I must have been lazy. The fault lies with me, laughs Kulbhushan Kharbanda as he talks about his self-imposed,two decade exile from the stage. This exile,however,is drawing to a close as Kharbanda gears for his play Atmakatha. He plays the central character of acclaimed writer Rajadhyaksha who revisits facets of his life while dictating his autobiography to a researcher. The play explores his separation with his wife Uttara,30 years ago due to a brief relationship with his sister-in-law and the repercussions of his tumultuous relationships with the two women. Directed by Vinay Sharma,it portrays the writers story as an intersection of truth and memory,which is a little distorted,thus everything recorded and recollected is also distorted. To be staged at the Prithvi Theatre Festival on November 15,the Hindi play written by Marathi playwright Mahesh Elkuchwar opened to critical acclaim in Kolkata last year. After watching the play in Kolkata,Mrinal Sen called me over to his house. When I went to meet him,Sen held my and said,I am 90 years old now and I can go away anytime. But I am glad that before that,I have seen a great play, recounts Kharbanda. The cast includes Chetna Jalan,who plays the character of Uttara,while Sanchayita Bhattacharjee plays her sister Vasanti. Anubha Fatehpuria essays the role of Prajnya,the researcher. After college,Kharbanda and a few friends formed a theatre group called Abhiyan. Kharbanda later went on to join Delhi-based Yatrik,a bilingual theatre group founded by director Joy Michael in 1964. In 1972,he moved to Kolkata and started working with Shyamanand Jalans Padatik theatre group before moving to Mumbai. Theatre has always excited me,lets see how long I am able to do this, says Kharbanda,who last acted in Sakharam Binder,directed by Jalan. meenakshi.iyer@expressindia.com
