''Sonata'' is a

one-act A one-act play is a play that has only one act, as distinct from plays that occur over several acts. One-act plays may consist of one or more scenes. The 20-40 minute play has emerged as a popular subgenre of the one-act play, especially in writi ...

play by Indian playwright

Mahesh Elkunchwar Mahesh Elkunchwar (born 9 October 1939) is an Indian playwright and screenplay writer in Marathi language with more than 20 plays to his name, in addition to his theoretical writings, critical works, and his active work in India's ''Parallel Cin ...

about friendship between three women.

Plot

''Sonata'' is about three single working women, living in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, a journalist, a teacher of

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

and one employed in a big post in a multinational. They share a life of solidarity and freedom. Not only do they have an aura of sophistication but each of them is also successful at work. The women aligned themselves with the Woman's movement but 30 years later abandon it and retreat for into their private world of reality and fantasy, opting for the conventional lifestyle of marriage and children.

Themes

The play explores loneliness in the lives of women. The three women - Manisha, Dolon and Subhadra represent women who irrespective of their origin, live a western life.

Background and tour

''Sonata'' was written by

in 2000. An English translation of the play premiered in 2001. It was directed and produced in English (rather than

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

) by Amal Allana.

Adaptation

''Sonata'' was adapted by

Leesa Gazi Leesa Gazi ( bn, লিসা গাজী; born 14 August 1969) is a Bangladeshi-born British writer, playwright, theatre director and actress based in London. Background Gazi's father fought during the Bangladesh Liberation War. Career Gazi ...

to be performed as a bilingual play in Bangla and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. The setting of the play was changed from Mumbai to London and three Indian women transformed into three Bangladeshi women living the lives of Londoners. Mita Chowdhury, Leesa Gazi and Farhana Mithu play the three college friends who have settled in London. Friends since their college days, the characters are now middle-aged. A banker, a professor and a journalist by profession, the three are well-settled in their respective careers and are single by choice. The play was directed by British director Mukul Ahmed and produced by Tara Arts in October 2008. This was the very first time a theatre performance contained all Bangladeshi actors for a mainstream theatre in London. It was also performed at TARA Studio and the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

in 2008. In January 2010, it was also staged at the

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...

auditorium in Dhaka and co-produced by Tara Arts, the British Council and

International Theatre Institute The International Theatre Institute ITI is the world’s largest performing arts organisation, founded in 1948 by theatre and dance experts and UNESCO. It has hosted various events through its history, including the Theatre of Nations, an intern ...

, Bangladesh. In 2017,

Aparna Sen Aparna Sen (, ''Ôporna Shen'') is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actress who is known for her work in Bengali cinema. She has received several accolades as an actress and filmmaker, including nine National Film Awards, five Filmf ...

adapted the play into a Bengali feature film of same name, starring Sen,

Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of Hindi film, television and theatre. One of India's most acclaimed actresses, Azmi is known for her portrayals of distinctive, often unconventional female characters across several ge ...

, and

Lillete Dubey Lillete Dubey (born 7 September 1953) is an Indian actress and theatre director. She has worked in Indian and international theatre, television and films in Hindi and English languages. Dubey began her career with Barry John in Delhi and was the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonata 2000 plays British plays One-act plays English-language plays Bengali-language plays Plays set in India Plays set in London Plays by Mahesh Elkunchwar Indian plays adapted into films Indian diaspora in the United Kingdom Bangladeshi diaspora in the United Kingdom