A celebration of gender through the lives of a group of Mumbai-based drag kings, Gentlemen’s Club returns to the Experimental Theatre in a new avatar before its run in the West End and marks the first collaboration between the NCPA and Soho Theatre.

By Akshaya Pillai

“Men don’t own masculinity, and women don’t own femininity—it’s all up for grabs,” Sheena Khalid remarked when we discussed gender fluidity in her play Gentlemen’s Club. Her words replayed in my head later that week as I watched Imane Khelif, tears streaming down her face, declare, “I want to tell the entire world that I am a female, and I will remain a female.” The Algerian boxer at the 2024 Paris Olympics, accused of being ‘male’ due to her muscular physique and elevated testosterone levels, stood defiant. “It’s a battle; it’s for my dignity,” she said, as her struggle for acceptance and identity evoked a shiver of empathy among many around the world. But in such a world, where we are conditioned to associate gender with dignity, what does it truly mean to embrace androgyny? Should we even attempt to define the line between masculinity and femininity? Or let it blur into something beautifully uncharted?

Khalid’s interest in androgyny blossomed during her time as a student in London, where she witnessed the transformative power of drag firsthand. However, it was in 2015 that this fascination truly found its stage. Invited by the Gaysi Family, a media platform and safe space for the queer community in South Asia, to perform at their annual event, Dirty Talk, Khalid and her friends and theatre practitioners, Puja Sarup and Vikram Phukan, began brainstorming ideas. Amid their discussions, Phukan’s casual observation about Sarup’s resemblance to actor Shammi Kapoor sparked the idea for a drag king act. In fact, Phukan had already penned a monologue for a drag queen. This serendipitous moment led to the creation of Tape, a shorter performance about drag kings. Groundbreaking in its approach, Tape was later expanded, refined and showcased at the 2015 edition of the NCPA Centrestage Festival of premiering plays as Gentlemen’s Club.

“This show is an exploration of artistes who are drag kings, what their lives are about and what it means to be able to co-opt and play with masculinity. Drag is about entertainment, but it is also an explosion. It is a celebration of gender. What it does, even in the act of watching it, is that it gives space to the audience members to see various aspects of themselves in the performers,” said Khalid. Set in Mumbai’s vibrant underground club scene, Gentlemen’s Club follows the lives of drag kings in which the main act, Rocky, pays homage to Shammi Kapoor and the golden era of Hindi cinema. Joined by a diverse cast of women who embrace drag, this cabaret-style show immerses the audience in a gritty, secret world where identities are freely expressed. Through dance, music and projection, the play tells a provocative story of women celebrating masculinity.

Adding another layer to this narrative is Maya, played by Rachel D’souza, the documentary filmmaker who serves as the eyes of the audience. As she puts the lives of the drag kings being interviewed under the microscope, the tension and personal struggles of the characters intensify, revealing the raw and unfiltered dynamics that unfold when an outsider steps in.

While it is true that for centuries, women have captivated audiences by embodying male characters and vice versa—a tradition that traces back to Shakespearean theatre and beyond—a lot of this drag arose from a place of necessity. It was Vesta Tilley, a British performer from the late 19th century, who first gained fame for her male impersonations, and paved the way for modern drag kings. In 1996, the first known drag king contest was held at Club Casanova in New York City, marking a significant moment in drag history. These performances also intersected with burlesque, merging masculine drag with striptease. In India, while traditional arts like Kathakali feature men in female roles and women as men, contemporary drag kings are nascent, navigating a new landscape.

“Puja, taking the stage [in another role] as Vicky Lalvani, transforms into a particularly obnoxious stand-up comedian with a flair for the outrageous,” Khalid noted. After one particularly memorable performance, she remembered how Sarup, still in her avatar as Vicky, met a journalist and photographer backstage, who had come to cover their play. The interaction between the alpha male photographer and Vicky’s equally dominant drag persona turned into a dramatic clash of egos. “Watching this dynamic unfold was fascinating. So many toxic traits can be played and mocked and satirised,” Khalid said. “There is real power in that.”

Bruce Guthrie, Head of Theatre & Films at the NCPA, has always been intrigued by Gentlemen’s Club and had read extensively about it since joining the NCPA. Pooja Sivaraman, playwright and creative associate at London’s Soho Theatre, had seen and loved the show too, sparking discussions about a potential collaboration. This synergy has come to fruition—Gentlemen’s Club will debut at the Soho Theatre later this year. “The play combines theatre, cabaret, stand-up comedy and interactive performance. There is a chaotic element to the show that I think audiences have loved in the past and will love all over again in this new version,” said Guthrie about the production which has been reworked to be as current as possible. “It’s progressive, funny and rooted in modern Indian culture and entertainment. It is a wonderful first step towards what we are sure will be a fruitful collaboration with one of London’s most vibrant and celebrated venues.”

Theatre has long been a powerful medium for exploring and challenging societal norms, particularly around gender. It provides a space where rigid definitions of masculinity and femininity can be deconstructed and reimagined. This ability to question and reshape gender norms can inspire us to view our own lives through a more fluid and imaginative lens; to open the door to new ways of understanding ourselves and one another.

Guthrie encapsulated this sentiment when he said, “Acceptance is different from tolerance. Accepting people for who they are is an active choice. By demystifying the world, we work towards eliminating the fear of it. Performance and art are wonderful ways to do this. Tapping into culture and creating new associations is a vital step in the direction.”

In an era where the fight for gender equality and acceptance is a constantly shifting battlefield, Gentlemen’s Club beckons us to laugh from the belly, and to ponder deeply about what it means to embrace one’s true self. The magic of the play is not confined to the performance itself; it is in the ripples of thought it leaves behind, compelling us to re-evaluate and embrace the fluidity of our own identities long after the lights have gone out.

This article was originally published in the September 2024 issue of ON Stage.