The Ishara Puppet Theatre Trust’s (IPTT) 55-minute multi-media show Rumiyana based on the life and works of Sufi mystic Mevlana Rumi "elaborated the essence of accepting diversity… of inclusiveness,” stated noted puppeteer Dadi Pudumjee. The ideation and discussions for the show which premiered at Goa’s Serendipity Arts Festival last month started almost two years ago, said the founder of IPTT. "A discussion with Shaaz Ahmed who did the animation design for our previous show commissioned by the National Centre for the Performing Arts,” initiated the idea. Ahmed also "adapted and wrote the script plus designed the video back- drops,” Pudumjee explained in a conversation with Parsiana after the event. Rehearsals with actors and puppeteers started around five to six months earlier, meeting three to four evenings a week.
Scenes from Rumiyana, Ishara’s puppet show on the life and works of Sufi mystic Rumi
Enacted by two performers, one a master and the other a student, a note on Rumiyana states that the performance is synergized with dancers, puppeteers and visuals accompanied by music specially created by Sandeep Pillai. "A knock on a door from the student unfurls a series of stories and adventures, each taking him on a journey of discovery.”
"One of the centerpieces of Rumiyana is chants,” the puppeteer told The Tribune (December 18, 2022). "Beginning with Ek Omkar (a Sikh chant), it goes into azaan (Muslim call for prayer) and from there into a Buddhist chant, the Lord’s Prayer and ends with Om Shanti. That is where it links the whole idea of the universality of Rumi and his poetry… The essence of all religions leads to one God… Rumi isn’t just in Afghanistan or Iran, but all over. And this idea is very valid today, something everybody needs,” he noted.
"There were challenges of coordinating and bringing together artistes not only from Ishara but others on one platform, managing rehearsals schedules and also egos,” he stated. "In the end (we) came together as one great team... As soon as people heard we were working on Rumi, everyone wanted to participate… He is, I’m told, the second most read poet in the world, of course through translations… At the moment the text is in English but we will do a Hindi/Urdu version as well,” Pudumjee promised. Farrokh Jijina