The Husbands. Sharmila Chauhan
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Kali Theatre and Pentabus Theatre
THE HUSBANDS
By Sharmila Chauhan
First public performance
12 February 2013, Plymouth Theatre Royal The Drum
‘Up to 50 million girls are thought to be ‘missing’ over the past century due to female infanticide and foeticide’UN Population Fund
The Husbands originally began as a short story called Frangipani Hill that I wrote some years ago as a response to the growing problems in India arising out of female feticide (aborting females fetuses) and female infanticide (killing girl babies).
The census statistics (2011) show that in some parts of India for every 1000 boys born there are only 300 girls, and things are getting worse. Not surprisingly, the United Nations calls India one of the most dangerous places on earth for a girl.
Polyandry (where a woman has more than one husband) is an ancient practice noted as far back as the Mahabarat. It is still practised today in certain areas, where there are not enough women for men to marry, but unlike in the past, these women are subjugated and treated as servants.
In striking contrast, India has a history of matriarchal societies and Devi (Goddess worship) where Shakti (feminine energy) is believed to be a foundation of life. I found this paradox fascinating. I felt that maybe there was a disconnect between these two things; what would happen if instead of subjugating women, a new system was established that returned to ancient practices of matriarchy? Could reversing the roles make a difference? And so the premise of Shaktipur was born.
During my research I was amazed to find that communities such as the Nair women of Kerala had a centuries old system of matriarchy that also practised polyandry (in some parts). These systems are now extinct but suggest that there is within India a possibility to do things differently
These findings, that India has in itself a rich history that could be the seed to grow something different, was really inspiring. The roles of women, not just in India, are complex: often a blend of many conflicting demands and choices and this is really what Aya faces. I hope that the play says something truthful about the roles of women everywhere.
The relationships between Aya and her husbands are real – they are not abstract ideas – and I really wanted this to come through. These are personal journeys that we all struggle with. So while set in India, the themes of love, power and female sexuality also make The Husbands an allegory for society in the West.
Sharmila Chauhan
Kali Theatre and Pentabus Theatre
The Husbands
by Sharmila Chauhan
| Aya | Syreeta Kumar |
| Sem | Rhik Samadder |
| Omar | Mark Theodore |
| Jerome | Phillip Edgerley |
| Director | Janet Steel |
| Creative Advisor | Elizabeth Freestone |
| Design | Jean Chan |
| Lighting | Prema Mehta |
| Music | Arun Ghosh |
| Movement | Shobna Gulati |
| Production Manager | Luke Child |
| Company Stage Manager | Sarah Julie Pujol |
| Technical Stage Manager | Sam Eccles |
COMPANY BIOGRAPHIES
Sharmila Chauhan Writer
Theatre found Sharmila when she was pregnant. The birth of her son coincided with selection for the Royal Court’s writing programme. Her play Born Again/Purnajanam was performed in January 2012 at Southwark Playhouse as part of Tagore’s Women (Directed by Janet Steel of Kali). When Spring Comes, an exploration of the Asian Ugandan exodus, was performed in autumn 2012 (Dir: Domonic Hingorani) in conjunction with Tamasha and South Asian Lit Fest. Sharmila was twice nominated for the Asian New Writer award and her short stories have been published in print and online. She is also working on a novel. Trained as a pharmacist, with a PhD in Clinical Pharmacology, Sharmila gave up academia to follow the writer’s life. Fascinated by the quiet meaning of people’s lives, her work is often a transgressive meditation on love, sex and exploration of the diaspora. She lives in London with her husband, son and cat Tashi. www.sharmilathewriter.com @sci_literati
Janet Steel Director
Artistic Director of Kali since 2003. After many years as an actress, Janet’s directing career began in 1988 at Loose Change Theatre with her first full-length piece, White Biting Dog. Directing: Behzti (The Rep), April in Paris, Bretevski Street, A Hard Rain, Top Girls (Northampton Royal), Millennium Mysteries, Big School (Belgrade Coventry); Antigone, The Mother, Orpheus Descending, An Ideal Husband, Romeo & Juliet, The Knockey, Serious Money (Rose Bruford). For Kali: Over 35 readings of new work and productions of Calcutta Kosher (2004 & 2012), Chaos, Paper Thin, Deadeye, Zameen, Another Paradise, Behna, Ghandi & Coconuts, Purnjanam/Born Again, Mustafa and My Daughter’s Trial.
Elizabeth Freestone Creative Advisor
Trained at Rose Bruford College and RNT Studio. For Pentabus: Blue Sky, Stand Up Diggers All, This Same England, The Hay Play. Other directing includes: The Rape of Lucrece, Here Lies Mary Spindler, The Tragedy of Thomas Hobbes, The Comedy of Errors (RSC); Endless Light (Kali/Southwark Playhouse); The Duchess of Malfi, Dr Faustus, The School for Scandal, Volpone (Greenwich Theatre); Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare’s Globe); Top Girls, Three Sisters, Night Must Fall (RWCMD); Skellig, Rocket Fuel, No Place Like Home (OnO Theatre); The Travels of the Three English Brothers (British Museum); A Gloriously Mucky Business (LAMDA/Lyric Hammersmith); The Water Harvest (Theatre503). Associate Director on The Caucasian Chalk Circle (RNT) and a Staff Director at the National, the Royal Court, Hampstead Theatre and Soho Theatre.
Phillip Edgerley Jerome
Phillip Edgerley is an actor who has worked in all areas of the industry including work with the National Theatre, Dreamthinkspeak and the BBC. Most recently he has been working with the renowned visual artist Alexandre Singh on his play, The Humans which premiered in Rotterdam and New York and is due for further international performances in 2014. In 2009 he joined The RSC’s Long Ensemble Company performing eight plays over two and a half