Category: Theater

Parsi naataks miss the rich sonic texturing lent by the late greats, Kersi Mistry, Dara Mehta and Sarosh Bhabha Music director Kersi Mistry (extreme left) in rehearsal with members of his troupe. Pics Courtesy/Meher Marfatia, Laughter in the House: 20th-Century Parsi Theatre Article by Meher Marfatia | Mid-Day Their repertoire has gone largely undocumented, more’s… Continue reading Dara’s Theme and other dramatic tunes

Why have Parsi natak audiences been rejecting plays that don’t sugarcoat the pill? What were you thinking? How can you do this? I cried in your play!” That was Hindi film character actor David Abraham chiding Adi Marzban backstage after the opening night of Asha Nirasha in 1968. Article by Meher Marfatia | Mid-Day Adi… Continue reading Why bitter can’t be better

Cinema drastically impacted nautanki, resulting in waning audience interest. Today, the rural areas of Hathras, Mathura, Unnao have a newfound love for the form. A popular folk theatre form that combines music, dance, dialogue and narrative, nautanki originated and grew into popularity in Uttar Pradesh in the nineteenth century. Nautanki may have originated from bhagat,… Continue reading Nautanki theatre was India’s melting pot of Parsi, Hindu traditions. Now it’s picking up

Jamshedji Framji Madan, the Parsi entrepreneur, was the torchbearer of the Indian film industry. Read his story here. Indian cinema found its footing in the nineteenth-century. At the time, entrepreneurs experimented with new formats by mixing technology with storytelling. Short, silent films–a new invention at the time–produced in the colonial era, created a sensation. Filmmakers… Continue reading Madan Theatres Limited: The Silent Film Industry’s Giant Corporation

Flops, frauds or community disapproval did not prove obstacles to the growth of the theatre enterprise. Elphinstone Circle in Bombay in the 1870s. Photo: Lee-Warner Collection/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA When one thinks of Horniman Circle – the ring of elegant old buildings in south Mumbai – today, several associations spring to mind: the glossy storefronts… Continue reading How the Parsis Shaped Theatre in Colonial Bombay

Over the last two weekends the Zoroastrian Association of Greater New York (ZAGNY) presented the world ONLINE premiere of Pestonji Na Parakram, a hugely succesful Parsi Natak. The Natak had originally been performed in 1995 by ZAGNY members as a fundraiser. The recordings of the natak were premiered this June 2020 on youtube. Broken into… Continue reading Pestonji Na Parakram: A Parsi Gujarati Natak by ZAGNY