Mohit Takalkar

Mohit Ratnakar Takalkar (Marathi: मोहित टाकळकर) (born 18 August 1977) is an Indian theatre director, filmmaker, film editor, screenwriter and actor from Pune, Maharashtra. He has led and spawned a movement in Marathi experimental theatre through his 25-year-long career by co-founding the theatre company, Aasakta Kalamanch in 2003.

Takalkar has directed more than 30 experimental plays in Marathi, Hindi, Urdu, Kannada, Marwari and English languages. He has directed movies including ''The Bright Day'' and ''Medium Spicy''. He also runs his restaurant ''Barometer'' in Pune.

Personal life

In 2000, he met Geetanjali Joshi, an actor during rehearsals of his first play''Yayati''. They married in 2005 but separated in 2007.

In 2011, he was diagnosed with Bipolar II disorder and has been quite vocal about it.

Career

He completed graduation from the Institute of Hotel Management, Mumbai and briefly worked in the hospitality industry as a chef, before shifting his focus towards the entertainment industry. He then studied animation from the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing.

Theatre

Takalkar started his theatre career with the Progressive Dramatic Association, Pune. He won the Maharashtra State Award for the Best Play and Best Director for ''Yayati'' and ''Nanephek'' and later for ''Tu'' (2007).

In 2003, he co-founded Aasakta Kalamanch to extensively work in cutting-edge theatre, experimenting with language, form, content and presentation. His plays are known for minimalism in staging with a high level of technical excellence and a strong visual language. Takalkar directed a flurry of plays for Aasakta repertory, which were mainly performed in Sudarshan Rangmanch, a small intimate theatre space for about 100 odd audiences, in the heart of Pune. Takalkar often acknowledges the contribution of this space in experiments with his craft.

He received the Charles Wallace scholarship which enabled him to pursue his Masters degree in Theatre Practice from the University of Exeter in 2010 under the guidance of Phillip Zarrilli. This exposure changed his practice and upon returning to India he directed plays with large ensemble casts which include ''Comrade Kumbhakarna'', written by Ramu Ramanathan, for the repertory company of the National School of Drama. Deepa Ganesh for the Hindu wrote, “The play, intense and multi-layered, is full of signs and metaphors, weaving into its polyphonic narrative, mythology, politics and life as it were”.

He then went on to direct his Marathi production of ''Uney Purey Shahar Ek'' based on the English play, ''Bendakaalu on Toast'' by Girish Karnad. Shanta Gokhale for Pune Mirror wrote, “Mohit Takalkar walks with Karnad step for step, giving us a piece of theatre that is memorable as much for its strong conviction as for its refined stage craft”.

In 2015, he directed the Hindostani production of ''Main Hoon Yusuf aur ye hai Mera Bhai'' translated from Palestinian playwright, Amir Nizar Zuabi's English play, ''I am Yusuf and this is my brother''. It went on to win five awards at the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards, including Best Play and Best Director. Critic Shanta Gokhale reviewing for Mumbai Mirror wrote, “Followers of this director’s work are accustomed to seeing a stage design that intrigues the eye. In this case, there was just a table at the beginning and a low white ‘rock’ later, that also served as diverse seating arrangements. As the stories of the characters unfolded, the starkness of the stage became part of the meaning of the play, reflecting the fear, confusion and misery that was invading their lives”. In 2017, Takalkar directed ''Chaheta'' in Urdu, based on another of Zuabi's plays, ''The Beloved''.

Takalkar directed two plays for Aadyam, an initiative of the Aditya Birla Group. ''Gajab Kahani'' an adaptation of Jose Saramago’s ''The Elephant’s journey'', was played in a black box, where the audience sat in the center on swivel chairs while the play was performed in 360 degrees around them. He then went on to direct ''Mosambi Narangi'', an Hindi adaptation of Marie Jones' English play, ''Stones in His Pockets'', in which two actors, Rajit Kapur and Ajeet Singh Palawat, played more than 20 characters.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Takalkar directed a digital play, ''The Colour of Loss'' based on Booker Prize winner, Han Kang’s ''The White Book''. When the theatres re-opened after the pandemic, he devised a multilingual theatre piece, ''Hunkaro'' which is based on the story ''Asha Amar Dhan'' by Vijaydan Detha. Deepa Punjani for Mumbai Theatre Guide wrote, “Mohit's directorial sensibilities put the story and the actor first, but the design though not obvious, is palpable. The simplicity belies the more abstract”.

Films

* ''The Bright Day'' (2012)
* ''Chirebandi'' (2017)
* ''Medium Spicy'' (2022)

In 2012, Takalkar scripted, edited, and directed his debut feature film ''The Bright Day'' in Hindi-English which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. It was in competition at the Shanghai International Film Festival, Mumbai International Film Festival, and was showcased at the London Indian Film Festival

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