Should politics have any bearing on religion? What role do ethics play in the workings of the government? And how should a political body respond to the moral question? — these are some of the vital questions that are integral to Robert Bolt’s theatrical masterpiece A Man For All Seasons that was first staged in 1960. And this history-inspired drama about the controversial life of devout scholar and statesman Sir Thomas More forms the crux of Arjun Sajnani’s adaptation of Bolt’s creation. The play, which also marks Arjun’s return to theatre after a long hiatus of six years, is set in 16th century England during the reign of Henry VIII. Several centuries have passed since then, but Arjun believes that Bolt’s play works across generations. “He was a very intelligent playwright and the subject of the play is universal. Every second day we are talking about morality or the lack of it in Indian politics.”
Meanwhile, the play is also a beautiful family saga, where Sir Thomas’ wife and children stand by him through his hard times, when the former refused to annul the marriage between Henry VIII and his ageing wife Catherine of Aragon, so the King could be free to marry the young Anne Boleyn. Sir Thomas’ actions were guided by religious beliefs and the play captures the imperfect protagonist and reluctant martyr who ends his life bent but unbroken.
Chronicling history in any form can be a daunting task and one has to take utmost care not to tweak facts while taking certain creative liberties with the form. “Since it is a play, it offers the actor and director some leeway. But we had to do a lot of research,” says Arjun.
Ask him about his affinity towards historically controversial figures — his last play Tughlak too dabbled in a similar territory — and he quips, “Well, that’s the fun you know! Exploring the lives of people who are not immediately acceptable to everybody, has a thrill of its own. Tughlak the man had startling ideas of a different India. And Sir Thomas changed the course of English history.”
Arjun’s mastery lies in probing into the intricacies of all kinds of emotional war. “Where does one draw the line between emotion and practicality or does one draw the line at all? It’s interesting how both these characters — Tughlak and Sir Thomas — were not recognised in their times.
Despite the play being a period drama, Arjun believes that it will find resonance among contemporary theatre-goers.
Considering the stupendous response it got it Bengaluru, one knows Arjun is not off the mark. “It is meant for all kinds of theatre-goers. Despite the political background, it’s an entertaining play to watch — the production value is superior; we got costumes from England to stay true to the Tudor backdrop. The set is an exquisite revival of Renaissance England and the music too is just apt. Also, there’s a lot of inbuilt humour which makes it furthermore acceptable to young theatre-goers,” says the director.
Arjun had first seen the play in his college days in the US and ever since then he has nurtured a wish to make his own adaptation someday. “The play stayed with me. I saw that it has a lot of scope theatrically and its intellectual philosophy was something up my alley,” he says.
The theatre artist also had a brief stint with cinema, first as an actor in Kama Sutra and then Agni Varsha, which he directed. He says he would love to return to the big screen soon.
“Directing a play is a far more cumbersome job than making a film. Theatre doesn’t pay and availability of actors is also a problem, unlike films that are commercially much more viable and is a one-time exercise at the end of the day,” he says.
“I have been working on something for the past five years and I intend to get back to it definitely by next year. It won’t be a period venture this time; but it will definitely be about emotional challenges as I can never make a comedy,” he adds.
A Man For All Seasons will be staged at Nehru Centre, Worli, on April 20-21, 7.30 pm onwards. Book your tickets at bookmyshow.com