In a country where caste plays an important role in all aspects of social life, love too should be careful in choosing a spot to blossom. Indianostrum, a Pondicherry based theatre group plans an adaptation of Romeo of Juliet in an Indian context. The play is called ‘chandala’ or impure ,and draws inspiration from the true story of Shankar and Kausalya, a young couple who were the recent victims of honour killing. When Kausalya reciprocates Shankar’s love, she anticipates opposition from her orthodox parents. And when he suggests that they get married, she is aware that her family will not let them live peacefully. The power of love makes her choose a day with Shankar over the rest of her life without him. They marry without the consent of her parents. Angered and humiliated at her act, her family conspires to kill both of them.
Janan’s Juliet is a documentary feature from director Pankaj Rishi Kumar. Pankaj builds his documentary through the eyes of a theatre group who are out to present an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet in a contemporary Indian milieu. He uses the different aspects of theatre production to convey his story from different viewpoints and through different eyes. Through the sessions where the director helps the actors understand the mindset of their characters, to the sessions where they debate the emotions that have drive the characters to take the actions they took, we are told the about the events behind the story. The actors meet the real Kausalya to understand her circumstances and the dynamics that were at play during their relationship. The actors learn from real-life experiences, they bring into the play, a powerful stroke of realism. This approach gives the narration multiple layers of detail which would have been impossible in the standard format of documentary filmmaking.
Janani’s Juliet reminds us that there are multiple aspects to each personality. Every Juliet is different and what we see is only one facet of the whole. The story is about Janani’s Juliet who despite losing Romeo lives on and continues her fight with her own family who have wronged her.
