Nawazuddin Siddiqui & Nandita Das on Becoming Manto | Live at Jashn-e-Rekhta

Recorded live at Jashn-e-Rekhta Dubai, this special conversation brings together Mahira Khan and Samina Peerzada with host Adeel Hashmi for a thoughtful, warm, and revealing session on acting, storytelling, and the journey from script to screen.Titled “Kahaani Se Kirdaar Tak”, the discussion explores how actors shape written characters into unforgettable performances. Mahira Khan reflects on her creative process, the emotional preparation behind complex roles, and the experience of becoming part of a cultural phenomenon through Humsafar. Samina Peerzada brings her years of experience as an actor, director, and storyteller, offering a deeper view of Pakistani cinema, television, and the changing place of women in performance.Beyond the craft, the conversation also looks at the real life behind fame, the pressure of public love, the discipline required to stay honest as an artist, and the quiet work that goes into making a role feel alive.For fans of Mahira Khan, Samina Peerzada, Pakistani dramas, cinema, theatre, and acting, this live session is part conversation, part masterclass, and part celebration of stories that stay with us.

Sharman Joshi joins Rekhta Guftugu for a warm, honest conversation on theatre, cinema, family, craft, and the long journey of becoming an actor.Born into a family deeply connected with Gujarati theatre, Sharman looks back at the influence of his father Arvind Joshi, his uncle Praveen Joshi, and the world of modern Indian theatre that shaped his early years. He shares stories from college, his first play after graduation, the success of All the Best, and the unforgettable lessons he learnt from live audiences.The conversation moves from Gujarati theatre to Hindi cinema, from stage struggles to film roles, and from forgotten dialogues to the discipline of acting. Sharman also speaks about learning jazz dance and horse riding, his love for music, the languages he speaks, his siblings, reading habits, and the actors who continue to inspire him.From 3 Idiots, Rang De Basanti, Golmaal: Fun Unlimited, and Life in a Metro to his reflections on the kind of roles he now seeks, this episode offers a rare look at Sharman Joshi beyond the screen. Gentle, funny, thoughtful, and deeply rooted in theatre.

Taapsee Pannu opens up in a warm, honest and deeply personal conversation on Rekhta Guftugu. From growing up in a middle-class Delhi household to studying engineering, modelling during college, entering South cinema, and eventually becoming one of the most distinct voices in Hindi films, Taapsee traces the journey that shaped her both as an actor and as a person.She speaks about her mother’s influence, her rebellious streak, her conflicts within a patriarchal family setup, and the everyday struggles women face across professions. Taapsee also reflects on the early mistakes she made in the film industry, being labelled “bad luck” after consecutive flops, and how she rebuilt her career by choosing films she herself would want to watch.The conversation moves through her work in South Indian cinema, her shift to Hindi films, her experience working with Amitabh Bachchan, her love for science, her lockdown learnings, and her belief in living truthfully. Known for films like Pink, Badla and Manmarziyaan, Taapsee brings the same clarity, courage and humour to this interview.An episode about ambition, independence, womanhood, cinema, self-belief and the strength it takes to choose love over hate.

Ali Fazal comes to Jashn-e-Rekhta for a warm, candid, and deeply reflective conversation on cinema, Urdu, poetry, ambition, and the stories that shaped him.Opening with a nazm, Ali moves from the grace of Lucknow’s tehzeeb to his childhood memories of films, books, and language. He speaks about being born in Delhi and raised in Lucknow, the influence of his mother, his early connection with theatre and Shakespeare at Doon, and the difficult years that taught him fearlessness.The conversation also traces his journey from Bollywood to Hollywood, including Victoria and Abdul, Death on the Nile, and his work as a producer with Pushing Buttons Studios. Ali reflects on craft, ambition, plagiarism versus inspiration, Urdu pronunciation in cinema, the responsibility of artists, and why he still feels he has not “arrived.”From personal memories to sharp industry observations, this session brings together cinema, literature, language, and a rare honesty that stays with you long after the conversation ends.

