In a city where Urdu finds its rhythm in everyday conversations and old stories often carry memories across generations, storytelling takes on a different resonance. Actor and storyteller Dimpy Mishra has experienced that first-hand. As he presented Ek Shaam Kahaniyon Ke Naam to the city at FTCCI Surana Auditorium, he reflects on his long association with Hyderabad, the emotional response he has witnessed here, his journey across singing, and why understanding the life behind a story is essential to telling it.
For Dimpy, the relationship between Hindi and Urdu is integral to understanding India’s diverse cultural fabric. He points to renowned writers such as Munshi Premchand, whose stories often incorporated Urdu words, as an example of this cultural intermingling. His own understanding of storytelling was shaped by his guru, who taught him that storytelling is not complete without the use of Urdu. The event featured poetry of renowned writers including Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Ibn-e-Insha and Gulzar, alongside stories of Saadat Hasan Manto and Munshi Premchand. He also brought with him 16 years of experience working with Gulzar.
Having visited Hyderabad earlier, he says the city has given him an emotional response unlike anywhere else. Going ahead, he describes storytelling as one of the toughest performing arts, requiring an artiste to hold an audience’s attention for one-and- just five. “My first love was singing. I went on to learn revolutionary songs, and now have more than 400-500 such songs, several of which I have composed. Singing eventually led me towards acting, dancing and playing instruments. When you talk about acting, it’s a mixture of all types of performing arts,” he says.
On the work front, he has worked in around 20-22 Bollywood films, mainstream cinema projects and web series. His upcoming projects include Midnight Hea-half to two hours. “You have to deliver the written material in a different manner; an entertaining manner,” he says.
His performance also involves changing voices according to the characters. He has experimented further by incorporating ghazals and songs between stories, something he says is uncommon among storytellers. “I have taken this risk,” he says, recalling the wonderful response to the experiment at his recent performance.
His journey in the performing arts began when he wasro, Trip to Ladakh, Sandeep Bhaiya Part Two and Gali No 36. He is also shooting a film directed by Arijit Singh (singer), alongside Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Dibyendu Bhattacharya. As we head towards the end of this chat, he says, an actor’s responsibility is to inhabit another person’s story. “You have to conceive that character. You have to understand that character. You have to build up that character. Then only you perform,” Dimpy sums up.