Gulzar and Salim Arif bring forth Hindi adaptation of Pinocchio

Dressed in purple shorts a yellow shirt blue bow tie and reflective sunglasses the little Pinocchio stands still on stage at Prithvi Theatre in Juhu The toy puppet made by wood carver Geppetto is being brought to life by a winged fairy Once alive he flexes his muscles with a few robotic moves before breaking into a dance singing Ta ta dhin dhin tir kit ta Six singers and a mini orchestra led by music composer Sudeep Banerjee standing in the shadows next to the stage perform the chorusLubna Salim Salim Arif and Gulzar at the rehearsal PicsMilind SaurkarIn another scene Pinocchio reappears bogged down by a nose a rubber prop thats overgrown because he lied With a group of dancers he croons Khatarnaak hui jaati haihellip yeh naak As the lights come on Gulzar who has been watching the 60minute dress rehearsal with director Salim Arif and costume designerproducer Lubna Salim in rapt attention breaks into applauseYeh naak badi khatarnaak hai laughs the wordsmith alluding to the haunting composition and the fake nose showering praise on the 35 member cast including 12yearold Shreya Acharya who essays the lead This weekend the musical produced by Essay Communications premieres as part of a summer carnival at PrithviA scene where the puppet encounters Billi and LomdiMeet the Hindi puppetPenned by Italian writer Carlos Collodi in 1883 the epic childrens novel The Adventures of Pinocchio has been adapted in different languages worldwide However I didnt find a Hindustani adaptation I improvised to include an Indian setting and took the liberty of making it a musical says the poetwriter whose career has been peppered with writings for children whether lyrics and dialogues for TV series like The Jungle Book and Alice In Wonderland codirecting Potli Baba Ki or doing the narration for Karadi Tales audio booksSince film is a medium Im familiar with I felt Pinocchio would work as animation But Salim Arif has adapted it beautifully to stage I trust him with my plays smiles the octogenarian turning towards Arif who says We always find a new story in his treasure troveNo kiddingIn the past the duo has collaborated on Chakkar Chalaaye Ghanchakkar Arrey O Henry and Kachche Kamhe based on Gulzars Urdu short story Seema Arif has also staged childrens plays like Agar Aur Magar Gulzars adaptation of Bertolt Brechts The One Who Said Yes and the One Who Said No and Googly Jhanak Jaayein based on a short story Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne written for the stage by Gulzar But this production hasnt been a cakewalk Arif reasons With the kind of exposure children are getting these days you have to create a world that is attractive enough otherwise they get bored You need to use strong visuals because words wont have the same effectAnd so the production is replete with Hindi rhymes modern Rap massive props and a segment where dancers perform to Jai Ho under cool UV lights Theres a misconception that childrens plays dont need a good budget This production is 10 times more expensive than our regular plays he sharesGulzarLooking aheadChildrens theatre is still trying to find a ground in Mumbai Gulzar observes You rarely see someone make new plays for children They largely end up adapting old stories He also asserts that evoking imagery when writing for children isnt easy Its more difficult than writing for adults You need to become a child to know their world It cant be taught or imbibedThe collaborators concur that patronising kids through plays is also futile Arif cites the instance of the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen known for works like The Little Mermaid and The Ugly Duckling He wasnt preachy at all Most of his stories though for children had a sad ending Like The Little Match Girl Gulzar chimes in Oh yes I have adapted that into Hindi tooAcharya walks in sans the fake nose She has been part of a dance reality show and was introduced to Arif by the plays choreographer Srikant Ahire In fact the entire cast is part of his dance troupe Learning Hindi pronunciations was tough I would say them in my sleep too she smiles Gulzar chides her imitating Pinocchio by folding a piece of paper into a fake nose I indulge myself with children Ive been writing for them since the early days So I havent been able to grow upWatching him we have to agree he isnt lyingPinocchio around the worldGulzars Pinocchio has previously been adapted for a Kathak dance performance in Delhi choreographed by Pandit Birju Maharajs daughterinlaw BaswatiIn 1972 Tatsunoko Productions a Japanese animation company created an anime series which was darker and more sadisticIn 2007 English composer Jonathan Dove designed it as an opera with a symphony orchestra