Prasoon Joshi’s Rajadhiraaj: A grand musical on Lord Krishna’s journey comes to Delhi

Lyricist, screenwriter, and Padma Shri awardee Prasoon Joshi recently forayed into theatre with his first musical, Rajadhiraaj: Love.Life.Leela, a celebration of Indian heritage and the timeless stories of Lord Krishna. The mega musical delves into the untold stories of Lord Krishna, offering a vivid glimpse into his dual journeys from Vraj to Mewar and Mathura to Dwarka. Portrayed with spectacular visuals and a cast of over 100 performers, the musical features over 1800 unique costumes by Neeta Lulla. The unprecedented musical intertwining the journeys of Lord Krishna, Shrinathji, and Dwarkadheesh is set to captivate audiences at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Auditorium in Delhi until December 8.

Rajadhiraaj takes one through the journey of Lord Krishna as a child in Gokul and Mathura, a young adult in Vrindavan, and an adult in Dwarka. It also shows the journey of Shrinathji, a form of Lord Krishna worshipped in Nathdwara in Rajasthan. For Joshi, Rajadhiraaj felt like “divine intervention.” According to Joshi, the process of writing a two-hour script, dialogues, and 20 original songs was a journey soaked in devotion and spirituality. “Indian culture is so full of rich stories. The teachings in them are timeless, and it is about time that we put these stories out through a creative channel for a national and a global celebration of Indian heritage,” he said.

Joshi, who had the creative liberty to pick and choose the episodes from the expansive Krishna Leela, felt that it is difficult to bring out the essence of the Leela even if one writes a thousand plays about it. He found the process challenging but rewarding. He decided to keep the younger generation in mind while writing it. He picked some known and some lesser-known stories from Krishna’s life and wove them into a narrative. Apart from creating a grand and visually stunning play, the challenge was to keep the story’s soul and essence intact.

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In the past, Joshi has written in various formats, including 30-second commercials and three-hour feature films. Though he has written and directed plays in college, writing at the scale and subject of Rajadhiraaj was a new challenge. “Unlike movies, the narrative can’t have frequent cuts or transitions. It’s a raw, more intimate connection with the audience in real time. The scope for visual storytelling is limited – the dialogues and stage play must hold attention. Also, there is not much difference between what you have written and what is finally out there in front of the audience,” he explained. His background as a storyteller helped him visualise how dialogues could seamlessly transition into songs for the musical.

The musical premiered at the NMACC in Mumbai earlier this year and received a phenomenal response, with 24 sold-out shows. The audience was diverse, from children to parents, grandparents, devotees, and agnostics. “All who watched it were transported into a different realm for those two hours. Seeing them sing, dance, close their eyes, and pray was overwhelming and rewarding. I am fortunate that this subject chose me. I personally felt awash with gentleness, serenity, and grace,” said Joshi.

Joshi believes that music has always been integral to both cinema and theatre, helping take the story forward or introducing novelty. When writing Rajadhiraaj, he thought of how to introduce complex source material in an accessible manner without diluting the quality. Thus, he worked on it in the tradition of Geet Kavya, a story told poetically through songs. “If I felt a dialogue was becoming too heavy or a scene was getting unengaging, I would introduce a song. Most of the songs were written first and then woven into a composition, ensuring that both scale and sensitivity were maintained. Another unique aspect is that most of them are sung live by the performers, bringing an organic connection with the audience,” elaborated Joshi.

While writing the musical, it became difficult to take a creative call on what to include and what not to. While Joshi had delved into and written about the Bhagavad Gita and Krishna-Sudama, he could not include it in this version given the length. However, he has enough material to write two more plays, which he will work on next. Apart from that, he is working on songs for an exciting musical biopic and also penning a poetry book.

The play is coming to the capital city, which is very close to Joshi’s heart. Talking about his special connection with Delhi, Joshi recalled his days in the city as a student and young professional, where he soaked in its rich culture. “A regular at Mandi House, I vividly remember huddling and sleeping at the bus stop waiting for the bus service to resume after late-night classical music concerts, which sometimes stretched into the early hours,” he concluded.

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