After spending years in cinema, actor Rajesh Nataranga is going back to where much of an actor’s instinct is tested: the stage. Twenty years after his last theatre performance, he is returning with Male Nilluvavarege, a suspense play that will be staged on September 17 at 7.30 pm at Chowdiah Memorial Hall in Bengaluru.

The play comes from Kaladyuti Productions, a new theatre group that wants to revisit plays from the past while also making space for new experiments. Its first production, Undaadi Gunda, received a good response, and the team has now chosen a very different piece for its next outing.

Male Nilluvavarege has an interesting history. The play was written by LS Sudheendra, a former Class 1 KAS officer who had a deep interest in theatre and the arts. Adapted into Kannada from a German story, the play has remained away from the stage for some time. Bringing it back required more than simply finding the script.

With the help of theatre personality Richard Louis, the Kaladyuti team approached Sudheendra’s family and eventually managed to get a copy of the play. The production has since been shaped for a present-day audience while retaining the suspense that drives the story.

Directed by Sharath Parvathavani, the play starts off almost like a game before gradually revealing its darker side. Its characters, their intentions and the situations they find themselves in lead the story through a series of unexpected turns. The idea is to keep the audience guessing rather than giving away too much too soon.

For Rajesh Nataranga, however, the production is also about rediscovering an old space. Theatre asks an actor to perform without the safety net of a retake or a cut. Every reaction happens in front of the audience, making the experience very different from film.

The production also has Pradeep Belawadi designing the sets, bringing his experience from advertising production into the theatre space.

For Kaladyuti Productions, Male Nilluvavarege is an attempt to connect an older piece of theatre with a new audience. For Rajesh Nataranga, it is a return to the stage after 20 years, making the performance a significant homecoming.