Elante brings theatrical adaptation of ‘Daddy’ to Tricity

Bhatt at Elante Mall Chandigarh

Vinay Kumar 

Chandigarh 

Elante brings theatrical adaptation of ‘Daddy’ to Tricity

Elante Mall, the region’s favourite hub for shopping and entertainment, today struck an emotional chord with the audience with a theatrical adaptation of celebrated filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt's 1989 classic “Daddy”, moving the viewers to tears with its powerful narrative. Mahesh Bhatt and his daughter Pooja Bhatt, who had made her acting debut with “Daddy”, set the tone for the play with a heart-to-heart conversation on why the film and its theatrical adaptation mean the world to them in the light of the relationship they share. Directed by Dinesh Gautam and scripted by Mahesh Bhatt himself, the play featured Delhi-based actor and Mahesh Bhatt’s protégé Imran Zahid in the lead role, which was enacted by Anupam Kher in the original film. Zahid has also played the lead role in the stage adaption of another Bhatt classic, “Arth”. The father-daughter duo, who were moved beyond words as they watched their own characters come alive on the stage, described the play, which also featured some stirring songs from the film sung by Talit Aziz, as “moving and sincere”. The film was based on Mahesh Bhatt's battle with alcoholism and his turbulent and complex relationship with his elder daughter Pooja. One of the filmmaker's best friends, Anupam Kher, had played him on screen. Brilliantly adapted for the stage, the play tugged at the hearts of the audience with its raw human emotions and stark realities of life and captivated them with its memorable dialogues and compelling storyline. While generally plays inspire movies, in this case it was the other way round. The film and the play are based on the story of a girl, Pooja, who has no recollection of her mother and father and is told that her father had passed away. Eventually, she meets her father and makes him overcome alcoholism. The story revolves around the complex relationship between Pooja and her father Anand Sareen, a former music legend who she had not met since birth as she was brought up by her grandparents following the untimely and mysterious death of her mother. When Pooja meets her father, she realises that he is not the monster her grandfather had made him out to be, but was undoubtedly an alcoholic who badly needed help. Curing her father of alcoholism then becomes the sole mission of Pooja’s life. The play “Daddy”, first staged at New Delhi in 2014, 25 years after the release of the film, had also premiered in Pakistan at the International Theatre Festival 2015 organised by the National Academy of Performing Arts, Karachi. “Daddy” happens to be the fourth theatrical adaptation of Mahesh Bhatt’s films, the previous three being “The Last Salute”, “Arth” and “Trial of Errors”. It was actor Imran Zahid who had come up to Bhatt with the idea of adapting his films into plays. Commenting on Elante’s initiative to stage the poignant and moving play based on one of Mahesh Bhatt’s best known works, Elante Mall Executive Director Mr Anil Malhotra said, “It has been our constant endeavour to give our patrons something new every time they come to Elante. We have been known for delivering a unique experience thorough our offerings other than shopping. The idea behind organising this play is to offer our patrons an experience of classic theatre. We are thankful to the living legend Mr Mahesh Bhatt and Ms Pooja Bhatt for gracing the event and making it a truly memorable one.”......