A staged tribute to Sagar Sarhadi

Three moving portrayals of living with wounds inflicted by history that still bleed

Sagar Sarhadi, who passed away in March this year, was an Indian short story writer, playwright, director and producer for films. Born in Baffa (then in British India, now in Pakistan), he began his writing career with Urdu short stories and later went on to write screenp l ay s fo r Hindi cinema. He became popular with Yash Chopra’s films like Kabhi Kabhi (1976), Noorie (1979), Silsila (1981), and Chandni.

Dastak is a collection of plays written by Sagar Sarhadi on the Partition and its after effects. Sarhadi was deeply affected by the horrors of Partition. The formal division of the land that was once one created chasms that are still bleeding. But at the same time how humanity has made steps to heal. The three plays, which will be performed next weekend, will be directed by Zafer Mohiuddin, an Urdu and Hindi playwright, a seasoned actor, an activist, and of course, a well-known stage director activist reflect the facets of life and love. The three Urdu/ Hindi short plays being performed are: Mirza Saheban, Kisi Seema ki Ek Mamuli Si Ghatna, and Khayal Ki Dastak.

Mirza Saheban is a parallel drawn from the tale of the lovers Mirza and Saheban. This play talks about how religion creates a divide amongst common people even when they intrinsically aren’t in favour of it. The difference in values of secularists and religious fanatics is showcased in this play. In Kisi Seema ki ek Mamuli si Ghatna the playwright mocks at the existence of borders created by humans. It is a sarcastic take on the hoax that the border is. Is the invisible border strong enough to separate two nations that were once a single entity? Khayal ki Dastak is a play that showcases the meeting of two lovers, years after the girl has been married to someone else. This conversation is woven in a nuanced manner to bring out the various emotions this short meeting makes them experience.

Dastak, a collection of three short plays written by Sagar Sarhadi and directed by Zafer Mohiuddin, will be performed at Alliance Française de Bangalore on December 18, at 4 pm and 7 pm.