"Mita Vashisht, the acclaimed NSD alumna, returns to her alma mater after 29 years, directing Chekov's 'Three Sisters' while reflecting on her journey, theatre's power, and challenges faced by women directors." Sohaila Kapur speaks to her…

In this exclusive interview, renowned actor and director Mita Vashisht discusses her return to the National School of Drama (NSD) after 29 years to direct Chekov's "Three Sisters." Vashisht, celebrated for her powerful roles in art cinema and her contributions to theatre, opens up about her directorial journey, the challenges of staging a marathon production, and her future plans in both theatre and film. She also shares her insights on the evolving landscape of theatre in Mumbai and Delhi, the enduring impact of her work with trafficked young girls, and the ongoing struggles for women in the entertainment industry. This in-depth conversation with Sohaila Kapur offers a rare glimpse into the mind of one of India's most formidable talents in the world of drama and cinema.

Mita Vashisht, the formidable actor who burst onto the art cinema scene as a true successor to Shabana Azmi and Smita Patil, is also a director. A product of the National School of Drama (NSD), she was the muse of Mani Kaul, Kumar Shahani, and Govind Nihalani in the late '80s and early '90s. Vashisht recently returned to her alma mater after 29 years to direct a play for third-year students. In addition to training professional actors, filmmakers, and fashion designers in theatre, she has also worked with trafficked young girls from a remand home, helping them heal their trauma through drama. In this interview with Sohaila Kapur, Vashisht talks about her love for theatre, her connection to Delhi, and her future plans.

Choosing Chekov’s Three Sisters

Sohaila Kapur: Why did you choose this particular play, Chekov’s Three Sisters, which is not very popular in India, even though the playwright’s other works are frequently performed?

Mita Vashisht: My reason for choosing Chekov’s Three Sisters was because it was Chekov and also because I thought it had wonderful roles for all the actors. Besides, I have always wanted to direct this play.

Sohaila Kapur: It was a marathon production, lasting three hours and 15 minutes. Did it not worry you that today’s audiences have very short attention spans?

Mita Vashisht: As artists, I think we have a very important job, which is to change the perceptions of the audience. You have to raise the bar for them too. I believe in performing the text with integrity and not playing to the gallery, either intellectually or in any other way. I never thought about the length—only the process. I wanted the students to understand Chekov in great depth. And it worked. Some of the students (and they were from diverse backgrounds) told me that their worldview had changed after doing this play. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see a repeat audience for all three shows, despite its length. If you do something with intensity and dedication, without being affected by what people think, your audience will support you.

The Creative Process

Sohaila Kapur: How long did it take to bring it to the stage? And what was the process involved?

Mita Vashisht: It took 35 days. We did just two full readings and then worked on the play in segments, which helped in exploring time and space in the text.

Sohaila Kapur: Do you plan to direct more plays and maybe films in the near future?

Mita Vashisht: I felt so beautifully nurtured by this experience that I want to return to the theatre full-time, directing young people. It’s a wonderful feeling and a great process. Fabulous plays can only be done at the NSD, which has the infrastructure. I hope this is just the beginning for me, really.

As far as films are concerned, I have made one called Mani Kaul and the Thing Called the Actor, which is currently in post-production at the Film & Television Institute, Pune. I shot a film on the Sufi Kashmiri Saint, Lal Ded (I have been performing a play on her all these years), which I made for PSBT, and another film called Summer Moon, on trafficked young girls, which broke all preconceived notions about them. I had done theatre workshops with them for five years; a stage production and this film were results of that.

In theatre, I have two or three scripts that I would like to direct. They are not recent scripts; they were written a while ago, but I think I will soon have the energy to start raising the funding for that.

The Quality of Students at NSD

Sohaila Kapur: How do you find the quality of students at the NSD compared to your time?

Mita Vashisht: I think they’re the same. We had other distractions; they have social media and the mobile, which are far more insidious. But I’ve noticed that a student is a student, and when they join the NSD, they are looking for really deep teaching. So sometimes I think the problem is not with them; the problem is with the teachers. I think when the students sense quality teaching, they get into a deep discipline. To me, that is beautiful.

