Jhoom Theatre's production, Re-lay is a positive note on women's empowerment that highlights women's sexuality beyond violence
“The theatre was created to tell people the truth about life and the social situation” — is a quote by Stella Adler, the famous American actress and teacher whose words ring true for the play, Re-lay. Directed by Faezeh Jalali, the play is an adaptation from Arthur Shnitzler’s play Reigen that includes an original piece by Annie Zaidi called The Compartment.
A still from the play, Re-Lay
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Given the range of debates that have been raging regarding women’s empowerment, the play is a timely drama on understanding women in contemporary Mumbai. Zaidi explains, “It looks at various sexual moments in contemporary lives. These interwoven stories speak of hypocrisy, fear and also about desire, fulfillment and truth.” Driving the point home, she shares, “It is a significant part of the larger conversation about sexual violence because we can’t respect women until we respect their sexual choices.”
The director of the play, Faezeh Jalali and writer, Annie Zaidi
Unlike most plays that have been focussing on the women question, this play made it a point to be positive. “It also made me think of how much women’s sexuality is discussed in negative terms. If it’s not violence, then it’s fear, or curtailment of freedoms, or moralising,” Zaidi conveys.
The play looks at various kinds of women who wish to explore their sexuality such as prostitutes, migrants from villages and a young woman who finds herself alone with a man on an overnight train journey, among others. The last is written by Zaidi, on which she shares, “It looks at a woman’s discomfort around a male stranger. It is about trust and seeking one’s own space within a public space.”
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