Theatre runs in Mumbai’s veins. The art form has thrived, pivoted and survived through the centuries in the Maximum City, with love and appreciation for it only growing stronger over the years. When the world shuttered in 2020, theatre in Mumbai didn’t hit a pause. From Zoom rehearsals to online shows, actors and their audiences ensured that the show went on. Although several theatre groups, big and small, struggled to stay afloat, Mumbai witnessed the community coming together to help each other tide over the crisis. This crucial period in history, believes theatrewallah Sunil Shanbag, offers a space to reflect on Mumbai’s theatre practice. In an upcoming lecture, the veteran theatre-maker will trace the history and development of theatre in the city, and dwell on its challenges in a post-pandemic world.

Titled Playing to Bombay, the talk is hosted by The Literary Club of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai (ASM). The co-founder of Theatre Aparna and Tamasha Theatre, Shanbag is a Sangeet Natak Akademi-winner who is behind productions like Sex, Morality and Censorship, Walking to the Sun, and a remaking of Prithviraj Kapoor’s iconic play, Deewar, with Prithvi Theatre, among others. At the talk, the director and producer hopes to chart the city’s relationship with theatre from the mid-1840s to the present. “The idea is to also track the commonalities. I’m going to be showing some animation and recreations of historical moments in a video,” shares Shanbag.