Martha Cohen Theatre transforms into India for new production of Bombay Black

Vancouver playwright Anosh Irani's Bombay Black, which tells a story of vengeance, betrayal, seduction between an exotic dancer and a wealthy blind man, opens Thursday at Alberta Theatre Projects. (Photo by Benjamin Laird, courtesy ATP)

It might be - 20 outside, but inside the Martha Cohen Theatre has been transformed into India for the premiere of Bombay Black.

Anosh Irani is one of Canada's best-known novelists, the author of The Song of Kahunsha, Dahanu Road, The Cripple and His Talisman, and Seven Stories and One Half Truth.

But Irani is a double-threat, as he is also award-winning playwright whose most recent solo show Buffoon won the 2020 Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play in Toronto.

Bombay Black is a drama that tells the story of an erotic dancer who is asked to perform for a wealthy blind man. Described as "a love story of vengenance, betrayal and seduction," Bombay Black premiered in a Hindi production in Bombay and New Delhi in 2007, before moving to Toronto where it was produced in English.

CTV News traded emails with Irani this week about the Calgary premiere of Bombay Black.

What was the genesis of Bombay Black?

It started out as a single image, that of a young woman performing a sensual dance for a blind man in an apartment by the sea in Bombay. I asked myself: “Why would a blind man pay to watch someone dance?” So, there was an image, and a question embedded in that image.That was the beginning of Bombay Black. 

Talk about the role that sound plays in Bombay Black.

To me, sound is both real and imagined. We hear sounds that exist, that are very real, such as Bombay traffic, or pigeons and eagles, for example. But the question is: what do those sounds mean?  What do they signify? What is the relationship between the sound and the characters? Then there is imagined sound—psychological sound—sounds that exist in our dreams that are a result of our fears. These sounds might not really be there, but are just as real.

Was it weird writing for the stage rather than page?

Not really. I’ve always been a playwright. Plays are the most dangerous art form. I relish them. Novels offer me a different kind of fulfillment. I need both.

Anosh Irani is a Vancouver-based novelist and award-winning playwright

Anita Majumdar (from the original cast) is a prominent playwright herself. Did she offer any input into the creation of the character of Apsara?

I think every actor, especially in the creation stage of a project, brings great value to a script. That was a long time ago (2005), when we began work on the play.  Anita Majumdar did a marvelous job as Apsara—it was thanks to her training in dance, and the fact she is a wonderful performer herself. Actors ask great questions.  Those questions help me understand the characters more.  I welcome those during the creation process.

The world of Bombay Black kind of evokes Atom Egoyan's film Exotica. Was that any sort of inspiration?

The inspiration for Bombay Black was the bar dance culture of Bombay in the 90s. What started out as an underground scene exploded in the 90s. I witnessed that firsthand and wanted to tell the story of a young dancer. But Apsara doesn’t dance in bars. She performs private dances for men in an apartment by the sea, and she is trained by her mother. I ended up writing a love story and a play about mothers and daughters.

When Majumdar did her show at ATP a few years ago, she said it changed a lot between the Toronto production and Calgary? Is this Bombay Black different? Does each production of the show offer you insights into what is working well and what needs a re-think?

The script of Bombay Black went through one major change when we produced it in Bombay and New Delhi in 2007.  Hearing the play in Hindi triggered something in me.  We opened the play in Bombay with the same Toronto script, and then, suddenly, I had this very strong urge to make one major change. The director was very surprised by it but was also open to the challenge.  As were the actors.  They were incredible.  We used to perform the show only on weekends. So, after a Saturday opening, we made changes which they incorporated brilliantly with a week or so.  (I think that was the timeline, but I could be wrong.  It was in 2007.)

Are you planning to write more plays?

I don’t plan to write plays. I try very hard not to.  But they come. They don’t ask permission. I tell myself, “Okay, no more plays.  Please.” And then a deeply wounded character comes along, and I find myself feeling a sense of dread because I know they won’t leave me alone.

Bombay Black, at the Martha Cohen Theatre in Arts Commons through March 19. Tickets and info here.