LOS ANGELES: Through the astounding one-woman performance of Shabana Azmi; renowned leading Indian actress of parallel cinema, demonstrating both realism and naturalism in her work; South Asian Helpline & Referral Agency (SAHARA) was able to raise a substantial amount of donations to continue offering culturally sensitive support services to the South Asian Indian community who are victims of domestic violence and deal with other mental health issues.
On Sunday, October 24, over 300 guests gathered into the Aratani/Japanese American Theatre near Downtown Los Angeles to experience this amazing psychological thriller. For the first time, three theatre legends – actress Shabana Azmi, writer Girish Karnad, and director Alyque Padamsee – came together to create the play Broken Images. The most fascinating part of the play is that the talented actress Shabana Azmi plays a double role- two facets of the same character. With the help of theatrical technology, the audience was in awe as they witnessed two Shabana Azmis on the stage at the same time. The interaction between the two Shabana Azmis was timely and precious.
The play has Shabana Azmi portraying the character Manjula Sharma, a very successful Hindi short-story writer. She suddenly becomes wealthy and internationally famous by writing a best seller in English, which is not her native tongue. The plot unfolds when Manjula begins questioning whether she has betrayed her own language and identity by opting for the global audience by writing in English. This question increasingly haunts her until her own “image” without warning appears and becomes her confessor, psychologist, and inquisitor. It is through the presence of the other Shabana Azmi that the truth is revealed.
Shabana Azmi stated, “The minute I finished reading the script, I said the play is so dramatic and challenging”. “The play reveals itself as it unwinds. In that sense, it’s a complete thriller because it takes the audience on a roller coaster ride and keeps them guessing who the villain is and who the victim is till the end”. Writer Girish Karnad, makes a successful effort in demonstrating how a woman’s heart and mind work with and against each other.
SAHARA’s Nirupa Sejal Parmar and President Rekha Bajarai presented awards to Shabana Azmi, as well as others who have played a pivotal role in promoting this event as well as financially supporting the efforts of this non-profit agency. Ms. Azmi was surprised to receive flowers from one of her dearest fans, NBC Heroes actor Sendhil Ramamurthy. Audience also had the chance to view SAHARA’s new marketing campaign, including their new video discussing the various programs under the umbrella of SAHARA.
Throughout the evening patrons participated in a silent auction, and at the close of the event, the items bid on were sold; including exotic saris, trips, wine tasting events, tickets to see popular TV show tapings, art works, and other gift baskets. Deepak and Nandini Chopra also graciously sponsored an invitation only V.I.P. cocktail hour prior to the show and buffet dinner immediately after the show. SAHARA raised around $250K from Sunday night’s event. SAHARA extended a special thanks to Dr. Vinod & Jayashree Jivrajka and Dr. Mehar Tabatabai and Qaiser Madad for each donating 50K.
Urmi Patel
