UDHAM! opens Tuesday 18th August at the Camden’s People Theatre, following the life of Udham Singh’s journey from orphan to Hollywood extra. Learn more about you can expect:
1. What drew you to tell Udham Singh’s story in this format?
Udham Singh’s story is an important one, and one most of the South Asian community are familiar with, but that almost no one knows in the West. It is a story of disproportionate violence by the authorities and the mistreatment of people by those in charge, which leads to Udham’s quest for revenge. The story is important now, because it resonates with a lot of what is happening today. Theatre is always a brilliant medium for stories like this – this is a story with great nuances and depths, and in theatre you can journey through it together. It’s also a play about what unites us, and having the shared experience of watching the play together, I think will enhance that feeling.
I felt telling the story from Udham’s perspective would be entertaining – he was a large personality – as well as thought provoking.
2. What do you hope audiences who are unfamiliar with Udham Singh take away from the show?
We want the audience to understand the impact of violence and how it can be generational, and deeply impact so many people’s lives. I also want the audience to be able to see how what happened then, is still happening in the world today.
3. Why did you choose a comedic and interactive format?
I believe that comedy and laughter make difficult messages more palatable. People don’t want to be lectured to for an hour. Something that entertains them, and simply tells them the story, provokes further thought and empowers them to make up their own mind. This format in my opinion does that.
4. As a solo performer have there been many challenges?
The most challenging part is to have a story that spans nearly 21 years told with only one person on stage. Udham’s life has so many (wild and unpredictable!) events and characters, which is challenging to bring to life without a full cast. But I believe we have found a good balance, which now does this well.
5. Which scene is the most emotionally demanding to perform and why?
The Ending speech is quite emotionally demanding, as it’s an appeal to the audience about what’s happening today. I feel the weight and importance of it, as it’s extremely important to me.
6. What has been the most enjoyable part of creating Udham?
We devised this play from scratch using a lot of improvisation, reviewing and editing in cycles. This process has been very collaborative between the writer, director and the actor and this has been immensely rewarding and enjoyable.
UDHAM! opens Tuesday 18th August at the Camden’s People Theatre. Many thanks to Madhav Vasantha for answering our questions. Book your tickets here!
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