Trishla Patel on the message of teleplay ‘Aaj Rang Hai’

With over two decades of acting experience behind her, stage, film and television actor Trishla Patel has tackled a wide range of roles but Purva Naresh's directorial 'Aaj Rang Hai' has a special place in her heart. In the teleplay which will be aired on Tata Play Theatre on 6th Nov, 8pm. Trishla plays the wise Beni Bai, an erstwhile baithak singer who draws from her deep knowledge of the history of Indian classical music to counsel her neighbours. Be it Fanney and Sharda in the throes of an inter-religious love affair or Ameena and Vidya who ask her questions about Allah and why Holi is a festival meant only for Hindus. At the core of her wisdom is Hazrat Amir Khusrau's syncretic poetry and even amid hate, she envisions a world of love, peace and communal harmony.

Discussing the theme of the teleplay, Trishla says, "Love and hate have existed since time immemorial and that is why this story will always be relevant. The core message of the story is ‘Humanity over Hate’ and it is about loving everybody and transcending caste, creed and religion. The play helped me discover so many layers of what India is really about and how rich our culture is. I did not research any Sufi poetry but Purva was extremely caring in the way she spent time to ensure that I got the tonality and the depth right. For me, Beni Bai is not a fictitious character and I surrendered completely to her."

For Trishla, the most moving aspect of this play was the love story that transcends religious divides and she says, "I feel this teleplay is going to carry on way past us, is here for posterity and will be passed on from one generation to the next. Just because it is set in the 40's doesn't make it dated. "

About working with director and actor Purva Naresh, she says, “I would call Purva's manner 'organised chaos' because when she enters the rehearsal room, nobody has any idea about what she is going to do. But the minute she starts, you can see something very beautiful emerging and her genre is very rooted, very Indian and yet timelessly enduring. This is the kind of writing she has grown up around and it is very unique to her. I have never seen anyone work and create the way she does."

Filmed by Sourabh Shrivastava, the play also stars Sarika Singh, Prerna Chawla, Pritika Chawla, Purva Naresh herself, Imran Rasheed, Sukant Goel, Nishi Doshi and Rajshree Deshpande.