Mughal-e-Azam (transl. The Great Mughal) is aBroadway-stylemusical based on the 1960Bollywood filmof the same name, directed byK. Asif and produced by Shapoorji Pallonji. The musical was directed byFeroz Abbas Khan and produced byShapoorji Pallonji Group.[1]
Based on the love story betweenMughal Prince Salim and courtesanAnarkali,Mughal-e-Azam portrays the conflict faced by MughalEmperor Akbar: his responsibility towards the future of his empire and his duty as the father of a beloved son.
It was the first large-scale Indian Broadway-style musical, and was in production for ten months.[2] The show was well received by critics in the media and entertainment industry.[3][2][4][5][6][7] In 2017, it won seven out of the fourteen BroadwayWorld India Awards including Best Play, Best Director, and Best Costume Design.[4][8]
In the era of the Mughals, Emperor Akbar's desire of a son is fulfilled when his wife, Jodhabai, gives birth to Salim, who grows up to be a spoiled brat filled with disrespect and self-indulgence. Consequently, he's sent off to war in Akbar's army and returns as a reformed person with perseverance and discipline fourteen years later. Salim, now a young man, falls in love with Anarkali, a lowly courtesan. Bahar, a dancer who covets the love of the Prince, is filled with jealousy upon discovering the secret affair and exposes it to Akbar. The emperor, full of royal pride, vehemently disapproves of the relationship and imprisons Anarkali, which leads Salim to declare an open rebellion against him. The war between father and son changes the lives of everyone in the empire threatening the foundations of the Mughal rule in India.
The 1960K. Asif film was inspired by a play calledAnarkali, written inLahore in 1922 by dramatistImtiaz Ali Taj.Feroz Abbas Khan had wanted to recreate the film onstage since he saw theblack-and-white film re-released in colour in 2004.[9] In a 2017 interview, Khan said he hadn't wanted to do an imitation of Asif'sMughal-e-Azam, but rather "pay a tribute to K. Asif sahab".[5] For him, the play was “an interpretation; carrying the legacy forward in a different medium.”[6] Prior toMughal-e-Azam, Khan was known for minimalistic productions likeTumhari Amrita, and as a director, he wanted to do something entirely different.[9] Inspired byMughal-e-Azam, he approached Shapoorji Pallonji Group to get the stage rights. The current CEO and director ofShapoorji Pallonji Group, Deepesh Salgia, agreed on the condition that the play kept up the tradition of the film and provided creative consultancy for the production.[10]
According to Salgia, after the colourisation of the original black-and-white movie, the company was looking for new ways to promote the film.[6] The musical retainedNaushad’s soundtrack andShakeel Badayuni’s lyrics from the original film, along with two newly composed songs. The songs are sung live by the singers on stage to a pre-recorded orchestral and choral score.[2][11] The play is in both theUrdu andHindi languages, with LED screens displaying Englishsubtitles of the dialogue.[12]
The technical team includedDrama Desk Award-winning light designer David Lander;Emmy-nominated John Narun for projection design, who has previously worked onMadonna’s concerts and productions atRadio City Music Hall inNew York;[2][3] and production designerNeil Patel, a recipient of theObie Award andHelen Hayes Award, who recreated the design of Emperor Akbar'sSheesh Mahal (mirror hall) on set. Bollywood designerManish Malhotra designed over 550 costumes[5] andchoreographer Mayuri Upadhya recreated the dance sequences from the film for the play.[11][9]
Mughal-e-Azam recruited a cast and crew of over 350 people, including 30 classically trainedKathak dancers who had been living and training in Mumbai for three months.[13] Since the lead actresses had to both sing and dance simultaneously, two actresses — Neha Sargam and Priyanka Barve — played the part of Anarkali alternatively.[1] Theatre actors Nissar Khan, Syed Shahab Ali, and Dhanveer Singh played the parts of Akbar and Salim respectively. For special show in Singapore Theatre actor Harsh Jha essayed the role of Salim[14] The part of Jodha Bai was played bySonal Jha. Yudhvir Ahlawat played the part of Young Salim. Rajesh jais & Tareeq Ahmed Khan played part of Sangtarash/Narrator, and Palvi Jaswal essayed the role of Suraiya. Durjan Singh was portrayed by Chirag Garg and Amit Pathak alternatively. Meanwhile the role of Bahar was played by Aashima Mahajan and Rupsha Mukherjee.
The premiere public shows of the musical were held at the Jamshed Bhabha Theatre.[11] The musical had 57 shows inMumbai, and one successful season inDelhi.[15] The premiere of the musical in Delhi was attended by Union Finance MinisterArun Jaitley, Information and Broadcasting and Textiles MinisterSmriti Irani,Nitin Gadkari, andJyotiraditya Scindia.[5] Bollywood actressesRekha andHema Malini, and directorsKaran Johar,Ashutosh Gowariker, andGurinder Chadha attended the last show of the musical at theJamshed Bhabha Theatre in Mumbai.[7]In her review of the Broadway-style musical, Eshita Bhargava of theIndian Express called it “an audio-visual extravaganza that will be a joy to behold”.[5]Rishi Kapoor, aBollywood actor and the grandson of actorPrithviraj Kapoor who played the role of Mughal emperor Akbar in the original film, tweeted “I don't have enough of adjectives to describe it. This will play forever.”[3]Karan Johar, Bollywood director and actor, tweeted “Mughal-e-Azam, the musical play, was a spectacular throwback to the legendary film; the team and director Feroz Khan have excelled themselves.”[7]The Quint called it “Indian theatre’s coming of age”, “succeeding in giving the audience its own, new set of timeless memories”.[3] In her theatre review ofThe Times of India, Purvaja Sawant stated “the live performances of 'Mughal-e-Azam's hit songs transport you back to a nostalgic era, one you don't want to come out of.”[12]
Mughal-e-Azam: The Musical won seven trophies, including the Best Indian Play, at the Broadway World India Awards 2017.[4][8]
| BroadwayWorld India Awards | Winner |
|---|---|
| Best Play | Mughal-e-Azam |
| Best Ensemble Cast | Mughal-e-Azam |
| Best Direction of a Play | Feroz Abbas Khan |
| Best Original Choreography | Mayuri Upadhyay |
| Best Original Costume Design | Manish Malhotra |
| Best Original Lighting Design | David Lander |
| Best Original Set Design | Neil Patel |