the previous running of the play, THE CAINE MUTINY COURT MARTIAL, but right now I am keener to direct a play than act in one.
Is there something in the offing?
I have read and seen a few Marathi plays, which I hope to adapt into Hindi. However, it’s still too early to talk about it. As for now, Motley is planning to stage ISMAT AAPA KE NAAM- Part Three for next year. So let us see where that takes us.
*Reema Gehi is a theatre enthusiast, a student of Trinity College of Speech and Drama and a freelance journalist.
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In retrospect how would you view your association with Motley? 