Sohaila Kapur: You’re from Mumbai and directed in Delhi. There is snobbery in Mumbai about hosting Delhi plays. Can you comment on this attitude of Mumbaikars?

Mita Vashisht: In Delhi, you have the NSD, which I still think is a great place to do the greatest of texts because it has the infrastructure. Mumbai is abuzz, but I don’t frankly care for the theatre that comes from Bombay. The themes are a bit usual. Besides, I don’t like these adjustable, cooped-up places they hire for their readings and so-called ‘experimental theatre’. It’s actually very random. There is no deep learning in those plays, and they are often trashy.

But the Mumbai audience is very patient, for some reason. Perhaps they think that they have travelled a long way, so it needs to be worth their while. But after experiencing an intense audience in Delhi, I just don’t care about what Bombay thinks about Delhi. For me, Delhi is very precious, and maybe there’s bad and good theatre in both cities, but I must confess that I am a little bored of the Prithvi Theatre culture in Mumbai; of the same faces there, of the select segment of people who are out there to perform daily. Theatre groups function as cliques in Mumbai, and they are very undemocratic. I have never taken Mumbai seriously enough to actually bother about how they feel, whether it’s the film or theatre industry. I have some senior actors I work with who often make snarky comments like, ‘You are a trained actor and go deep into the text and character while we are instinctive actors’. I just laugh it off.

I found the younger audience in Mumbai very discerning. I was pleasantly surprised by the way they responded to a difficult play like Lal Ded, which I wrote, directed, and performed in Mumbai. One lady told me that after seeing the play at NCPA, she took the longest route by bus home because she wanted to be with her thoughts. And I remember a girl who came to me after my performance at Prithvi to tell me that she was glad to see the play because it made her feel free to choose her future path, because in Mumbai, everybody harps on having a career. Having said that, I would like to reiterate that I never base my work, whether in films or theatre, on what people think.

Theatre Growth in Mumbai vs. Delhi

Sohaila Kapur: Where have you seen more growth in theatre as an actor, Mumbai or Delhi? Where are you planning to be now?

Mita Vashisht: For me, Mumbai has been more interesting because I conceived my solo act, Lal Ded, there. And I have performed many plays there with renowned directors. But since I have staged Three Sisters, I feel Delhi is the place to be, where I want to do theatre almost full-time. It’s like coming back to your soul space. I think there is something about the nature, the city, and the larger landscape of Delhi, which now interests me.

Sohaila Kapur: Did you study filmmaking at FTII after studying theatre at NSD?

Mita Vashisht: No, I never studied filmmaking. After NSD, I went straight into doing these films for Mani Kaul, Kumar Shahani, Govind Nihalani, and Shyam Benegal. I had the busiest three years after graduating. But in 1990, after IFFI Calcutta (where my film was screened), I was asked by my guru, Prof. Mohan Maharishi, to help him conduct a theatre workshop at the Film Institute. Having done both theatre and films, he thought I would be helpful. And I think that is where my teaching practice actually began. Because after he left, the students wanted me to stay back and talk about working in films. So that was the beginning of it, really.

Most Moving Roles

Sohaila Kapur: Which role have you played that moved you the most, in both films and theatre, and why?

Mita Vashisht: I love each and every one of my roles. I love the fact that I have to engage with a new character, a new director, and a new worldview each time. They have taken me on unknown journeys. I always wanted to be an actor because this is where you experience many lifetimes in one life. Every new role has been a grace and a revelation bestowed on me.

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Sohaila Kapur: Do women directors have more agency now, in films as well as in theatre?  

Mita Vashisht: As women, we are still discriminated against in the world of theatre and cinema. I remember, when traveling with the play Agnipankh, the better dressing room, with an attached bath, would be given to the actor playing my husband, whereas his was a supporting role to mine, which was the lead. I learn to take these things in my stride as I feel my work speaks for me. I need to keep serene on these occasions, so I often overlook them.

But I do deal with them later. I also find that some women are not qualified to do deeper work. On the other hand, you have male writers like Chekov who had the amazing ability to enter a woman’s psyche, the deep feminine and the deep, vulnerable masculine.