In an era dominated by cinematic spectacle and digital distraction, writes Arnab Banerjee, a committed group of theatre practitioners and professionals in Delhi revived Bertolt Brecht’s enduring political satire through Teen Penny Opera, reaffirming the relevance of live performance and socially engaged storytelling.

We inhabit an age beleaguered by relentless anxieties and unremitting demands — a world in which personal burdens and professional compulsions weigh ceaselessly upon the human spirit. Amid spiralling inflation, mounting financial uncertainty, and relationships increasingly marked by emotional fatigue and quiet estrangement, most people seek refuge in fleeting diversions: music for some and, in India more often than not, the grand spectacle of cinema. Theatre, despite its intellectual and emotional immediacy, has gradually receded to the cultural margins, particularly for younger audiences who seldom appear inclined to surrender an evening to its slower, more reflective enchantments.

It was therefore refreshing, if somewhat unexpected, to witness a diverse gathering of OD consultants, senior executives, homemakers, entrepreneurs, leaders of civil society organisations, drama teachers, and professional actors come together in Delhi to stage Teen Penny Opera, a Bengali adaptation of The Threepenny Opera, the celebrated Marxist musical satire conceived by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill in 1928.
Brecht’s Enduring Relevance in Contemporary India

Adapted into Bengali by the noted singer, actor, and filmmaker Anjan Dutt, with music arrangements by his son Neel Dutt, the production was directed by Sanjeev Roy, whose longstanding engagement with theatre spans productions in both English and Bengali. Having worked with Anjan Dutt’s Open Theatre in Kolkata and participated in major productions such as Hamlet, Marat/Sade, and Threepenny Opera, Roy brought to the adaptation both familiarity and conviction, though not always equal dramatic restraint.

The choice of Teen Penny Opera was far from incidental. Nearly a century after its original staging, The Threepenny Opera retains an unsettling relevance. Its critique of systemic corruption, widening economic inequality, and the moral duplicity embedded within capitalist structures feels less historical than contemporary. Brecht’s enduring provocation lies precisely in his suggestion that the distinction between respectable commerce and organised criminality is often cosmetic.

Though Indianised in texture and idiom, Teen Penny Opera preserves the original’s scepticism towards social morality and institutional power. The production repeatedly underscores the idea that modern society continues to operate through greed and transactional survival, where businessmen and criminals differ less in intent than in social legitimacy. Brecht’s famous proposition — that food precedes morality — continues to resonate sharply in societies marked by poverty, precarity, and widening disparities of wealth.

A Story of Crime, Corruption, and Social Hypocrisy

Set in Victorian London, the narrative follows the charming criminal Macheath, or Mack the Knife, played by Jayanto Banerjee, whose marriage to Polly Peachum (Devika Chakraborty) provokes the wrath of her father Jonathan Peachum (Avijit Basu), the self-appointed “King of Beggars.” Viewing the marriage as a threat to his business interests, Peachum conspires to destroy Macheath by coercing the corrupt police chief Tiger Brown (Shaubhik Sen), an old associate of Mack’s, into arresting him. Macheath is eventually betrayed by his former lover Jenny Diver, played by Shahana Dosanjh. In the final act, just as his execution appears imminent, a royal pardon abruptly transforms him into a member of the peerage, complete with pension and privilege — a deliberately absurd conclusion exposing the arbitrary and self-serving logic of social systems.

Performances Rooted in Discipline and Conviction
What proved particularly commendable was the ease with which largely non-professional actors inhabited their roles. While only a handful among them are formally associated with theatre as a profession, most performed with an admirable absence of self-consciousness. Jayanto Banerjee, Avijit Basu, Devika Chakraborty, and Sampa Sanyal as Mrs Peachum stood out for the naturalness of their delivery and their ability to sustain the rhythm of the play without excessive theatricality. The supporting cast too remained convincing throughout, revealing considerable rehearsal and collective discipline.

Among those who contributed substantially to the evening was Swaroopa Ghosh, actor, mentor, and coach to the group. Known to wider audiences for her roles in films such as Vicky Donor, Piku, and Pink, Ghosh has also spent nearly three decades in theatre and worked with Faisal Alkazi. Her experience was evident in the discipline and confidence she appeared to inspire among the cast.

Sohini Bhattacharya — who deserves special mention — while managing the demands of heading the global NGO Breakthrough and travelling extensively for work, continues to sustain her involvement with theatre. Trained in Kolkata’s rigorous Group Theatre tradition, she brought both poise and emotional intelligence to the production. Similarly, Shahana Dosanjh, who teaches theatre at The Shri Ram School, Aravalli, emerged as one of the more assured performers of the evening while simultaneously handling responsibilities related to costumes, make-up, and stage design.

Roy himself has a long association with experimental and folk theatre, having once worked with Badal Sarkar’s group. He was also among the early members of one of Kolkata’s pioneering Bangla rock bands, a background reflected in the production’s musical sensibility. Like many practitioners outside institutional theatre, career demands and entrepreneurship had compelled him to place theatre on the periphery for several years before this gradual return to direction and performance.
Shahana Dosanjh teaches theatre to children at The Shri Ram School, Aravalli, and for her, HOKNATOK is a space where she can simply remain an actor and continue to hone her craft. She is a compelling performer who also shoulders additional responsibilities involving costumes, make-up, and set design.

Technical Limitations and Musical Challenges
Not every aspect of the production, however, was equally successful. The singing, particularly among some of the female performers, occasionally lacked the vocal strength the musical demanded, though the arrangements by Urvi Bhattacharyya were thoughtful and often effective. Given that most performers are not professionally trained singers, these limitations were perhaps inevitable, though at times difficult to overlook. The lighting design by Saurov Sarkar was competent and atmospherically sensitive, but the sound design proved inconsistent: dialogues frequently oscillated between excessive amplification and near inaudibility, leaving sections of the audience straining to follow exchanges from the rear rows.

Why Bengali Theatre Still Matters
Yet these shortcomings did little to diminish the sincerity or ambition of the overall effort. In a city where serious Bengali theatre remains relatively niche despite a sizeable Bengali-speaking population, productions such as this acquire significance beyond mere performance. They represent not simply nostalgia for a cultural tradition, but an attempt — however modest — to preserve a space for politically engaged and intellectually alert theatre in an entertainment landscape increasingly dominated by spectacle and speed.

Credit is therefore due to HOKNATOK Theater Society, a small but energetic collective of theatre enthusiasts registered in Haryana, for sustaining this commitment through carefully mounted Bengali productions in Delhi and Gurugram.
The play was staged at Apparel House, Gurugram, on 2 May 2026 and later at the LTG Auditorium, Delhi, on 8 May 2026, drawing audiences of nearly 270 and 150 respectively — encouraging numbers for a language-specific theatre production in an era where live performance must constantly compete for attention.

Human Rights Watch, Dignity And Justice, Rights Under Threat, People Over Power, Civil Liberties, Freedom And Equality, Justice Delayed, Documenting Truth, Rights Matter,