Hayavadana
Music: B V Karanth and Amod Bhatt
Scenography: Deepan Sivaraman
Associate Director: Vansh Bharadwaj
Associate Scenographer: Sarthak Narula
Lighting Designer: Gyandev Singh
Costume & Props: Melodi Dorcas
Cast: Ipshita Chakraborty Singh, Brinda Trivedi, Pallavi Jadhao, Ajeet Singh Palawat, Ambika Kamal, Mahesh Saini, Chaman Bansal, Guru Bamrah, and Puneet Kumar Mishra
Singers and Musicians: Snehalatha Tagde, Shubhashree Bhatt, Bahadur Chand, Amarjit Singh, Pradeep Nirban, Harpal Singh, Ram Singh, Gurmit Singh, Chainis Gill (Minka), Raghavendra K
Backstage Team: Parveen Jaggi and Kamaljeet Bhumra
Sets: Sridhar Murthy and Irshad
Stills and Video: Kabir Singh Chowdhry
Production Controllers: Sushma Rao and Bhyrava
Originally produced for Aadyam: an Aditya Birla Group initiative.
Producer – Bhoomija Trust
Originally produced for Aadyam – an Aditya Birla Group initiative.
Girish Karnad’s Hayavadana Directed by Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry
Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry
Girish Karnad
Bhoomija presents Girish Karnad’s iconic Hayavadana with music by B V Karanth. The grand Hindi musical is directed by veteran theatre director and Padma Shri awardee, Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry.
Hayavadana features some of the best actors, musicians, and technicians in Indian film and theatre as the cast and crew. A highlight is the play’s music – B V Karanth’s celebrated original score is adapted to the play by Amod Bhatt. The music is presented live by a stunning orchestra comprising Punjab’s famed wandering minstrels lead by 86-year-old Harpal Singh, in addition to the actors and Bhatt. Hayavadana features scenographer Deepan Sivaraman’s magnificent stage design and Gyandev Singh’s inspiring lighting design.
Hayavadana was nominated in a record 10 categories at the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards 2024, winning Best Ensemble, Best Costume Design for Melodi Dorcas, and Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female) for Pallavi Jadhao.
“Among the best of modern Indian plays, Girish Karnad’s Hayavadana has always been on my bucket list. It combines magic, myth, & realism to provide infinite theatrical prospects. I’m fortunate to have worked with some extremely talented artistes, each instrumental in making Hayavadana come alive. My approach to Hayavadana was the same as with my previous work – lead with my intuition & take that plunge into uncertainty. With Hayavadana, I have been able to experiment with that uncertainty in a much more profound way. The play greatly speaks to my soul & I hope it does the same for the audience”, says director Neelam Man Singh.
“Producing the Girish Karnad classic Hayavadana has been a dream come true. Bringing it to the iconic Ranga Shankara is no less! The play has already done close to 10 shows to much acclaim and won awards at the prestigious META. We are so happy to be bringing this Karnad-Karanth classic directed by none other than Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry, with an excellent group of talented artistes, musicians, and technicians from all across the country. It’s a run over 6 days with 8 shows and I hope all of Bangalore will come to watch!”, says Gayathri Krishna, Founder and Managing Trustee of Bhoomija.
About Bhoomija Trust
Bangalore-based Bhoomija is an arts curator and presenter, having presented over 150 shows nationally and internationally. The organization is renowned for its unique collaborations with legendary artists (including several Padma awardees and National Award winners) and rising talents in the Indian theatre and music circles. These collaborations have resulted in captivating productions that push boundaries, such as Roysten Abel directorials ‘Weaving Voices’ and ‘Manganiyar Classroom’, Zakir Hussain, Jayanthi Kumaresh, and Kala Ramnath in ‘Triveni’ (now gearing up for its tour of Australia and New Zealand), Mysore Manjunath, S Surendranath, S G Vasudev, Srinivasa Prabhu, and a talented ensemble of young musicians in ‘Aroha’, Girish Karnad’s ‘Hayavadana’ directed by Neelam Man Singh Chowdhry, and Shubha Mudgal as the Festival Director for Jackfruit, Bhoomija’s festival of music for and by children, among others. Several stalwarts have also led Bhoomija’s Children’s Choir (a unique ensemble of young musicians below 16) imparting more than just musical knowledge to young minds.
