Five iconic plays featuring theatre and film stalwart Lillete Dubey

On Lilette Dubey’s birthday on September 7, here’s a list of her most memorable plays. In addition to her films like Zubeidaa, Monsoon Wedding and others, Lilette has a vast body of work in theatre and TV. She started her career in 1973 with Barry John as the founding member of Theatre Action Group in Delhi. She founded The Primetime Theatre Company in 1991 and since then has staged multiple productions including 30 Days in September and Salaam Noni Appa.

Jaya

In 2024, Lillete Dubey revived Jaya, a grand retelling of the Mahabharata she had staged in the 90s. The two-hour-long magnum opus blends rock ballad verve with unprecedented visual grandeur. Directed by Lillete herself, this musical stars Sherrin Verghese, Megan Murray, Vikrant Chaturvedi, Asif Ali Beg, Keshia B, Sid Makker, Varun Narayan, and Ujjaiynee Roy.

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Devika Rani

Known as the First Lady of Indian cinema, Devika Rani was a pioneering producer and actor who not only ran Bombay Talkies but also introduced many legends to the industry including Dilip Kumar. In her directorial Devika Rani: Goddess of the Silver Screen, Lillete Dubey showcases the spirited defiance of social norms and creative vision that made Bombay Talkies a path-breaking production house. Ira Dubey essays the star who beat back patriarchy and broke the glass ceiling to become a force to reckon with. The star cast includes Joy Sengupta, Rishi Khurana, Nandita Dubey, Aakanksha Kadre, Pranav Sachdev and Kashyap Shangari.

Womanly Voices

Staying true to her passion for Indian writing, Lillete directed this anthology of stories representing the voices of some of India's finest women writers. The anthology includes Wajeda Tabassum's Utran, which created huge ripples when it was first published in 1977. Filmed by Ishan Trivedi, it stars Joy Sengupta, Suchitra Pillai, Pranav Sachdev, Ira Dubey, Deepika Amin and Adit Bhilare. Watch it onSeptember 8 at Tata Play Theatre.

Dance like a Man

Playwright Mahesh Dattani's generational drama Dance Like a Man is about ambition, jealousy and family dysfunction and Lillete not only starred in it but also directed it for the stage. The theme is woven around Jairaj and Ratna, two fading Bharat Natyam artists whose daughter is a promising dancer. The Zee Theatre teleplay also stars Vijay Crishna, Suchitra Pillai and Joy Sengupta. Watch it on September 7 at Tata Play Theatre.

Adhe Adhure

Playwright Mohan Rakesh’s Adhe Adhure proved to be a watershed moment in modern Hindi theatre when it was first published in 1969. Recognising its powerful feminist themes, Lillete staged the play and did full justice to it as an actor and director. Filmed by Rohit Philip, the Zee Theatre teleplay also stars Mohan Agashe, Lillete Dubey, Ira Dubey and Rajeev Siddhartha.