Tom Alter wows Oman with play on Maulana Azad
(No Ratings Yet)Surender Bhutani: Tom Alter, who is famous in Bollywood as the “true blue Englishman on screen”, has a new fan base. He has endeared himself to thousands of stage-buffs with his solo play on the life, times and scholarship of Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad.
He held hundreds of fans in a thrall in Muscat Thursday with his diction and his mastery of Persianed Urdu, which could easily be compared with the real-life diction of Maulana Azad, one of the greatest freedom fighters and the first education minister of independent India.
The play came to life against the backdrop of Maulana Azad dictating notes to his confidant Humayun Kabir for his book, “India Wins Freedom.” Maulana Saheb remained opposed to partition of the Indian sub-continent throughout his life.
The play was held as part of the Republic Day celebrations in Oman and organised jointly by the Indian embassy and the Urdu wing of the Indian Social Club. The play has been written by Mohammad Sayeed Alam, noted Middle East scholar, who had brought to stage Pierrot’s Troupe, a Delhi-based theatre group known for its original and topical plays.
Congratulating Tom Alter, Indian Ambassador Anil Wadhwa said, “The theme of the play is still relevant and students of modern Indian history will learn a lot. The way Tom has portrayed Maulana’s character, people will have great admiration for Azad’s sense of mission in life and history.”
According to Pushkin Agha, secretary of the cultural wing, “This kind of powerful plays is written and performed once in a lifetime. We should bring more contemporary plays from India in future.”
Zile Khan, a noted sufi singer who resides in Muscat, was so overwhelmed she could barely utter words to praise. She just hugged Tom and her eyes brimmed with unshed tears.
— IANS
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