Four women tell their stories, in their own way. The characters, languages, accents, social and geographical locations differ, but their voices flow from a unified feminine frame. It is not just the aroma of freshly-baked bread that wafts through the narratives, but each brings out complex questions on the many sides to a single story. These are the sequences from Something Like Truth, directed by Parna Pethe and staged at the recently-concluded Ranga Shankara Theatre Festival.
The play, based on popular playwright Shantha Gokhale’s Truth and Justice: Four Monologues, was characterised by compelling movement sequences (designed by Maitreyee Joshi) and harmonised live music (directed and performed by Aabha Soumitra, who has also co-wrote lyrics with Sheetal Sathe). Well-executed performances by Ashwini Giri, Dusha, Kalyanee Mulay and Sharvari Deshpande brought alive people’s stories from the 19th Century France, India in 2002 and Sri Lanka in 2009.
The four women told their stories in their own way
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Special Arrangement
The play revolves around the characters of Marie, a cleaning lady, who ends up playing an important role in how Captain Alfred Dreyfus is wrongly charged for treason. Dreyfus’ story is narrated by his wife, Lucie, who, to quote the playwright, Shantha says: “Outlived Alfred Dreyfus by 40 years and never forgave France for what it had done to him.”
Closer home, the story of Zameera underlines how a witness can become an accused. While the truth remains elusive, a witness is held captive.
Haunted by “the ‘Best Bakery’ tragedy because of the human story at its centre,” the playwright chose to delve into what Zaheera Sheikh (primarily a witness in the ‘Best Bakery’ case and later jailed for perjury), “was thinking during her incarceration, about herself, society and the law.” The fictional character, Zameera, who narrates Zaheera’s story in the play, says, she “is feeling safe, for the first time in her life in jail.”
Sri Lankan journalist, Lasantha Wickrematunge, predicted his own death at the hands of the government he opposed in a piece of writing titled ‘And Then They Came For Me’. This writing, posthumously published, becomes a lens, through which the lack of press freedom in contemporary India is examined.
Director Parna Pethe
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
It was challenging to balance “simplicity with emotional truth” while “allowing the words to breathe,” says Parna, talking about the collaborative process in which “movement and music became integral partners.” Speaking about the play’s relevance, she says, “in times when public discourse often reduces complex identities to slogans or binaries and truth feels uncertain, the characters in this play remind us of the power of listening. It invites us to see truth, not as something loud or absolute, but as something tender, layered and deeply human.”
The handmade zine, given out with the play tickets (designed collaboratively by Rucha Satoor, Alok Rajwade, and Akshata), aligned well with the set design by Sampada Gejji. “The zine was conceptualised as an extension of the play, where we wanted to give a brief idea of the incidents in the play. It includes photos, notes and reflections from those incidents. Printed in a simple, handmade format, it invites the audience to pause, touch and remember,” Parna says.
Something Like Truth has travelled to multiples locations in rural and urban India. The responses, according to Parna, have been overwhelming. “It seemed to reach them on a deeply personal level. Even when the language wasn’t fully understood, the emotions and experiences resonated. “Many women came up to share their own stories. That has been the most moving part of this journey,” she shares.
Published – November 25, 2025 05:35 pm IST
