Manav Kaul: ‘I write women characters because I really want to meet these women’

Over the last two decades, Manav Kaul has become an integral part of the creative world as an actor, author, screenwriter, filmmaker and theatre-director. In spite of the multi-talented human being that he is, Manav has a simple approach to life and believes that his wanderlust is priority, travelling the world, his first love and everything else is secondary. Kaul’s work in all fields has garnered appreciation, critical acclaim and awards.

This weekend, his new Hindi play by Aranya Theatre, titled Tumhare Baare Mein premieres at the Experimental Theatre, National Centre for the Performing Arts, Mumbai, and in an exclusive conversation, Kaul talks to Moneycontrol about it. Edited excerpts:

Theatre writer-director Manav Kaul in a rehearsalof his new play 'Tumhare Baare Mein'.

Tumhare Bare Mein, your latest play, is it based on your book of the same name?

I have a book with the same name but this play, Tumhare Bare Mein, has nothing to do with it. It is a separate piece of writing and I call this devised writing. I devised it while doing rehearsals and giving exercise to actors. I had images and ideas in my head and I thought let me have fun with them and let me write it and tell the actors to react, perform and improvise along the lines. Then I started writing while I was also rehearsing, and it evolved. I never thought that I could do a play like this, and it surprised me that I was able to create this. It was very new to me.

You said your book is different from this play, why did you stick to the same name then?

When I completed the entire play, I felt that the best name for it could only be Tumhare Baare Mein. And the moment I said this name everyone reacted positively. So, I stuck to it. This name rings a bell when you see the play. On a surface level, this play is about three couples and one of those is a man who wants to be a penguin and a woman who wants to be a bird. Ek purush jo future dekhna bhi chahta hai aur jeena bhi chahta hai aur wohh pankh bhi chahta but, wohh udna nahi chahta. The man likes the idea of having wings but does not want to fly and the woman wants to, and flying is her dream. It talks about the modern take on how we see and perceive men, women, relationships, and it prominently takes the woman’s point of view and her side.

Women characters in your world are powerful and strong. What do you have in mind predominantly when you write about such women?

I write female characters with only one thing in my mind; I really want to meet all these women. I pray that these women come to life. The things you write about, in a way you crave for them, too. Having said that, I have been lucky that I have got to meet some very strong headed, amazing women over the years and I have written about these women too. In my book Rooh, I wrote about how I met a woman in New York and then we travelled to Kashmir together. The power of fiction is that you can take some reality and mix it with fiction and then play around with it. Fiction fulfils so many things that you haven’t done in life.

Writing screenplays, novels, directing plays, acting — what do you love the most?

Main bahut hi jaldi thoda sa bore ho jata hoon cheezon se. And I don’t want to get bored of things I love. I love acting but don’t do it so much that I get bored of it. I feel that I should come to a point when I crave for something and when that happens I do it with so much heart. I was craving to direct a play so much that the day I began, I felt I was home. This rehearsal space meant everything. Same with writing and acting too. Right now, I am craving acting so I might just sign something soon.

When you are directing a play, does it mean much that you have written it as well. How does being the playwright and director make a difference to your work?

When you write a play you are sure about what you want as a director. You have played every scene in your head so many times and rewritten it multiple times. I have rewritten Tumhare Baare Mein so many times! There are so many amazing scenes that I had to cut out from this to keep the play on track. But when you write as well as direct, you are working on the same material again and again and eventually what you see in the end is sheer hard work.

You are a compulsive traveller — how much does that affect your writing?

Absolutely. My traveling affects everything in life. What travelling really does is, it changes your POV of life. You respect everyone, every culture, you start feeling differently about things you would otherwise take for granted. The more you travel the more you understand life and be humble about it. I think what happens when you are in the same place all the time is that every small thing starts having its effect on you, you get anxious about stupid things. But the moment you begin traveling, the moment you see places you begin to feel light, relaxed, and free. When I was in Copenhagen, Norway, Sweden, I was meeting so many people, meeting writers, chatting with them and it felt great. I have yet to see so many places, yet to meet so many people. Travelling is what I actually do in my life. This is what I love to do and everything else is secondary to me.

Travelling helps writing, believes theatre writer-director Manav Kaul.

What inspired you to travel?

I like going to places where I see less crowds. The sheer idea of how many amazing places and people there are, is astounding. I feel lucky when I travel because I meet some of the finest people and I write about them. Travelling makes you so rich with varied experiences. Once I met this woman in Germany, she was married and was a German housewife. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that I could have ever written about such a character, and her world in my book, had I not met her, spent time with her, chatted with her, stayed in her house. I love these surprises that travelling brings to my life.

What has been the biggest challenge in your life and your tough moments?

I have made my life difficult. I love to do things which, when I start, I say, ‘Oh this is very tough, I don’t think I can do this’. I love to do tough things. Writing is a tough job. Writing a novel is difficult. Writing and putting up a play that is original, unique and new is a very tough job. I do it all the time and I just love it. I do not know any other way to live. Because if I do something easy, I get bored and leave it midway. Things you know and are easy for you, tend to get boring too soon.