Marathi theatre audiences know Sanjay Narvekar well. He can easily be regarded today as one of the most popular actors of the Marathi professional stage. He has several plays to his credit and is better known for his roles in plays such as ALL THE BEST and AADHANTAR. His recent plays include ASHI PAKHRE YETI and LOCHA ZALA RE. Sanjay has also acted in a few Hindi films, ‘Vaastav’ being the most popular amongst the lot. His acting talent has won him awards such as the Indian National Theatre (INT) award and he has been able to work with some skilled directors like Vijay Kenkre, Chandrakant Kulkarni and Amol Palekar. The following conversation is not only about the Hindi play that Sanjay is currently involved with but also concerns his experience in the theatre.   Is EK FOOL DO BLOODY FOOL your first Hindi play? Yes, it is my very first Hindi play. You’re a popular Marathi stage actor. What made you do this Hindi play then? I was told by many people that Hindi theatre lacks the energy and vitality that is an intrinsic part of the Marathi stage. EK FOOL DO BLOODY FOOL is a play in which things happen very swiftly. So when Santosh Pawar, the director of the play approached me with the idea, I liked it immediately. The other thing that I found relevant about this play is that it is a political satire. It is reflective of our crisis in politics and governance. Although people are aware of the situation, the play is our small effort to help people ponder on this. Are you familiar with Hindi theatre? I can’t say I have seen many Hindi plays but yes I have seen some. You have acted in theatre as well as in films. Which medium appeals more to your sensibility? I can’t be choosy here. I am fond of both the mediums equally. Both are quite distinct. In theatre for instance, the actor has to make sure that he has the attention of the person sitting in the last row. So whatever needs to be done has to be loud. In films, you have the camera positioned at various angles and an actor therefore must know how to emote without overdoing it. Well, even theatre calls for subtle acting... Sure it does. When I say loud, I don’t mean the actor has to overact. What I mean is facial expressions, voice, etc. must be adequately clear to the spectator sitting in the last row. The other fundamental difference that I can think of between theatre and film is that the former is a product of planned rehearsals while for the latter you are given the script and all your improvisation takes place in front of the camera. One may rehearse for months but each performance in the theatre is characteristically defined as a new experience... That is true. In Marathi, we have the apt word for it. We call every show a prayog and this simply means that each show is different. There is also the aspect of immediate response attached to each show. So then which has been your best role in the theatre to date? I have always done roles that I have liked. Each of the characters that I have played has been special to me. So by that measure, I have given each role my best. If I like a character, I simply get involved with the script. Who is your favourite playwright and why? There is actually more than one. I can name at least three playwrights whose work I greatly respect. They are Vijay Tendulkar, Satish Alekar and Dr. Rajeev Naik. If I have to select Dr. Rajeev Naik’s name from amongst the three and ask you what do you like about his plays, what would you say? Dr. Rajeev Naik I think deals with contemporary issues in his plays. In a play like SAATHE CHA KYA KAREYCHA he has portrayed Saathe, an absent character who epitomizes the ruthless competitiveness that is endemic in our age. Saathe never appears on the stage. But the very mention of his name through the play is enough to ravage Nikhil another character with overwhelming emotions ranging from jealousy to helplessness. What are you doing currently besides EK FOOL...? I have started work on two Marathi films; one of then is in the dubbing stage. I have also been going to Bangalore to shoot for a Hindi film called ‘Gabbarsingh.com’ It is being directed by a person called K.Ravi. I also have plans to do another Hindi play, a fantasy of sorts but will not speak much about it as it is still in the homework stage. 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Interview 2 Timira Gupta Jyoti Dogra Lillette Dubey Mahesh Dattani Chandan Roy Sanyal Sunil Shanbag (ii) Jairaj Patil Jehan Manekshaw K Raja Ravi Verma Sankar Venkateswaran Heisnam Tomba Hariharan Jamini Pathak Hilda David Satish Alekar Vir Das Ranjit Hoskote Om Katare Nipun Dharmadhikari Satyadev Dubey Dipan Ray Stefan Kaegi Zafar Karachiwala Dakxin Bajrange Makarand Sathe Ramu Ramanathann Cyrus Dastur Shekhar Sen Benjamin Juhel Chaitanya Tamhane And Sudeep Modak Sujata Mehta Asif Basra Barry John Nagesh Bhosale Astad Deboo Manhar Gadhia Sandesh Bhandare Usha Ganguli Sushama Deshpande & Suhas Joshi Jyoti Vyas Arundhati Nag Habib Tanvir Ramu Ramanathan Pushan Kripalani Harold Pinter Rajeev Ravindranathan Rajendra Gupta Viji Iyengar Sunil Shanbag Darshan Jariwalla Smriti Irani Atul Kumar1 Ashwin Gidwani Toral Shah Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal1 Shaili Sathyu Sanjay Narvekar Rohini Hattangady Dr. Ashok Ranade Vandana Sajnani Mahesh Elkunchwar Madhu Rye Mahesh Thakur Srimathi Madiman Kinnari Vohra Joy Fernandes C.K. Thakkar Jameel Khan Anupama Jayaram Lilelette Dubey Avatar Gill Dharmendra Gohil Rajesh Puri Kumud Mishra Kumar Shahu Meenal Patel Mujeeb Khan Anant Mudra Utkarsh Mazumdar Shekhar Sen1 Manav Kaul Rati Agnihotri Smita Jaykar Uday Chandra Rahul Da Cunha Atul Kumar Manoj Joshi Jaimini Pathak Boman Irani Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal Naseerudin Shah Joy Fernandez Kamlesh Mota Dinesh Thakur More about Sanjay Narvekar - Ek Fool Do Bloody Fool - Hindi Play

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