Rajadhiraaj: Capturing Shri Krishna’s life through a musical extravaganza

For all those associated with the creation and bringing it to life on stage, the spectacular mega musical, ‘Rajadhiraaj: Love. Life. Leela, with all its nuances, was a labour of love and an emotional journey into the divinity of Shri Krishna. It was the unwavering belief, devotion and deep connection in Shri Krishna that inspired Dhanraj Nathwani, to create Rajadhiraaj, and presenting him to the world in the way everyone reveres him. “It is also a reflection of our devotion and deep connection to Shri Krishna’s divine wisdom and timeless legacy,” says Bhoomi Nathwani, executive producer of this magical masterpiece. 

Shri Krishna’s life and teachings have remained relevant across centuries and continues to resonate even in modern times. “We wanted to bring all these together and connect all the generations with his divine essence, values and teachings in a way that has never been done before. This vision led to the creation of this mega-musical,” Bhoomi Nathwani adds.

Rajadhiraaj’s uniqueness lies that that it the world’s first musical based on Shri Krishna’s journey, in which his divine forms —The Bal Swaroop, Shrinathji Swaroop and Dwarkadheesh Swaroop— are presented on stage. What makes it even more alluring are its various elements — the storytelling, the props, the sets, the costumes, the music, the choreography —all of which come together to create that magical experience on stage. 

For Shruti Sharma, the director of the magical musical, it was special because it was like sharing a part of her life with the audience. It also provided her with an opportunity to bring to life, stories that she had loved and cherished as a child, stories that were a part of her core being. But when the show opened and the audience walked in, she realised that it had become a shared experience, a collective being, experiencing and sharing this love together.

The grand musical– with 20 original, soul-stirring songs, over 1,800 bespoke costumes, more than 180 performers, stunning visuals, live singing by actors on stage—demanded a sense of extreme responsibility towards the subject and the craft from the director. It was also challenging requiring eight to 10 months of work on the script creating over 20 tracks, discussing choreography concepts before going on to the rehearsal floor to ensure that everyone was prepared and on the same page as a team, before the performing cast stepped in.  

A Tough Challenge

Finding the most authentic source of information was one of the toughest challenges. “We met scholars across the country to separate local folklore from what is written in ancient textbooks to what has set in common cultural belief. After acquiring all the information, we had to decide what amongst these do we go for, after all there is no right or wrong way to keep Krishna in one’s life,” adds Sharma. 

Then of course there was the issue of casting, how to make sure that the director’s mental image of Krishna matched with what the audience have in their mind. Moreover, the subject, the pace of the show, the music, the look and feel had a crucial role in sustaining the attention of the young audience. “Hats off to the entire team to have never let go off this through the entirety of the creation process,” she adds.

For Padma Shri awardee Prasoon Joshi, the script and dialogue writer and the lyricist of Rajadhiraaj, it was a beautiful experience because he had the liberty of picking and choosing what he would say through a song and what through the dialogue. Rajadhiraaj, for him, was a musical in its truest form. Using the tradition of “Geet Kavya, he merged poetry into songs to seamlessly integrate emotion, musicality and literary aesthetic into an exhilarating experience. Most of the songs were written first and then beautifully and intricately woven into music composition by well-known Bollywood music duo of Sachin, and Jigar, who maintained the scale and sensitivity and given a memorable score. 

Picking the right episodes

Keeping the younger generation in mind, Joshi picked out a few episodes, some familiar and some not so familiar from the incredible life of Shri Krishna and wove them into a narrative. Hence, the musical allows one to dip into the world of Krishnji as a child in Gokul and Mathura, a young adult in Vrindavan, and an adult in Dwarka. 

However, for Joshi, the real privilege was not just the collaboration with the wonderful teams of Rajadhiraaj—Dhanraj, Bhoomiji, Shruti, Raam Mori, Sachin Jigar, Nita Lulla, — but also to witness the reaction of the audience during the sell-out performance in Mumbai. The devotion in the eyes of the old, the marvel in the eyes of the young, and the thankfulness in. the eyes and words of the parents who were so glad that the country’s rich culture, beliefs, and stories were brought to life beautifully. “Seeing them sing, dance, close their eyes, and pray was overwhelming. All who watched it were transported into a different realm for those two hours. I am fortunate that this subject chose me. I personally felt awash with gentleness, serenity, and grace,” adds Joshi.