Kabuliwala comes to town

Updated on: 08 November,2011 09:24 AM IST |
Anurupa Dongare |

Rabindranath Tagore's famous tale, Kabuliwala, will be recreated on stage for the first time in Pune

Rabindranath Tagore's famous tale, Kabuliwala, will be recreated on stage for the first time in the Pune

Kabuliwala is one of the most well-known stories written by Rabindranath Tagore. On the occasion of the upcoming Children's Day, Kimedia Productions will stage it in the format of a play.

A still from Kabuliwala

Kimico Mehta, owner of Brownie Cottage and the organiser the play, "The play was first staged by Indian People's Theater Organization in Mumbai. There wasn't an existing play format for the story. That is, of course, if you don't count Bimal Roy's film. The idea was to bring the best of theatre and literature to the children
of Pune."

The story of Kabuliwala revolves around a trader who travels from Kabul to India to earn money and clear his debts, the homesickness he faces and finally his friendship with a little girl named Mini. The focus of the story is the unusual but tender relationship between the homesick vendor and the little girl.

"We wanted it to be a visual treat for the audience. Children have read the story numerous times but seeing it as a play is a different experience altogether. We wanted to immortalise the story," says Mehta.

The cast includes Aasif Sheikh as the Kabuliwalla, Raman Kumar as Mini's father and Baby GunGun as Mini.
The play is directed by Ramesh Talwar while Bimal Roy's daughter, Rinky, has designed the sets.
So, don't forget to take your kids along to watch one of the most iconic stories by Tagore.