London, Jun 30: A play depicting the music and life of the courtesan tradition in India, with its underlying sex and cross gender culture, is creating waves as it performs in various parts across Britain.

Titled `The Dying Song`, the play is about the almost extinct art of `baithak thumri`, which conjures up the mood and mystery of the lost world of the old Indian haveli and palaces in which the courtesans performed.

The play`s script inspired by the Marathi novella by C T Khanolkar, `Devyachi Ayee`, and is translated, written and directed by documentary maker and film historian Sangeeta Datta. Bireshwar Gautam plays the androgynous singer Suraiya.

"The Dying Song is a tribute to the androgynous artist with a nod to the long heritage of female impersonation in Indian folk theatre. Our Suraiya embodies many of these ideas and is a direct product of the theatre or performance world," Datta told reporters.

Interspersed with the Indian classical form of `thumri`, the play produced by Asian Music Circuit pays tributes to India`s androgynous community.

Actors and narrators include Rajesh Joshi of the BBC Hindi Service, senior journalists Pervaiz Alam and Pratima Chatterjee.

The play is being staged in London, Cornwall, Brighton, York and Gateshead.

Bureau Report