Theatre is exciting, but daunting too, says Sanjna Kapoor

You can sit back and wait for the joy ride, for the acclaimed Complicité theatre group  —  known to integrate text, music,
image and action to create surprising, theatre, are on their way to India. Sanjna Kapoor, who’s been spearheading this, says, “Complicité is among the top five theatre companies in the world and after a three-year attempt to bring them here, it’s finally happening. It’s the most exciting time but daunting too. I  can barely believe it,” she laughs.

She came close to having them here at the end of 2008, a time when the terror attacks hit Mumbai. “The Gods must have been on our side as the company would probably have been having dinner at Leopold Cafe after the show on that dreadful (26/11) night.” she recalls.

With things more firmly in place now, and British Council being a major partner, the other Indian component to the show is interestingly, the International Congress of Mathematicians, who are hosting the next congress in Hyderabad this August. “Marcus Du Sutoy, the well-known British mathematician informed ICM of Complicité’s show, and suggested they bring it to this conference — a perfect match since this play deals with the genius of our great mathematician Ramanujam. The show moved me to tears. It’s taken from Ramanujam’s quest to look at what infinity means. What fascinates me is the connection between mathematics and the arts —  both are not necessarily aimed at immediate utilitatrian use or production. You engage with it for the sheer delight of it,” she explains.

The show is about the relevance of theatre in our world today. She says, “Theatre isn’t going to increase your bank balance. But there is immense value to it, just as the person who looks for the value of prime numbers,” she adds.

Now that D-day is coming up in August, Sanjna’s counting every minute. “It’s terrifying, I haven’t yet got all the money I need, I’m looking for sponsors,” she admits. The latter is also part of the challenges that she faces. “I have these huge moments of despair when and some of them have to do with money but things are changing. Today, our audience can be anyone from a CEO to a rickshaw-wallah who may sit and watch the stage together. That’s heartening!"