GOWRI MANICKAVASAGAM
Shakespeare said, “‘All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” It holds true in this digital age too. Drama has always played a predominant role in societies. Better known as culture or art plays, Gujarati drama is the mirror of society. Rather, a heritage in itself. Surprisingly, the roots of ShemarooMe are deeply connected with Gujarat whose main purpose is to promote Gujarati theater culture which is itself an unprecedented form of art. Through such an event, ShemarooMe is privileged to bring together the most popular artistes of Gujarati entertainment under one roof thereby endeavoring to spread such genre to a larger audience.
On the occasion Hiren Gada, CEO, Shemaroo Entertainment said, “This event is a unique effort to entertain the drama-loving audience and the viewers can now watch their favourite drama anytime with just a click.
”Hiren Gada further said, “We have always tried our best to bring a variety of entertainment to our viewers on this platform. Our aim is to connect Gujaratis with the Gujarati content coupled with emotion and love. And drama being the best medium, it fits the bill for the said purpose. Recently, the world digital premiere of Gujarati shows and movies has been aired including films like “Swagatam”, Shu Thayu”, and “Chasni”. Also web series like “Vat Vat Ma”, “Kshadyantra” etc have received encouraging response from the audience.”
According to veteran theatre artiste, producer and director Siddharth Randeria, “Theatre as an art is irreplaceable and we are elated that India’s most popular OTT player, ShemarooMe is trying to preserve its charm. They have left no stone unturned in bringing the best content to audiences by releasing a wide range of nataks on their app. It will be fascinating to witness how the younger audiences respond to theatrical performances.”
Speaking with navjeevanexpress.com, well-known actress Tejal Vyas said, “I am thrilled that ShemarooMe has taken it upon themselves to ensure that the magic of nataks reaches the new generation. I really hope that they appreciate the work and efforts that have gone in making the art form.”
Answering to query on her career launch, Vyas said, “I have taken part in cultural competitions during my college days and acted in many plays. Enthused by overwhelming response to my acting skills, I stared acting 18 years ago. So far I have acted in over 20 plays and two Gujarati cinemas. For the last 12 years, I have acted mostly in comedy plays and versatile actor Siddharth Randeria has been my lead pair in over 500 shows and this trend continues till today. As part of my profession, I have travelled to US, UK, Australia, Canada, Singapore and many other countries and also covered the entire country to stage dramas.”
When asked about the response of the audience and their love for theatre, Vyas said, “Non-Resident Gujaratis of all ages always patronising theatre and I have fans from age groups. Through theatre, we have been promoting the rich cultural heritage and the language of Gujaratis to overcome the onslaught of English.”
“I prefer theatre over cinema as we get live appreciation from the audience. We performed Bluff Master Gujjubhai at Tahkorebhai Hall in Law Garden, Ahmedabad on Independenc Day and got thunderous applause,” she said.
Reminiscing a memorable event that had taken place outside a temple in Mumbai, Vyas said, “A septuagenarian fan blessed me while I was coming out of a temple after paying obeisance to the Almighty. What astonished me was that his three-year-old granddaughter repeated one of my dialogues from a play. This shows the reach of theatres among youngsters too.”
Character artiste Ketki Dave said, “ShemarooMe, the badshah of Gujarati entertainment never ceases to amaze the audiences with its content offerings. Now yet again, they are bringing the finest talents and the best of Gujarati nataks at the touch of a button. A big thanks to ShemarooMe for giving us a platform to showcase our work and popularize our art amongst the new age audiences.”
Versatile actor Dharmesh Vyas said, “ShemarooMe has been a one stop destination for high quality Gujarati content and I have been a big fan ever since it was launched. It’s extremely rewarding when an esteemed platform like ShemarooMe celebrates and appreciates our work.”
Veteran artiste, Pratima T said, “I am grateful to ShemarooMe for honoring and emphasizing the importance of Guajrati Nataks amongst audiences. I would like to thank the entire team of ShemarooMe for recognizing our work and promoting it on such a prestigious platform.”
Actor Sanjay Goradia said, “ShemarooMe is known to promote the finest Gujarati content and I feel privileged to be a part of the Shemaroo family. I am glad that the company has taken this initiative to create awareness about the importance of theatre culture. I am sure through this a wider set of audiences can witness and enjoy the magic that theatre holds.”
Having been entrenched in the hearts of Gujarati movies aficionados, SheemarooMe is honoured to portray Gujarati arts and culture. There are well-known Gujarati plays available on ShemarooMe platform that are no less than the mirror of society, i.e‘Sundar Be Baidiwalo’, ‘GujjubhaiBanyaDabang’, ‘AmaroParivar Star Parivar’, ‘Gujjubhai Ni Golmaal’, ‘Maltiben MBBS’, ‘Maniben.com’, ‘Joke Samrat’, ‘VarLagiThodi Pan Jami Gai Jodi,’ ‘GujjubhaiAe Gam Gajavyu’, ‘Aa NamoBahuNadeChhe’, ‘Mari Wife Mari Kom’, ‘VahuVatnoKatko’, ‘JenuKhisuGaramEmni Same SauNaram’, ‘Bairy Mari AtankaWadi’, ‘Dikro to VahuniThapanKehvay’ etc.
