Bollywood calling

William Shakespeare has influenced playwrights and filmmakers alike since time immemorial, thanks to his vast repertoire of plays that not only have the perfect mix of love, hatred, revenge, jealousy and deceit but also stories with a universal appeal. Now, Motley Monks, a Pune-based English theatre group attempts to bring the Bard and Bollywood together in their theatre production. The spoof, When Shakespeare Meets Bollywood, directed by Sameer Khan, takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the perils that an English theatre group faces in order to survive.

When Shakespeare Meets Bollywood is being staged by a Pune-based English theatre group u00a0

Khan says, "The play takes a humourous look at an English theatre company which usually stage the works of Shakespeare. But they cater to a miniscule elitist audience and struggle to survive, while Bollywood reaches out to the masses. So as a face-saving tactic, the English troupe is compelled to resort to Bollywood. This obviously doesn't go well with the cast and crew as they look down upon the Hindi film industry."

This is the second production staged by Khan's Motley Monks, which was founded in 2012. Despite being an English theatre group, their debut production was a Hindi play titled Imaan. It looked at the dilemmas faced by Muslims during the partition and the 1992 riots.

When: October 26, 9:30 pm
Where: Nehru Memorial Hall Camp, Pune
Call: 09860996137u00a0