Political veteran Salman Khurshid's play Sons of Babur, directed by thespian Tom Alter, will make its stage debut in Mumbai later this week
Political veteran Salman Khurshid's play Sons of Babur, directed by thespian Tom Alter, will make its stage debut in Mumbai later this week
When we suggested to Tom Alter that his latest directorial venture was akin to a crash course on the history of India under Mughal rule, he replied, quickly -- "It's not a crash course. But you can call it a twisted seminar on the subject." 
A still from the English version of Salman Khurshid's Sons of Babur
The play, Sons of Babur, written by Congress leader Salman Khurshid, takes the audience through the lives of six Mughal emperors via an aging Bahadur Shah Zafar and an eccentric student of history.
Over the last ten years, having played characters as diverse as Mirza Ghalib, Maulana Azad and Lucky (in a Marathi version of Waiting For Godot), playing the last Mughal Emperor of India was yet another challenge for Alter. "In the play, we see Zafar languishing in exile in Rangoon at the end of his life. But through his interactions with the Bengali history student we see that he hasn't lost his sense of humour, the regal air and the pride of being the emperor of India," he adds.u00a0
u00a0Alter took interest in the play after he read Khurshid's play, which brings into fore the significance of the Mughal period of India's past. He went on to essay the role of Bahadur Shah Zafar in director Sayeed Alam's Urdu version of the play. So, in a sense, Alter says, "I'm merely taking over the charge of the English version of the play and sticking to what Alam has already done with the production. There are a few changes but those are connected to language rather than style." This play looks set to take the audience on a ride through a controversial yet glorious phase of Indian history.u00a0
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On March 11, 7 pm at Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point. Call 22824567 / 66223724 / 54
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