18 years, over 100 shows and counting: ‘Under the Mangosteen Tree’ brings Basheer’s world to Kottayam

What took shape during a three-week theatre festival marking Vaikom Muhammad Basheer’s centenary in 2008 has endured for 18 years, crossed 100 performances, and returned to the stage after a nearly decade-long hiatus. Now, ‘Under the Mangosteen Tree,’ an English-language production that brings together some of Basheer’s most celebrated works, is set to make its first appearance in Kottayam.

Directed by Rajiv Krishnan, the play is presented by Perch, a theatre collective based in Chennai. Instead of adapting one Basheer story in isolation, Rajiv brings together characters and episodes from several of the writer’s classics, allowing them to inhabit the same theatrical world.

The production draws on works including ‘Mathilukal’, the celebrated story of a prisoner who falls in love with a woman he has never seen; ‘Poovan Pazham’, which finds humour in relationships; ‘Shabdangal’, which explores the brutality of war; ‘Viswavikhyathamaya Mookku’, one of Basheer’s sharpest satires; and ‘Neela Velicham’, his haunting tale of love and mystery.
Basheer himself becomes the thread connecting these narratives, shifting between narrator, participant and witness. The production grew into a larger celebration of Basheer’s writing, with the team bringing together 10 of his stories instead of treating them as individual adaptations.

 “We had already worked with two of Basheer’s stories, ‘Premalekhanam’ and ‘Mucheettukalikkarante Makal,’ and when his centenary was approaching, we wanted to create something bigger. We organised a three-week festival in 2008, and that was when ‘Under the Mangosteen Tree’ came together,” Rajiv told Onmanorama.

The title was inspired by the mangosteen tree at Basheer’s home in Beypore, where people would gather around the writer. Rather than presenting the stories one after another, Rajiv chose a non-linear structure. “One story begins, and another follows. Somewhere along the way, they come together. The non-linear format gives us the freedom to experiment with the stage,” Rajiv said.
The approach has also helped take Basheer’s writing to audiences unfamiliar with him. “The play has helped introduce Basheer to people who didn't know his work. They discover the stories through the performance and then become curious about his writing,” Rajiv said.

A production that keeps changing
‘Under the Mangosteen Tree’ continued to be staged for several years before its original run ended in 2016. When the production was revived in 2025, it returned with a combination of familiar faces and newer actors.
Aparna Gopinath has been part of the production since its early years. She began by playing Jameela in ‘Poovan Pazham’ and has since taken on several characters, including male roles.

 “I started as Jameela, and over these 18 years I have moved through so many characters. Now I also play some of Basheer’s iconic men. That evolution has been a beautiful part of the journey,” Aparna said.
The latest revival brought an unexpected casting change. When the actor playing young Basheer had to withdraw, Aparna stepped into the role in ‘Mathilukal.’ Paul Mathew, who has been associated with the production from the beginning, continues to play the older Basheer.

“For the first time, Aparna played young Basheer, and that opened up something new for us. It made us realise there were still possibilities within a play we have performed for so many years,” Rajiv said. For Aparna, the longevity of the production has meant finding new dimensions in characters that generations of readers already know.

“There is something very fulfilling about inhabiting these characters rather than simply performing them. For an actor, it has been an incredibly gratifying journey,” Aparna said.
The cast also spent a week in Kozhikode while developing the production, speaking to people about Basheer and his legacy. “We realised how deeply he belonged to that place. There wasn't a single person we met who didn't know Basheer,” Aparna recalled.

When Basheer travels beyond Kerala
Vinod Ravindran, one of the newer additions to the cast, is looking forward to performing the production in Kottayam, where audiences share a particularly close relationship with Basheer’s work.
“People here don't just know Basheer's stories. They feel that they belong to them,” Vinod said. But some of the production’s most rewarding responses have come from outside Kerala. Vinod says audiences have approached the cast after performances, eager to discover Basheer’s writing.

 “They tell us they want to read Basheer. They may not have known him before, but something about the stories makes them curious. That is a wonderful thing for a play to achieve,” Vinod said. The current run is being presented as a farewell tour for this version of the production. With several long-standing actors now occupied with other commitments, bringing the ensemble together has become increasingly difficult.

“We decided to look at these performances as a farewell tour for this version of the play. It is sad, but that doesn't necessarily mean it is the end. More shows could still happen,” Rajiv said.
After 18 years, more than 100 performances and several generations of actors, ‘Under the Mangosteen Tree’ continues to give Basheer’s classics a life beyond the printed page. Presented by Perch and brought to Kottayam by The Purple Crayons, the play will be staged at KC Mammen Mappillai Hall on September 11.