Interview: Director Samir Bhamra on BRING ON THE BOLLYWOOD

Headstrong heroines, meddling mothers, star-crossed lovers, suitors in disguise - when it comes to the wonderful world of Bollywood, nothing beats a romantic comedy! Hammed up to the hilt, glorifying in artifice and packed full of spectacular song and dance numbers, it isn't hard to see why theatre producers across the world have taken the genre to heart.

With the rise of shows like Bombay Dreams and the smash-hit West End musical Bend It Like Beckham ushering in a new dawn for the British musical, the nation's appetite for Bollywood spectacle shows no signs of slowing. It is from this rich cinematic culture that life-long Bollywood fan and Theatre Director Samir Bhamra drew inspiration for his latest musical mash-up, Bring On The Bollywood.

Described as 'a Bollywood-inspired musical comedy', this latest offering from Phizzical Productions - one of the UK's leading producers of South Asian theatre - fuses contemporary stories of love as seen through the eyes of 21st century British Asians, with the romance and magic of Bollywood cinema past and present.

Best known for their unique and accessible adaptations of well-loved literary classics, Phizzical's latest show takes its inspiration from two - not altogether different - worlds; Bollywood and Shakespearean comedy.

BWW:UK speaks to Director Samir Bhamra ahead of their Coventry opening this weekend.

Please can you give a short synopsis of what the show is about?

Dr Katrina Pawar is forced to return to her parent's home in Joshimat after 12 years of living and working as a doctor in London. Her younger brother Lucky is getting married to his childhood sweetheart Rekha.

Her arrival spurs family secrets to unravel and misdemeanours lead her to trek to the beautiful Valley of Flowers, located near the Himalayas, where she is drawn to a mysterious young man looking for spiritual solace.

How she finds her soul mate is the essence of this romantic comedy of errors.

The world premiere is taking place at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry. Why have you chosen this venue for its debut?

The Belgrade Theatre is the perfect venue to premiere Bring on the Bollywood. Coventry as a city is vibrant and home to many communities who love Bollywood and a good musical.

We wanted to present it at the Belgrade because it's a versatile space that allows us to scale the production up and present the show in the thrust. This means that the experience for audiences will be unique and immerse them right into the heart of the action.

How do you feel South Asian arts is currently represented in the UK?

April 2016 seems to be a great month for South Asian arts in the UK. There are at least four productions that have opened all featuring the best of South Asian talent, be it Wipers by Ishy Din or The Dishonoured by Kali Theatre which will be coming to Belgrade soon right through to House of In Between at Theatre Royal Stratford East.

What would be amazing though is to plan a little better so that the productions don't over-lap and the South Asian arts are offered to audiences all year round. This is something the Belgrade is trying to achieve with how they programme diverse work and we are exceptionally grateful for all the extra support they have given to us, a small and emerging company, in what is our second in association.

The area I feel we need to do more is to enable those who practice Bollywood to be accepted as professional artists. The skills needed to understand and present Bollywood are not easily taught and we have spent a lot of time in our rehearsals to ensure that our actors have the right tools and references in place.

Two of your major influences are Bollywood and Shakespeare. Why do you feel intertwining them can work so well?

Bollywood would not exist if it were not for William Shakespeare. During the colonial period, his plays were presented in British India and soon adapted into local languages for the wider communities. With the advent of cinema came the need for stories and film-makers turned to two things - the scriptures and Shakespeare.

Both traditions teach us valuable lessons about people and life and that's why they continue to connect so well.

The structure of this show borrows heavily from Shakespearean comedy. Love, disguise, destiny - and of course - romantic resolution in the form of marriage, these are all staples of the Bollywood tradition. There are nods to 'Much Ado About Nothing', 'The Two Gentlemen of Verona' as well as 'The Comedy Of Errors'. We've also been inspired by Oliver Goldsmith's 18th-Century comedy, 'She Stoops To Conquer'. It's a wonderfully witty story of marriage and mistaken identity in which a young gentleman called Marlow ends up mistaking his future father-in-law for an inn-keeper and his prospective wife for the local barmaid, all thanks to his mischievous step-son, Tony Lumpkin.

Have you got a future plan in place for Bring On The Bollywood and are there any other projects on the horizon?

We want to tour Bring on the Bollywood nationally in the future. We wanted to make a show that the whole family could enjoy, from my three-year-old nephew to my 65 years plus mother-in-law. So, Bring on the Bollywood has all the masala that make it a fun family friendly experience because the genre itself allows it to be vibrant and colourful. It's the right time for a new generation of artists to refresh how we see Bollywood work on stage and Bring on the Bollywood allows us to do that and continue to make it bigger.

After Bring on the Bollywood, I want to take a short break and visit Shakespeare's Julius Caesar - but more about that later! For now, we just want Bollywood lovers to come and rise in love at Belgrade Theatre where Bring on the Bollywood will be performing exclusively for 9 shows.

Bring on the Bollywood premieres at the Belgrade Theatre from Sat 23 - Sat 30 April 2016.

For further information, visit www.belgrade.co.uk/event/bring-on-the-bollywood

Photo credit: Sean Goldthorpe

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