New Delhi: For most Indians who were lucky enough to watch B R Chopra’s Mahabharata almost 25 years ago, Nitish Bhardwaj is still synonymous with Krishna. So, when theatre personality Atul Satya Koushik scripted his play ‘Chakrvyuh’ and decided to cast actors, Nitish Bhardwaj immediately came to his mind.
For any actor, it is not easy to cast off such an iconic role, and Bhardwaj’s case is no different. The fans of the original Mahabharata are now set for a theatrical treat as the actor marks his return as Krishna, this time on stage.
The Films and Theatre Society, a prominent theatre group based in Delhi, has roped in Nitish to reprise the famous role and once again become Arjuna’s charioteer.
The actor, who quit his successful career of a veterinarian to pursue his passion in acting, was just 23 years old when he was picked for the epic role and in no time, the young actor became more than a star. People would touch his feet wherever he would go. Many actually believed, this is how Lord Krishna would look if he comes to earth.
“It is almost after 25 years that I will once again pick the flute and get on the stage,” chuckles the actor, who has been associated with theatre ever since he was a child. “I am a bit nervous as I, at no cost, want to disappoint my fans who have for decades showered me with their love,” says Nitish, who performed in six Hindi and Urdu plays during late 1980s.
The play Chakravyuh will be staged in, Delhi on July 26 at Kamani Auditorium followed by the Gurgaon show on August 3. as part of The Films & Theatre Society’s pan-India tour of plays, called Swades, which will cover several states including Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab
Atul Satya Koushik, writer and director of Chakravyuh, says, “When I redesigned my original play ‘Arjun Ka Beta’ as ‘Chakravyuh’, the character of Krishna came out really well. While narrating the script to my team, it suddenly struck me that there is no one else but Nitish who can add life to this role”.
After achieving enormous success as Krishna, Nitish decided to take a plunge in politics. In 1996, he contested elections from Jamshedpur in Bihar on a BJP ticket and won the seat. Thereafter, the actor held several posts in the party including party’s spokesperson in Madhya Pradesh in 2006.
But Nitish, whose stint with politics kept him away from cinema, has returned to his original love. The actor recently made his directorial debut through Marathi feature film Pitruroon starring yesteryear actress Tanuja and renowned actor Sachin Khedekar. The film was highly acclaimed by both the critics and audiences and was nominated for several awards, including Screen Award for Best Director. Tanuja and Sachin also bagged ‘Best Actor’ awards for the film.
Apart from his stage comeback, Nitish is also awaiting the release of his Hindi film Yaksha directed by Mukul Abhyankar in which he plays the title role.
“I was away from the film industry to be a politician. But one can never take away an actor from a person,” he says.
Fond of Indian classical and semi-classical music, a multi-faceted person, Nitish has also directed two contemporary Bharat Natyam productions in London, based on the stereotypes of society and the life and music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
The actor has earlier performed in a musical comedy extravaganza at one of London’s oldest theatres—Theatre Royal Stratford East. The play, one of the biggest fringe-theatre hits of UK in 1993, toured all over the country and ran for 2 weeks at ‘Du Morier world theatre festival’ at the Harbourfront theatre, Toronto in Canada.