Behind the Scenes

A mother who acts, a child who seeks attention and a Party out to purge the city of bad art – the world of theatre comes alive in this Kolkata novel

Book: The Firebird

Author: Saikat Majumdar

Publisher: Hachette India

Pages: 240 pages

Price: Rs 499

Ori, the child who loves listening to stories in Saikat Majumdar’s The Firebird, does not know of the Natyashashtra. In the ancient Indian treatise of the performing arts, angry sages set a curse upon theatre — all actors are shudras, condemned to live in the margins. From this outer world, comes Ori’s mother.

“His mother acted in plays. He carried that knowledge like a wound,” writes Majumdar, encapsulating the central dilemma of the book. Ori watches his mother, Garima Basu, become a different person on stage, like a shape-shifting monster. She wears body-hugging clothes, plays wife to other men, falls into bed with them, and dies in a cone of light. The reality and illusion of his mother’s life wracks the five-year-old when the novel begins. He learns to negotiate with these as he grows up, until he is able to twist truth and fiction together like the grey-and-white strands of his beloved grandmother’s braids.

Majumdar tells the story of a boy who spirals into dark depths but he also keeps his eye on Ori’s environment that feeds his destructive streak. The title is drawn from the Bengali adaptation of a French play about Joan of Arc, which Garima acts in. But, in Egyptian mythology and a famous Russian ballet, a firebird is a massive creature that can light up the midnight sky with its sparkling wings. Majumdar, however, builds the book like a cobweb, with the spider suspended by thin threads from the walls around him.

Ori’s family home could have been his sanctuary. It is a tight Bengali cluster, with a widowed grandmother, a hardworking aunt, a sprightly cousin, an erudite father and an actor mother. As his mother goes out dressed up to act in the local theatre every evening, the adults simmer and the servants snigger. Majumdar paints a crowded miniature of an old Kolkata family in which legacy and learning — Ori’s grandfather had been presented at the court of George V after qualifying as a barrister in England — are balanced by patriarchal perceptions of morality. In the family’s “great dark swathes” of bitterness towards Garima, there is the shadow of the fallen women who acted in plays in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Bengal, such as Binodini Dasi and Tara Sundori.

It is not that Garima does not care about her son, but acting demands an erasure of a performer’s self. The actor not only challenges but also negates a woman’s role of child-rearing. For a few hours every day, Garima stops being Ori’s mother.

As Majumdar builds the other strands in Ori’s life in detail, the tropes of Kolkata spill out of the pages. “The Party”, which befriends Ori and is out to clean away bad art and dirty women, represents the ubiquitous political muscle that the gentry either support or dread. The fragrance of flowers gives away the red-light district of Sonagachhi before Ori can see the women who circle their buns with garlands. Durga Puja, the neighbourhood ghoogni seller, Park Street colleges, the maze of words and lanes that make up Kolkata paras, sweet shops, — of such scenic and sociological images is Ori’s city made and Majumdar recreates it with tactile fervour.

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The end comes, like the mythological bird and Joan of Arc’s punishment, with fire, the element that tests, destroys and purifies. The margins that Natyashashtra had referred to, go up in smoke. A sense of foreboding, however, smoulders long after the book is closed.

Dipanita Nath

Dipanita Nath is a Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. She is a versatile journalist with a deep interest in the intersection of culture, sustainability, and urban life. Professional Background Experience: Before joining The Indian Express, she worked with other major news organizations including Hindustan Times, The Times of India, and Mint. Core Specializations: She is widely recognized for her coverage of the climate crisis, theatre and performing arts, heritage conservation, and the startup ecosystem (often through her "Pune Inc" series). Storytelling Focus: Her work often unearths "hidden stories" of Pune—focusing on historical institutes, local traditions, and the personal journeys of social innovators. Recent Notable Articles (December 2025) Her recent reporting highlights Pune’s cultural pulse and the environmental challenges facing the city during the winter season: 1. Climate & Environment "Pune shivers on coldest morning of the season; minimum temperature plunges to 6.9°C" (Dec 20, 2025): Reporting on the record-breaking cold wave in Pune and the IMD's forecast for the week. "How a heritage tree-mapping event at Ganeshkhind Garden highlights rising interest in Pune’s green legacy" (Dec 20, 2025): Covering a citizen-led initiative where Gen Z and millennials gathered to document and protect ancient trees at a Biodiversity Heritage Site. "Right to breathe: Landmark NGT order directs PMC to frame norms for pollution from construction sites" (Dec 8, 2025): Reporting on a significant legal victory for residents fighting dust and air pollution in urban neighborhoods like Baner. 2. "Hidden Stories" & Heritage "Inside Pune library that’s nourished minds of entrepreneurs for 17 years" (Dec 21, 2025): A feature on the Venture Center Library, detailing how a collection of 3,500 specialized books helps tech startups navigate the product life cycle. "Before he died, Ram Sutar gave Pune a lasting gift" (Dec 18, 2025): A tribute to the legendary sculptor Ram Sutar (creator of the Statue of Unity), focusing on his local works like the Chhatrapati Shivaji statue at Pune airport. "The Pune institute where MA Jinnah was once chief guest" (Dec 6, 2025): An archival exploration of the College of Agriculture, established in 1907, and its historical role in India's freedom struggle. 3. Arts, Theatre & "Pune Inc" "Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak were not rivals but close friends, says veteran filmmaker" (Dec 17, 2025): A deep-dive interview ahead of the Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) exploring the camaraderie between legends of Indian cinema. "Meet the Pune entrepreneur helping women build and scale businesses" (Dec 16, 2025): Part of her "Pune Inc" series, profiling Nikita Vora’s efforts to empower female-led startups. "How women drone pilots in rural Maharashtra are cultivating a green habit" (Dec 12, 2025): Exploring how technology is being used by women in agriculture to reduce chemical use and labor. Signature Style Dipanita Nath is known for intellectual curiosity and a narrative-driven approach. Whether she is writing about a 110-year-old eatery or the intricacies of the climate crisis, she focuses on the human element and the historical context. Her columns are often a blend of reportage and cultural commentary, making them a staple for readers interested in the "soul" of Pune. X (Twitter): @dipanitanath ... Read More

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