Naseerudding Shah collaborated with a fellow FTII-ite and together they gave birth to the legendary theatre group ‘Motley’ and they were off to a very strong start with Beckett’s modern classic, Waiting for Godot, their first ever production. Over the past few decades, Motley has had tremendous success with innumerable productions and their regular tours in the country as well as foreign shores have been more and more reassuring of all the good work they have been doing for years on end now.
While the Motley Theatre Group needs no introduction to all the theatre aficionados, the group that was started by Benjamin Gilani and Naseeruddin Shah has now become one of the most coveted groups with esteemed members like Ratna Pathak Shah, Kenny Desai, and Tom Alter to name a few.
From performing modern classic like Waiting for Godot to comedies like Arms and the Man and from rogue dramas like Dear Liar to children’s plays like Gaddha Aur Gadhha, Motley theatre group has proven their uniqueness and calibre with the diversity in their plays and all the themes that they have aced over the years.
One of the most monumental tasks that the group ever faced was staging Julius Caesar, back in 1992, and the production of this Shakespearean classic, which had a cast of over 50 unprecedented players, proved to be a humongous hit and made sure that the name of Motley theatre group goes in the rich history of India. Motley’s members have not only remained dedicated and faithful but also instrumental in redefining theatre arts.
Motley is a one-of-a-kind storytelling theatre that has found its niche ever since inception and with its growing, it has also been rekindling the theatre bug in the audiences today and focusing on its biggest purpose- entertain and educate.
