ISLAMABAD: A production of the British National Theatre and an adaptation of Ajoka Theatre’s most popular play, Dara, was screened at Lok Virsa on Saturday night.

Written by Shahid Nadeem of the Ajoka Theatre Group and directed by Nadia Fall with Tanya Ronder assisting in adaptation, the film was brought to Islamabad by production consultant Anwar Akhtar, who is the director of a London-based arts and media charity, The Samosa.

Dara is the portrayal of the 17th century Mughal royals, the Shah Jahan family, and addresses many debates of freedom, history and religious practice that are still present within South Asia.

“We were able to bring Dara by Lahore-based Ajoka Theatre Company to the National Theatre (NT)’s attention. The NT was inspired to produce and stage Dara in partnership with Ajoka in one of Britain’s most prestigious arts venues,” Mr Akhtar told Dawn.

He explained that Dara was seen by over 30,000 people in London over 36 performances through the spring of 2015.

“The audience included many young people from Britain’s Asian communities. Dara created much public debate on the issues of culture, history, religious tolerance and the history of South Asia. After a huge critical acclaim it has been considered to include Dara in A’ Levels and university curriculum,” said Mr Akhtar, adding the play had been compared with Macbeth and King Lear.

Mr Nadeem explained that it was the first time the work by a Pakistani theatre company had been adapted and staged by the National Theatre.

As a response to the hugely positive press and audience feedback, the National Theatre took steps to secure the legacy of the play, Mr Nadeem said.

“A high quality film was made of the full live performance of Dara to secure the play for cultural, educational and arts festival screenings. The significance of the play is the struggle between two interpretations of Islam – art, pleasure hating and narrow-minded version against the artistic, creative and opened-minded Islam,” said Mr Nadeem.

The writer explained that Prince Dara was a pluralistic, humanitarian Sufi Muslim who loved music and poetry and was open minded with respect to other faiths. His younger brother, Prince Aurangzeb, was a totalitarian warlord and fundamentalist with an ideology using war and religion to usurp the more liberal and popular Dara in a power grab for the control of the land that make up the present India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Set in India and Pakistan in 1659 during the Mughal Empire, the play Dara dramatises the struggle by Muslims against fundamentalism that has been going on for hundreds of years. The two-hour-long film shows the imperial court as a place of opulence and excess, music, drugs, eunuchs and harems. The two brothers, whose mother’s death inspired the Taj Mahal, are heirs to this Muslim empire. They fight ferociously for succession.

Dara, the crown prince, has the love of the people and of his emperor father, Shah Jahan, but his younger brother Aurangzeb holds a different vision for India’s future. Islam inspires poetry in Dara, puritanical rigour in Aurangzeb.

Tanya Ronder’s adaptation of Dara spans the princes’ lives from cradle to grave. According to the organisers, Dara is an intense domestic drama of global consequence for India then and for the world now.

Through the film, the audience got the impression of marble arches, selective music for Dara and the attractive wardrobe and plenty of garnish lighting moments.

The Daily Telegraph described the play as one that every child in Britain should see. “It can reach people that political debate cannot. The courtroom dialogue is as riveting, tense and chilling as any trial dramatisation.”

Similarly, the Financial Times called Dara “A ravishing historical drama set in the 17th century India raises issues that resonate today.”

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2017