Theatre: The moving story
(NOTE: This article was originally published in the India Today issue dated June 2, 2025)Mumbai Star will mark the first time in its seven seasons that Aadyam—the Aditya Birla Group's decade-old initiative to promote theatre—presents a 'dance musical'. Director Nadir Khan says the play, which will be staged at Mumbai's St Andrew's Auditorium on May 24-25 and Delhi's Kamani Auditorium on June 14-15, is unlike 'anything I've ever done before'.advertisementHe says this even though, on paper, the production sounds similar to his last collaboration with Aadyam, 2018's #SingIndiaSing. They both feature and are named after fictional reality TV competition series. However, in Mumbai Star, the contest forms just '10 per cent of the story', which centres on aspiring dancer Dev who shifts from a coastal village to the titular city to follow his dreams. In Mumbai, he grapples with 'the exhilarating highs and crushing lows' of chasing fame. Khan describes the Hindi play as a tale 'of aspiration, hope and overcoming obstacles'.Unlike #SingIndiaSing, which was in English, with live singing, '85-90 per cent' of Mumbai Star is told through 'movement' set to recorded music by composer Dhruv Ghanekar. Because of this, Khan says, it's very much 'a co-creation' with choreographer Avantika Bahl and associate choreographer Surabhi Andrade. 'It wouldn't have existed without us getting onto the same page,' says Khan.advertisement
Notably, there are only two actors, Rajit Kapur and Srishti Shrivastava, who serve as narrators, while the rest of the cast comprises 15 professional dancers who had to be 'multifaceted in terms of their knowledge of dance and mastery of their bodies'. That's because multiple forms are showcased on stage.Written by Akarsh Khurana and Arghya Lahiri, with lyrics by Ishitta Arun, Mumbai Star was originally conceptualised by actor-producer Devika Shahani's The Dragon Rose Project for the Tokyo-based Min-On Concert Association, an organisation that promotes international performing arts exchanges. The play comes to India after a 20-city tour across Japan, where it was performed for 'more than 50,000 people' in 2023.Part of the reason it translated so well could be that most of the story is conveyed non-verbally. '[The dancers] are acting, but just with their bodies,' says Khan. 'The challenge was for them to make us feel a scene, and not just show beautiful movement.'Subscribe to India Today Magazine
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