Arjun Sajnani talks about Crossing to Talikota, Girish Karnad’s last play

Scenes from Crossing to Talikota
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

This is a bittersweet story about a story. The play, Crossing to Talikota, was written by Girish Karnad who had handed the script to director Arjun Sajnani over lunch one afternoon.

Arjun admits he spent about three months pondering on how to produce and manage the piece before agreeing to direct it.

“Years ago, Girish had sent me the script of The Fire and The Rain by courier,” says Arjun. “It was unexpected and when I opened the parcel, it was a Girish Karnad original; it went on to become one of my biggest successes. This was my second opportunity to do an original piece by Girish which had not been done before.”

Crossing to Talikota would be Girish’s last written piece for the stage; he passed away before its scheduled opening in October 2019.

Scenes from Crossing to Talikota
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

“While his absence created a vacuum in my life as well as for everyone who worked on the show, Girish was not the kind to interfere in the directing process. He believed in his work and believed those who handled it would do it justice while keeping his integrity as a writer intact.”

Crossing to Talikota opened successfully three years ago in Bengaluru, but had to down shutters in Mumbai on opening night due to the lockdown.

Watch the trailer of Crossing to Talikota (2019) here:

Arjun says he used the three-year gap to work with Javed Siddique to turn Crossing to Talikota into a film script. While that project is still a work in progress, “ it gave me more insight into the material and made me delve deeper into it as a director. My cast was able to integrate those new insights to up their performance. As a result, it is now a great show. It always was a splendid production but this time we are bringing a little more to it than we did the first time around.”

The cast from Crossing to Talikota
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Crossing to Talikota is about the downfall of the Vijaynagar Empire, which was being ruled by Ramaraya, son-in-law of Emperor Krishnadevaraya. Ramaraya loses the war at Talikota because four sultans — of Bidar, Golconda, Ahmednagar and Bijapur — combine forces against him, gaining a strong foothold on the Deccan Plateau. “It was an exercise in ambition, greed and ego. The chip on Ramaraya’s shoulder was because of his caste-driven inferiority complex. In trying to prove himself to be greater than he was, he brought about his end as well as the end of the Empire.”

“Although he was a successful general, he was an autocratic ruler and that made a big difference. The play is a good character study apart from having some emotional content as well,” says Arjun.

Crossing to Talikota returns to Bengaluru under the aegis of Embassy and will show at Chowdiah Memorial Hall from March 10 to 12 and in Mumbai on March 31 and April 1 and 2 at JBT auditorium, NCPA. Tickets available on Bookmyshow, Sunny’s in Bengaluru and at the venue in Mumbai.

Scenes from Crossing to Talikota
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Scenes from Crossing to Talikota
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement