Do Cherries Grow in Kerala?

Nope. So then why call it The Cherry Orchard? Glad you asked.

We set our adaptation of The Cherry Orchard in Kerala. Kerala, in the 1980s, to be precise. There were some good reasons to do that. 

The original play by Chekhov is about the loss of wealth and status of a Russian aristocratic family after the Emancipation reform of 1861 in Tsarist Russia which freed the serfs and gave them rights.

Kerala too went through a similar period in the 1960s when a series of land reform bills were passed which effectively gave the peasants who tilled the lands, ownership of their lands. The landlords, called jenmis, lost the right to collect rent on these lands which greatly affected their income.

In the original play the family had a deep emotional link to the house they were born in and to their cherry orchard. The cherry orchard is a metaphor for their connection to the land as well as their loss of it when it gets chopped down. Kerala’s gorgeous countryside - lush green paddy fields and coconut groves - evoke the same attachment to something beautiful. 

So, no cherries in our rendition of The Cherry Orchard. But we chose to keep the name of the play because, for one, “The Paddy Fields” doesn’t have the same ring to it. And two, it’s a nod to the kind of adaptation we have done. We have transplanted the play, but it hews tightly to the plot and characters of the original.

Chekhov would have approved.

The Cherry Orchard opens in 2 weeks. Get your tickets!