ADHE ADHURE
(Incomplete)

Written by Mohan Rakesh

Directed by Tannistha Mukherjee

Mar 17 to 25, 2023

Sunnyvale Theatre

550 E Remington Dr, Sunnyvale

A middle-aged woman is the sole bread winner in her family. Amidst the grind of her existence and a failing marriage, Adhe Adhure, is about her search for fulfillment… and about the men in her life. The original play in Hindi was written by Mohan Rakesh, widely considered to be the first modern Hindi playwright. Written in 1969, the play’s words still sound fresh, as if they were being spoken in today’s India.

English | 110 mins | Ages 12+

The Cast

Anju Prakash (SAVITRI)

Anju has performed under the banner of most of the local South-Asian theatre groups. She has also acted in a few short films. This is Anju's third mainstage outing with BADCo, having previously essayed the roles of Dolon in Mahesh Elkunchwar’s Sonata (2018) and Saroja Kunigal in Girish Karnad's Boiled Beans on Toast (2019). Other prominent roles include Devi Paanwaali in Sharad Joshi's Ek Tha Gadha Urf Aladad Khan (2021, Hindi) and Sara in the Indian adaptation of Maugham's Rain (2022). Anju is delighted to be returning to BADCo to play the role of Savitri in Adhe Adhure.

Anju is a full-time technical writer by profession. In her spare time, she loves to watch Indian cricket and movies, travels and practices yoga.

Basab Pradhan (MAN)

Basab is a stage actor, director and playwright. His notable work as an actor includes Chandrasekhar in The Square Root of a Sonnet, Imam Saleem in The Invisible Hand, Nath in Kanyadaan, Chairman Rao in Not Equal To, Salman in The Domestic Crusaders and Jairaj in Dance Like a Man. He has three original full-length plays to his credit, Not Equal To, Greater Than and Divided By, an Indian-American adaptation of Ibsen’s A Doll's House and several short plays.

Basab is the Founder & Artistic Director of Bay Area Drama Company.

Mehul Smriti Raje (BINNY)

Mehul is excited to be making her acting debut with BADCo. Previously she performed in Harvard University’s 2018 production of Yoni Ki Baat (The Vagina Monologues) with a monologue that she wrote herself and as a child actor for Doordarshan’s production of Damon and Pythias in India. She has trained in camera acting, voice acting and stage combat and with each opportunity, wants to learn and improve her craft.

When not on stage, Mehul is an AI researcher and engineer.

Pulkit Gulati (ASHOK)

Pulkit (he, his, him) is a Bay Area actor and filmmaker. Trained in Meisner Technique, his work can be seen in VR Short Film Tale of the Tibetan Nomad showcased at Tribeca 2020, Serial Monster: Ted Bundy on ReelzTV, Is this Meta?, Consequences! as well as other indie shorts. He won best comedy for Perspective at Meisner Bay Area 24 Hour Film Festival and was part of HBO Asian Festival nominated short film The Great Escape. Adhe Adhure is Pulkit’s first project with Bay Area Drama Company.

Niveda Balan (KINNY)

Niveda is a middle schooler in San Jose. This is her first outing with Bay Area Drama Company and she is very excited to be part of the all star cast. Theater is her passion. She has been a part of musicals at school and has acted in High School Musical, Descendants and Frozen Jr. She is currently learning Carnatic vocal, Bharatanatyam and piano.

Director

Tannistha Mukherjee

Tannistha is a director, actor and a dancer. Adhe Adhure is her first directorial outing with BADCo. Previously, with BADCo, she has been in the casts of Name, Place, Animal, Thing, Divided By (lead), Our Stories and The Cherry Orchard. Some of her other prominent roles in the Bay Area include Draupadi in Mahabharat, Nazneen in the Indian adaptation of Arsenic and Old Lace and Tara in Tanika Gupta’s Waiting Room. She has trained in acting, movement, voice, and clowning at the American Conservatory Theatre, San Francisco. 

Stage Manager

Michelle Singh

After Not Equal To and Greater Than, Divided By and The Cherry Orchard, Michelle is excited to be back with BADCo for Adhe Adhure. She has worked at various theatres in the Bay Area over the last 20 years. Most recently at City Lights Theater Company with such favorites as Alabama Story, Ideation, Elephant Man, Amadeus, Dead Man Walking, and Compleate Female Stage Beauty. Other favorite productions around the south bay include Matthew Briar and the Age of Resurrection (Epic Immersive),  A Midsumer Night's Dream (Silicon Valley Shakespeare), Carmen (Opera San Jose), and On the Verge (Bus Barn Stage Co.). Michelle has an MBA from University of Phoenix, and a BA in Technical Theatre from U.C. Santa Barbara, and is the author of "A Stage Manager's Survival Guide: From Callbacks to Closing."

Michelle is the Production Manager for Bay Area Drama Company. When not backstage, Michelle can be found in the online advertising world at Adobe.