SONS OF BABUR (*ing TOM ALTER & others) July 21, 2012

Pierrot’s Troupe Presents
Salman Khurshid’s SONS OF BABUR
(English – 25th Show – Silver Jubilee Presentation)
July 21 (Sat) 7:30 PM, SHRI RAM CENTRE, 4, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi
Script: Salman Khurshid
Direction: Tom Alter
Duration —1:2 hrs.
Featuring Tom Alter, Hareesh Chhabra, Anju Chhabra,Yashraj Malik, Ram N Diwakar, Manohar Pandey, M Sayeed Alam, , Omair, Himanshu Srivastava, Pulkit Sharma, Puneet Sikka, Prakhar Chhabra, etc.

Original, incisive and topical – this is what Pierrot’s plays are characterized for. So this time around the troupe brings to you the Silver Jubilee presentation of Salman Khurshid’s ‘SONS OF BABUR’; virtually a revisit to the era and aura of the Mughols. In addition, Salman Khurshid, in his theatre debut, has superimposed ‘a search for India’, on that identity issue of ‘sons of Babur’.
The playwright’s intellectual search takes him back in time to the Mughal era. The central character of the play is of course Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Mughal emperor, languishing in exile in far away Rangoon.

In the present times, he has an ardent admirer in Rudranshu Sengupta the protagonist, a university student of history. Rudranshu is so obsessed with the life of the last Mughal that he has a virtual supernatural to experience that transports him to meet Bahadur Shah in person. From then on the play swings between fantasy and reality, past and present, logic and emotion, fact and fiction. Rudranshu is taken on a guided tour by Bahadur Shah through various milestone events of the Mughal era. They effortlessly slide into the world of Babur, Humayun, Akbar, Jahangir, Shahjahan and Aurangzeb, all seen directing the course of medieval India or Hindustan.
As the play progresses, one cannot but in turn be enamoured by the benevolence of the Mughals, feel disgust at their ambition, become fearful of their cruelty and also admire their ability to unite diverse populations into an entity called Hindustan.

With this is emphasized the understanding that India is a collage of cultures and nothing remains alien here, including foreigners who make this land their home; after all home is where the heart is.

Tickets: Rs. 500/-, Rs 300/-, Rs 200/- & Rs 100/- available at SHRI RAM CENTRE from APRIL 8 2012 and on the day of the show. For details, Tele Booking, Bulk Booking Contact: 9810255291, , 40506826, 29944635, pierrotstroupe@yahoo.com, AND/OR http://www.bookmyshow.com/plays.aspx and/or call 39895050 Visit us at www.pierrotstheatre.com

For details: 9810255291, 40506826, 29944635, pierrotstroupe@yahoo.com,

Excerpts from Press Reviews

"Sons of Babur isn't about revisiting the Mughal emperors, it's an attempt to understand the relevance of the Mughals to the identity of contemporary India -- Indian Express

With Sons of Babur, the venerable actor, Tom Alter, adds another feather in his cap, that of a director of an English play – Asian Age ( Mumbai)

The effective framing device captures both the splendour and temporal nature of political power, the rise and the ruin of one of India's most significant historical eras – The Times Of India (Crest)

On stage, another play unfolds within the play as the two revisit the era with a visual extravaganza through lavish Mughal costumes and brilliant performances,—The Pioneer

Kudos to Pierrot's Troupe for recreating Mughal history like a vintage show in a matter of two and odd hours – The Hindu - Hyderabad

Official Website: http://www.pierrotstheatre.com