Sandeep Shikhar is a familiar name to most involved or interested in theatre. With a career spanning across three decades as actor, playwright, and director – acting across various films and web series like Panchayat, Jaadugar, Home Shanti and Azaad – Shikhar is also the co-founder of city-based theatre group Indian Ensemble. His latest contribution is directorial, with his play Deluxe Haircutting Salon.
Shikhar’s inspiration for the play stems from his own experiences, drawing parallels between Bachchan, the protagonist and owner of the titular salon, and the life he has lived. As Bachchan dreams of becoming a lawyer, Shikhar brings along characters from his neighbourhood to court, unveiling their stories for justice. “The characters and their backstories have been inspired by people I know, having grown up on a street named Gyan Mukherjee Road in Dhanbad, surrounded by the lawyers’ colony – my entire childhood there left a huge impression on me,” Shikhar reveals.
The themes the play deals with are identity, aspiration, and the clash between modernity and tradition. Through the play, Shikhar dives into the complexities of human relationships in a small-town setting, as the protagonist navigates through the daily phenomena of a mundane life and often finds himself in a world different from reality. “The play examines a very basic premise of a fundamentally aspirational society, which at the moment is in a race to become better, stronger and wealthier. I am also trying to explore the possibilities of empowering the common man and the price that others would pay if the pardon is not granted,” he notes.
Shikhar’s approach to the craft has always been rooted in collaboration; as he states, “I don’t believe in being a dictator, I work with the team and encourage them to come up with their own interpretations of the character.” Having worked with different media like films, theatre and series, Shikhar picks theatre as his favourite. “Being a theatre actor helps to get into a character, but the skill of portraying the character in films requires different skillsets from theatre. After working in a few films and web series, and spending so much time on sets, I think I have adapted to the cinematic medium quite a bit, but I am still working on myself to get the best out of myself,” he stresses. Shikhar also notes how, for him, the process of writing is different for each medium. “Writing is lonely work. Acting, a group work. When I write a play, I can see my characters on stage. In theatre, we get time to rehearse, to know about the story, the characters. In films, it is the opposite,” Shikhar explains, further adding, “Theatre acting is like cooking traditional biryani. Film acting is like fast food. One has to be efficient in both.”
Ahead of his play, which he deems to be a promising exploration of human condition, Shikhar hopes the audience to leave reflecting on their own lives and relationships. As he aptly puts it, “The quirks and concerns of the play’s small town characters will resonate with the audience completely.”
(The play will be staged today and tomorrow, 3.30pm and 7.30pm, at Jagriti Theatre, Whitefield. Tickets are at ₹400)