Rumi: Unveil the Sun

Oroon Das is a 'Delhi actor', a category he was informed of at an audition recently; a definition he fits profoundly while he ceaselessly negotiates his working life as a designer with the world of make-belief on stage he so loves. He has acted and sung in several plays over the last decade. Oroon's recent theatre work includes Tom in Glass Menagerie (2005), Nehru in 1947-Live (2005) and Larry in Patrick Marber's Closer (2006). Last year he authored and presented Cotton Candy to much popular acclaim. He was also seen as the complex and colourful villian of Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan (This is Bombay, My Darling!) (2004), a musical that toured the UK and Singapore. His film work includes Balloon Dust directed by Hynek Bures (2005) wherein he played the protagonist.
· He plays the lead role of Mowlana Jalal al-Din Rumi.

Danish Husain, a professional actor and poet, has his own company that performs datangoi, traditional story-telling. He has performed at prestigious festivals such as the Biennale at Bonn and World Festival for Performing Arts, Lahore. He has worked with major directors such as Habib Tanvir, M.S.Sathyu, M.K.Raina and Rajendra Nath. He has played the lead in productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Manto, A Flowering Tree, Premchand and Agra Bazaar. He also acted in Losing Gemma, a British TV drama starring Jason Fleming and Alice Eve. His poetry has been published in literary journals in India, Canada and Africa.
· He plays the second lead of Shams al-Din Tabrizi, the mystical companion of Rumi.

Padma Damodaran, a professional actor, dancer and singer, has played a variety of roles on stage and screen, ranging from a 55-year old woman to a character on Muppet Street. She sang in the musical, The Nun & The Prostitute, and acted in Love Bytes, a British film. She was a Spanish au-pair in the comedy When did you last see your trousers? She does choreography using classical and contemporary dance traditions for festivals, schools and musicals such as Alladin. She's a trained Bharata Natyam dancer and also learnt the traditional Mohiniattam. She studies contemporary dance and martial arts with Rashid Ansari.
· She plays the role of Gohar Khatun, Rumi's wife, an embodiment of love and performs the dance piece in the play.

Shorba Bhattacharya, learnt theatre at his mother's knee. His parents were pioneers of the Bangla Theatre in Delhi. Early on, he worked with the renowned Safdar Hashmi. He joined N.K. Sharma's Act One theatre group, acting in plays such as Galileo and Shahr Hamara Sota Hai. He was in Faisal Alkazi's Heidi Holland and All That Jazz. His day job is with the International Air Transport Association, where he is in the commercial sector, responsible for Aviation Consulting and Data Solutions.
· He plays two roles-that of Rumi's student and scribe, Hisam al-Din Chalpi as well that of the Prime Minister of Konya.

Dhruv Jagasia is an actor and theatre producer. He has produced more than thirty stage plays and acted in them. His production won the Herald Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He has successfully toured Britain and also Singapore. A music lover, he manages two successful Indian Bands, Indian Ocean and Midival Punditz. He is a veteran of many films but his first love is theatre.
· He plays two roles-that of Yusuf, the shopkeeper who's also the story-teller, and Risal al-Din, the advisor to the Prime Minster of Konya.

Ashish Paliwal is a Delhi-based actor and voice-over artiste, having trained with Rashid Ansari, one of the finest coaches for voice and theatre. He has appeared in numerous stage plays and worked extensively on TV and radio. He has lent his voice to several cartoon characters in India's burgeoning animation industry. He has a keen sense of humour and enjoys hobbies such as traveling and fishing.
· He plays the role of Rumi's son, Sultan.

Ashish Dharmadhikari is an actor, musician and sound technician. He has worked for well-known sound studios, producing music albums, live show soundtracks, TV & radio spots, film tracks and voice-overs. He's a trained classical singer and plays the flute, tabla, guitar, cajon and keyboard. He's a member of three ensembles, including Earth Rhythms and Man Chale, an Indian film music band. He has acted in a range of films, TV serials and stage plays. He occasionally models.
· He plays the role of Salah al-Din Zarkob, Rumi's friend and confidante.

Amrit Kent is a writer, singer and poet, working in the English, Punjabi and Urdu languages. Her themes are spirituality and politics. She has written scripts on Punjab's Rumi Baba Bulle Shah and on Sri Krishna. Her original musical plays, Kesar da Dhaba and Muklawa, successfully toured Britain. Her political satire, Kautak, was staged in Delhi. She has scripted and acted in dozens of one-act plays. She has published two books in the Punjabi language. Her unique achievement in devotional music was to record Guru Gobind Singh's Jaap Saab, a complex blend of seven languages. She has written a book on Punjabi culture and recorded Punjabi folk songs. She also writes Urdu poetry. She lives in Delhi.
· She spent some years in researching Rumi's story from historical sources. She immersed herself in his mystical poetry.

Sohaila Kapur is a an actress, writer and theatre director. She runs the Hungry Heart Theatre Festival in Delhi. She co-wrote and acted in the comedy: 45.35.25. Her musical: Yeh hai Mumbai meri Jaan was premiered at the prestigious Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh. It won Spirit of the Fringe Award. It went on to Singapore. She has directed several plays, including Strindberg's Miss Julie; Roald Dahl's Short Stories; Skirmishes starring Zohra Sehgal. She wrote and directed A Club of Her Own for the 10th Anniversary of the Indian Women's Press Corp. She anchored an investigative documentary for National Geographic TV. She acted in Govind Nilahani's award-winning film, Rukmavati Ki Haveli.
· She has published many newspaper articles on women's issues, film, theatre and music reviews.

Jitender Singh is a versatile music composer and singer. He has a sensitive voice and trained with renowned teachers. He sings classical khayal, humris, semi-classical ghazals, as well as light folk and film songs. He has given concerts in Britain, America, Spain, Italy and Singapore. He regularly composes music for TV and radio, including serials. He has composed music for ballets on Ghalib and the Mahabharat. He has released albums of religious hymns (Krishna and Gayatri Mantra) as well as Rajasthani folk songs and Punjabi songs. He has won awards, such Roll of Honour (Association of Delhi Universities) and the Award of Honour (Singapore, 1998).
· For Rumi, he has composed the background score as well the music for the CD. He is also the singer.

Mohini Kent Noon is a writer and film-maker. She's the author of Chief Longhooknose and Trader Jim, a humorous work of ficton; as well as a cookbook; and a play on the British in India, Dance of the Hour. Curry Tiffin, a documentary scripted and directed by her, takes a quirky look at Indian history through food. She directed a feature-length film on the Ramayana. Sir Ben Kingsley, Oscar-winning actor, gave the English commentary, both for Curry Tiffin and the Ramayana. She has made TV commercials and other short films, including a documentary with Roshan Seth. She was a journalist with India Today newsmagazine and wrote features for the Indian Express and The Tablet, amongst others. She had her own slot on BBC Radio 5 Live and Radio Scotland. She's currently working on a novel.
· She has produced and co-authored the play.