What: Double the Impact by Sharon Prabhakar in association with t2
Where: GD Birla Sabhagar
When: June 15, 7pm
Expect: Three comic sketches and songs that had made Sharon Prabhakar a celebrity singer in the late ’80s.
Tickets: Priced Rs 250, Rs 500, Rs 750 and Rs 1,000, available on bookmyshow.com and also at Mocha, Cafe 4/1 and the venue.
Don’t Cry For Me Argentina… the song from Evita, sung by Sharon Prabhakar, will fill GD Birla Sabhagar on June 15. Tathagata Chowdhury of city theatre group Theatrecian caught up with one of the pop icons of India of the late ’80s and early ’90s.
What memories of Calcutta do you cherish?
The grand piano at The Oberoi Grand. I hope it’s still there. Performance at the Grand and watching people groove and sway to the music, New Year celebrations and of course The Saturday Club in the mid-’80s. But it’s only the niche that I could interact with and communicate with my music at that time. Now, after many years, it’s a public show and therefore not confined to a particulate section of the audience. I think it’ll be a wider reach. The performance with Bappi Lahiri at the Salt Lake stadium is also fresh in my memory.
What have you been doing over the past decade?
I was helping my daughter (Shazahn) with her career. But most importantly, I’ve been occupied with establishing my events company and working with different corporates on staff empowerment and communication skills. Human behavioural patterns have always intrigued me.
In my younger years I used to have a huge crush on Sharon Prabhakar, the diva, and now I admire your work on women’s empowerment and theatre production. Tell us about the plays you are producing.
Last year I produced Legend and Lovers, which Alyque (Padamsee) directed. Shazahn performed in the play and the critics loved her. Alyque is still a tough taskmaster with a vision. It was a challenging production as we used multiple screens and visuals to imply life in the kingdom of dead.
What’s your approach to women’s empowerment issues?
This one’s close to the heart. You are directing Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party and your Goldberg and McCann are two women [they are men in the original play]. My empowerment sessions are a bit similar. It’s more about breaking gender stereotypes. And empowering itself is not gender specific. Be the best you can be is a mantra that I endorse.
Tell us what the audience will be treated to on June 15.
I’m looking forward to this. I am glad Theatrecian is presenting Double The Impact. I will stage three short comic sketches and will sing a few songs. Let’s just say, it’s to celebrate life. I’d like Calcuttans to simply come and chill with us, and it’s an absolute pleasure and delight to celebrate life with the people of Calcutta.
