Saadat Hasan Manto: Pagaleyan Da Sardar (2018)
The play was both scripted and directed by Sanjay Kumar as a tribute to that booming secular voice so needed in our polity, in our sub-continent today. The attempt was not at a biopic but to explore Manto’s politics through a powerful depiction of his nuanced creativity in an interactive form.
Sanjay used the iconic pieces: Jeb Katra; Above, Below and In Between; Bu; Thanda Ghost; Ram Khilavan; Wasihat; Khol Do; Teethwal Ka Kutta and Toba Tek Singh. And Manto’s Letters to Uncle Sam were used as comment and meaning enhancers of some of his iconic stories and lesser known plays. The play was half and half, Punjabi and English. The complete script, including sections translated from Punjabi to English is available in Sanjay’s forthcoming book Exploring Play, The pandies’ Way: Performing, teaching and writing theatre in Delhi, contemporary India.