'Three Women' - Musical Theatre Premiere
VIEW EVENT DETAILS“Three Women”, a musical theatre debut, is a modern response to Rabindranath Tagore’s nineteenth century Bengali Renaissance literature. The performance is crafted on the evolution of two female protagonists from Tagore’s novellas, Bimala from “The Home and the World” and Charu from “The Broken Nest”, seen from the perspective of Kadambari Devi, Tagore’s sister in law and lifetime muse. In Tagore’s original works, the female protagonists instigate change from their patriarchal setting towards their progressive aspirations, but the sustainability of their newfound freedoms remains unanswered. “Three Women” illustrates the continuing relevance of Tagore’s work as women today negotiate similar issues of identity and empowerment in the public domain.
The production's premiere performance will feature actors Dilnaz Irani, Leeza Mangaldas and Renu Roy, with music composed and performed by Isheeta Ganguly.
Isheeta Ganguly is a fusion singer of the Indian diaspora who began her musical journey at the tender age of seven and released her first album at the age of fifteen. Raised in the U.S., Turkey, Japan and Indonesia, Isheeta's music weaves together the many threads of her musical journey from her training in Tagore's and Hindustani classical music (under the great maestro, Suchitra Mitra) to her versatile training and performance in jazz, pop and R&B styles throughout her years of growing up in New York. She has released seven widely acclaimed albums since her childhood and more recently recently her first fusion album, "Damaru - I Feel Your Rhythm", arranged by Bollywood music producer Shantanu Moithra and Grammy award winning percussionist Tanmoy Bose, which has remained on top of the Indian international music charts since its release. Isheeta is also a management consultant and the Founder and Executive Director of Neerupama, an organisation focused on gender equity and transforming the lives of the girl child from a health, education and arts perspective. She has her BA from Brown University and her Masters in Public Health from Columbia University.
Renu Roy is an accomplished and renowned stage actor and has rendered memorable roles in several successful and acclaimed plays in Hindi and English over the past 40 years. She has acted in over 60 plays and her recent solo performance in Nadira Babbar’s play ‘Sakubai’ has received national acclaim.She is the recipient of several other prestigious Awards for outstanding achievements in and contribution to the field of cultural and performing arts including the ‘ Bharat Nirman Award 2005’ and the ‘ Women Achievers’ 2011 Award’ received from the Governor of West Bengal, His Excellency Shri M.K.Narayanan. Renu is also the Executive Director and Trustee of Spandan, a premier cultural organisation and foundation in Kolkata devoted to the promotion and presentation of the performing, visual, cinematic and fine arts.az
Leeza Mangaldas is an actor, writer and painter who is also the founder of Evoke India, a platform for idea sharing and open dialogue on themes central to human identity: Beauty, Money, Sexuality, Love, Violence, Religion and Substance. Leeza graduated from Columbia University in 2011 and has her BA in English and Visual Art.
This programme is part of our AsiaLens series, which presents an array of perspectives on the visual and performing arts of modern Asia, offering a vibrant and nuanced view across the continent. Previous events under this series include a behind-the-scenes tour of the CSMVS Conservation Centre with Anupam Sah, a lecture with Dr. Sugata Bose on the paintings of Rabindranath Tagore and a lecture with Ranjit Hoskote and Amar Farooqui.
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