Omung Kumar: Portraying intense drama with history is a challenge
National Award winning filmmaker and production designer Omung Kumar, has designed the set for Babasaheb: The Grand Musical, which is being staged in Delhi’s JLN Stadium. He talks about what excited him to take up the project, and recalls his memories of performing for the live audience during his college days.
The 100-feet stage decked with mutiple LED screens and a revolving 40-feet set for the musical on Babasaheb Ambedkar, will see some of the best creative minds come together. “We’ve seen Mughal-E-Azam (1960), we’ve gone abroad and seen the stage shows there, but when I came to know ki yeh play Ambedkar ji par hai, I started thinking how I can help the director seamlessly change from one screen to another while having a strategically designed set,” says Omung Kumar, art director of the play.
“Theatre is all about what is in front of your eyes. It’s a magical element of stage unfolding, and that’s how I make my sets also,” says the National Award winning filmmaker, who is adept in stagecraft, adding: “Live show is something else! And on top of that, this musical has intense drama with history of something that has happened for all of us. To portray that on the stage is in itself a challenge. And that’s what excited me, to come up with all the elements.”
To maintain the dignity of the subject while acknowledging the format of a musical, Kumar says he ensures that “We didn’t go over board. It’s a serious subject and is something that people’s sentiments are attached with. So nothing over the top or frivolous has been added. But then, whoever knows about the stage will see the technicality and how we’ve changed from one to the next.” And being a director himself, he can’t keep his instincts away but ensure they don’t get in the way of a collaborative project. “I just say ki mai hota toh aisa karta... Mujhse set banake chala nahi jata (chuckles). Once you work, director ke do ideas aur mere do ideas combine karke we challenge each other. Like maine LED daal diye, par LED ki zarurat nahi thi, toh usse kya kar sakte hain? We can have the constitution on the top or we have these letters coming in. So that’s how you challenge each other and keep on making it better to create something that you’ve not seen before.”
Kumar, who has been part of theatre during his growing up years, recalls how working for the stage always brings back some loving memories. Such as from the time when he used to forget his lines! “I used to do a lot of stage plays. My mother used to direct some of them. After college, I would go and perform, and har saal best actor and best play ka award we used to get. So I love stage, and live audience. But mujhe bimari thi; I used to forget lines in live performances! So my mother used to tell all the other people, ‘If he forgets lines, don’t worry he’s going to improvise on stage looking at the audience’. That was one crazy thing that carries on with the character I am even today,” he sums up.
Author tweets @HennaRakheja