Siblings recreate sountrack, stage ‘Komal Gandhaar’ in father’s memory

CHANDIGARH: “People often ask me whether I am doing this for fame or for money. However, it is nothing like that. I am only doing it for my father as I do not want his name and legacy to be erased from the theatre industry so easily,” said

Palak Grover

, a young director with the determination of a tigress in her eyes.

That is also what her late father Rajindra Grover, a well known name in the theatre circle of the city used to call her affectionately. Grover, who owned the theatre company Raghav Arts named after his son, is also remembered for adapting the 10-day narration of Ramleela into a light and sound narration of two hours for the first time in Tricity. “He would look at me and say that you are my son and Raghav is my daughter. You are my tigress and I have a lot of expectations from you,” she added.

Hence, after their father’s demise in 2015, something kept the Grover siblings awake at night. It was the unfulfilled dream of Rajendra to present the light and sound adaptation of Shankar Shesh’s

play

‘

Komal Gandhaar

’ with an exclusively tweaked and curated soundtrack with the voiceovers by stalwarts from the theatre as well as the Punjabi film and music industry. “The original soundtrack that he had created while working with the senior artistes from the industry over a period of three months was lost just a few months before the show,” explained Palak.

The hard disk in which he had saved the soundtrack crashed and all the data was lost. This happened in 2013. “The day this happened, he did not say anything. Neither did he express anything outwardly. But, he must have felt frustrated from the inside,” added Palak.

In order to find the missing link and also to honour their father’s memory, Palak and her younger brother Raghav started working to recreate the soundtrack from June, 2017. “Creating a soundtrack is really hard, especially when you know so little about everything. Acting and theatre run in my blood and I have done a few shows. But, I still consider myself an amateur and I am still learning,” said Palak, who is also playing ‘Gandhaari’, the lead character of the play, apart from directing it. The play ‘Komal Gandhaar’, which is also being supported by the department of art and culture of Haryana, revolves around ‘Gandhaari’ a strong female character from Mahabharata. It tells the story of the conspiracy behind getting

Gandhaari

married off to Dhritarashtra, the blind king of Hastinapur.

The process to fulfill their father’s dream was definitely not a smooth one, the Grover siblings admitted. “It started with us finalising a studio. We struggled a lot but finally found one in the Industrial Area. It is owned by my father’s friend and we were not charged much,” added Palak.

When Rajendra had prepared the original soundtrack, he had himself given the voiceover for Shakuni’s character. Now, his children roped in B N Sharma, a legend from the Punjabi film industry for the same. The voiceover of

Bhishma Pitamaha

has been given by

R J Sachin

, from 92.7 Big FM. “I felt so nervous and clueless at times, directing such stalwarts during the recordings but something kept me going,” said Palak.

When asked about how would their father react if he was alive today, Palak, fighting back her tears, said, “He would have been surprised and overwhelmed. He would perhaps have said whatever he had prepared was fine, but what we have done by knitting the pieces together is beyond his creation.”

Rajni Grover

, the mother of the duo was extremely happy and proud of her children.

Rajendra, whose association with theatre and short films spanned over 40 years, also worked in various Punjabi TV serials like Ulta-Pulta and Flop Show among others. “He chose ‘Komal Gandhaar’, written by Shankar Shesh because his plays talk about society and my father believed the society and literature are the mirrors of society,” said Palak Grover, before rushing to the makeup room.”

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