Bhoomija Brings Girish Karnad’s “Tughlaq” Back to the City

Bengaluru: After a highly successful premiere with sold-out shows earlier this year, Girish Karnad’s landmark play, “Tughlaq”, will be staged in the city once again. The Kannada play is presented by the popular city-based arts organization Bhoomija. It is designed by renowned stage designer, art director, and film director M S Sathyu and directed by prominent Kannada theatre director S Surendranath. The play will be staged at Ranga Shankara on Fri, 30 Jun, at 7 30 PM and on Sat, 1 Jul, at 3 30 and 7 30 PM.

“Tughlaq” features a stellar cast comprising several popular Kannada television, theatre, and film actors.

Full cast list: Keerthi Bhanu, Hulugappa Kattimani, Ganapati Hitthalakai, Soumya Bhagwat, Krishna Hebbale, Berty Olivera, Anurag Sharma, Yatheesh N Kollegala, Salian Umesh Narayana, Murali Shringeri, Ganesh M Bheemanakone, Rajat Maradi, Sripathi Manjanabail, Avinash Shivapure, Arun Murthy, Sharat Gowda, Manoj, and Manju Siddaiah.

According to director S Surendranath, “Girish Karnad‘s Tughlaq is one of the greatest plays of Indian theatre. This play, which revolves around an eccentric ruler in Indian history and the events of that time, can never be irrelevant. Political strategies, religious intrigues, religiopolitical conflicts, and personal relationships are interlocked in the play.  This presentation of the play is an attempt to bring it closer to contemporary times, to 2023, both inwardly and externally.

Inwardly by examining Tughlaq’s personal turmoil, and his relationships, and externally by bringing up contemporary events. It is an attempt to see Tughlaq as a common man rather than as a king, thereby understanding the present in both general and political contexts. At one end there is the king, the king’s stepmother, and his statesman, while at the other end, there is a swindler, a thief, some rich men, and priests. It is also an attempt to understand what impact the orders of the palace have on the population at large.”

“We most certainly wanted a Kannada play as a part of Bhoomija’s tenth-year celebrations and it had to be a Karnad! It is our privilege that such a fantastic team has come together to breathe life into this classic”, said Gayathri Krishna, the Managing Trustee of Bhoomija to The Balcony Stories.