AFTER TWO consecutive days of hospital visits for targeted therapy for cancer, actor Tannishtha Chatterjee has returned to rehearsals, stepping back into the role of Sheila Roy, a singer. Rehearsing alongside her is actor Sharib Hashmi, who plays a stockbroker marked by a goofy, self-deprecating charm. Off stage, Hashmi has been a caregiver and biggest support for his wife Nasreen, a cancer survivor, an experience that informs his engagement with the upcoming play. Under the watchful eye of director Leena Yadav, the two actors perform scenes from Breast of Luck, a play they have co-written, drawing on personal experiences that have been woven into the script.
When Tannishtha and Sharib were shooting for a film in Dehradun in October 2024, they often spent their breaks discussing the possibility of developing a two-actor play. They began reading several scripts, but none felt right. In January 2025, on the day they were scheduled to meet in Mumbai for another round of discussions, Tannishtha received her diagnosis. Though shaken by the news, and worried about how she would share this with her mother, and nine-year-old daughter, she chose not to cancel the meeting that evening. “I thought it would make me feel better to meet a friend, even though I wasn’t planning to tell him about my diagnosis. When he sensed something was wrong, I broke down. He made me speak to Nasreen and that helped,” says Tannishtha.
The conversations that followed led Tannishtha and Sharib to decide to develop a play together from scratch, by weaving in some of their experiences of dealing with cancer in the narrative. By October, an initial draft was ready, which they read out to their friend, writer-director Leena for feedback. She responded positively and offered to direct the play.
After weeks of readings and rehearsals, the one-hour-and-45 minutes long play is ready to open on January 29 at Mumbai’s G5A. After two shows each on January 29 and 30 at G5A, Breast of Luck will be staged on February 4, observed as World Cancer Day, as part of the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival at Yashwantrao Chavan Center. On February 11, they will perform the play at the PL Deshpande Maharashtra Kala Akademi for Bharat Rang Mahotsav and in Lucknow on February 14.
From the very beginning, Sharib and Tannishtha were keen on developing a musical and keeping it lighthearted. “We started writing the play after Tannishtha was diagnosed with cancer. It was Tannishtha’s idea to incorporate some elements from our lives in the narrative. Yet, we were clear about giving it a humorous touch. We wanted to convey some important things but did not want to make it morose. That’s why we incorporated romance, music, and laughter,” says Sharib, known for his role as ‘JK’ in The Family Man web series. He says the play became their means of dealing with their respective personal struggles.
The process of writing the play involved jamming in person as well as over Zoom. “We constantly improvised and re-wrote. Though we mostly wrote the parts involving our individual characters, we shared our ideas about both the charcters. We wrote our personal monologues,” says Tannishtha, a National School of Drama graduate who has acted in acclaimed movies like Brick Lane (2007), Parched (2015) and Joram (2023).
Several others contributed to the making of the play. Lyricist Swanand Kirkere wrote a song, Maanaav Poddar composed the music and Ashley Lobo choreographed a sequence. NSD graduates Kunal Bhange and Sumit stepped in to do production design and lights, respectively. Casting director Mukesh Chabbra offered his space for rehearsals. “As a director, I just helped Sharib and Tannishtha with the structure and dramatistion. I did not want to intrude on what they were doing but be a part of their process,” says Leena, who has directed Rajma Chawal (2018) and House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths (2021).
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Since Tannishtha is still undergoing treatment, there are days when she has to rely on painkillers and foot baths at night to ease her discomfort. In fact, she has a targeted therapy session on January 27, two days before the play’s opening. “Tannishtha is like a warrior. We have done everything together. In fact, she has probably done more work than me,” says Sharib.
Through the play, Tannistha is fulfilling her wish of sporting straight hair. “In the first half of the play, before my character is diagnosed with cancer, I wear a wig with straight hair,” she says. That apart, singing live has been therapeutic for her. “Writing a musical comedy is tough. We took up a lot of challenges but slowly the play came together. The beauty of theatre is unlike films, which are edited and boxed. As we keep performing and getting feedback, it will keep evolving,” says Tannistha. “The play comes from a personal space. As our lives keep changing, we may make some changes in the play too,” she says.
