Om Puri makes theatre comeback after 25 years

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Divya Dutta and Om Puri star in the Punjabi play Teri Amrita.

Enveloped with brilliant acting, remarkable storyline and heart wrenching dialogues, the Punjabi Theatre Festival wooed theatre lovers in its first two days in the national capital.

It was also a delight for many because the theatre festival, which began from December 19 and will continue till December 22 in New Delhi, saw the return of veteran actor Om Puri to the field of theatre after a gap of 25 years.
The festival showcased Teri Amrita, an Indian adaption of A.R. Gurney’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated play, Love Letters (1988). Om Puri and Divya Dutta played the role of Zulfikar Haider and Amrita Nigam (the characters in the play), respectively.
The play is a love story told through letters exchanged between the two protagonists, Zulfikar Haider and AmritaNigam, over 35 years.
Set against the backdrop of Partition, they meet in childhood and form the bond, which has been depicted by the play. It reflects the passage of time through the soured dreams and doomed love between the two lovers who pursue different paths, yet keep the flame alive through their evocative letters.
A girl with soaring aspirations, Amrita (played by Dutta) writes about her deepest emotions to her childhood beloved Zulfi (played by Puri), who reciprocates his unconditional love through his replies.
Puri says he chose Teri Amrita to gain confidence as he was in the stage after many, many years. However, he would be doing more “normal” plays in the future.
“I picked it because I’m coming back to theatre after 25 years. It’s like, you know how to swim but you haven’t got into the water for 25 years and when you want to get into deep waters you are a little hesitant. It is the same kind of hesitation for me. I haven’t been on stage for a very long time, and so to gain my confidence, I decided to do something very simple. But the next play that I pick up will be a more ‘normal’ play, in which there’ll be a set, there’ll be music and the works.”
Filmmaker Amrik Gill translated the play in Punjabi from playwright Javed Siddqui’s Hindi/Urdu version.
The Hindi version of the play has been performed by Shabana Azmi and Farooq Sheikh for the past 20 years and has staged more than 9,000 shows so far.
Talking about his first love and coming back to theatre, Puri says, “See, I’m 64 now and I can’t expect quality work as a character actor in the kind of films we make in Bollywood. To keep myself busy, to keep my sanity and to keep participating in social life I decided to get back to theatre. Moreover, I can create opportunities for myself in theatre, which I can’t do in films. I’m not rich. If I was, then I would have produced a film. I can afford to produce a play, and I’ll continue to do that. I have missed this a lot.”
Puri is planning to do some Hindi theatres in the coming months and has a particular play in mind for international audience. He says that the way theatre has grown over the years attracts him more towards the stage.
“Theatre has grown and progressed a lot in the past years. Before we use to arrange the costumes and use to write our own dialogues but now the actors just come and act and other things are taken care of. I have a particular play in mind for an international audience. Hopefully, I’ll be able to draw in a Western audience into my theatre as well,” Puri adds.
About sharing stage with a veteran actor like Om Puri and doing the play Teri Amrita, Dutta said, “It feels great to share stage with a veteran like Om Puri. I have acted in a lot of films with Mr Puri and doing theatre with him was a great experience for me. I got a chance to learn a lot from him. The amazing storyline, my character and a chance to act with a veteran actor like Om Puri attracted me towards Teri Amrita.”
Speaking about getting a veteran like Puri back on theatre, Rawail Singh, secretary, Punjabi Academy, the organiser, said, “We are delighted to showcase Teri Amrita in Delhi. The participation of actors like Om Puri and Divya Dutta attracted a huge footfall. The return of veterans like Puri will boost theatre and will encourage other celebrated actors to take active part in theatres.
The Punjabi Theatre Festival, being organised by the department of art, culture and languages, the government of Delhi, and Punjabi Academy, is an initiative taken by Sheila Dikshit, the chief minister of Delhi.