A grand mushaira from Jashn-e-Rekhta Dubai, bringing some of Urdu poetry’s most loved voices together on one stage.This Sunday Special captures the best moments from Dubai Mushaira 2025, where Javed Akhtar, Zehra Nigah, Waseem Barelvi, Abbas Tabish, Khushbir Singh Shaad, Sarosh Asif and Shakeel Jazib fill the evening with nazm, ghazal, wit, silence, applause and that rare mehfil energy only a live mushaira can create.From Javed Akhtar’s sharp reflections to Zehra Nigah’s grace, from Waseem Barelvi’s emotional depth to Abbas Tabish’s lyrical command, each poet brings a different shade of Urdu to the mic. The audience listens, responds and becomes part of the poetry itself.An episode for those who love Urdu, shayari, live performances and the feeling of being inside a hall where every verse lands straight in the heart.

Piyush Mishra brings his full self to this live Jashn-e-Rekhta session, sharp humour, raw memories, music, poetry, and the kind of honesty that refuses to sound rehearsed.In this conversation, he opens up about love, heartbreak, and why today’s fast-moving Gen Z relationships often miss the patience and depth of old-school romance. He speaks about acting as imagination, not just technique, and shares hard-earned truths from his early Mumbai days, when survival, writing, theatre, and cinema were all part of the same struggle.The discussion moves from NSD and the myth of instant fame to the emotional cost of chasing art in a city like Mumbai. Piyush Mishra reflects on guilt, ego, Vipassana, alcoholism, truth, and the personal battles that shaped his voice as an artist. He also recalls Anurag Kashyap, Kay Kay Menon, and the creative integrity behind Black Friday.Alongside the conversation, the session carries powerful musical moments and memories connected to Ek Bagal Mein Chand Hoga, Aarambh Hai Prachand, and Husna. From Bhagat Singh and Faiz Ahmad Faiz to Partition pain and the loneliness of the artist, this episode is a rare mix of laughter, confession, music, and literary fire.Listen to Piyush Mishra at his most unfiltered, poetic, funny, wounded, and alive.

Javed Akhtar joins Saif Mahmood for a thoughtful and deeply relevant conversation on Urdu, secularism, language politics, and the cultural history of India. In this live session, they unpack how Hindi and Urdu grew from the same soil, sharing the same streets, emotions, and literary traditions long before politics tried to divide them.Javed Akhtar speaks candidly about why languages should never be tied to religion, and why Urdu belongs as much to India’s cultural identity as Hindi does. He reflects on how younger audiences are rediscovering Urdu poetry through Devanagari script, even while traditional Urdu writing slowly declines.One of the most powerful moments of the discussion comes when he explains secularism in the simplest possible way. Not as a slogan, not as performance, but as something natural and essential, “like oxygen.” The conversation moves through literature, identity, public discourse, coexistence, and the emotional connection people still carry with language across generations.

Saadat Hasan Manto was not a writer who allowed anyone to stay comfortable. In this powerful conversation from Jashn-e-Rekhta, filmmaker Nandita Das and actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui join RJ Sayema to speak about bringing Manto’s life, mind and contradictions to the screen.Nawazuddin reflects on playing Manto and the strange after-effect of carrying his honesty into real life. Nandita Das explains why the film stays rooted in the years around Partition, from 1946 to 1950, and how Manto’s questions around identity, religion, nationalism, women and censorship continue to feel unsettlingly current.The conversation also goes behind the scenes of recreating 1940s Lahore, holding a creative line, and understanding Manto’s writing as something plain, sharp and impossible to ignore. For anyone interested in Urdu literature, cinema, Partition stories, or the life of Saadat Hasan Manto, this is a rare and deeply revealing listen.

What happens when two of South Asia’s most loved actors speak about Urdu, not as a language of nostalgia, but as a living part of performance, memory, and identity?In this rare conversation from Jashn-e-Rekhta Dubai, Saba Qamar and Imran Abbas join Adeel Hashmi for a deeply honest discussion on Urdu, cinema, acting, and the changing sound of storytelling. They speak about the sanctity of words, the discipline of pronunciation, and why language can completely change the emotional weight of a scene.Imran Abbas shares how his command over Urdu became a strength across India and Pakistan, while Saba Qamar reflects on performance, vulnerability, and the beauty of leaving some emotions unfinished on screen. Together, they explore why many young actors are drifting away from linguistic depth, and what that means for films, dramas, and culture at large.The conversation also looks at how OTT platforms and newer writing styles have shifted dialogue from poetic expression to everyday realism. But is that evolution, or are we losing something precious?

Some nights are not just heard. They are felt.In this Grand Mushaira from the Jashn-e-Rekhta stage, some of India’s most loved poets come together for an unforgettable evening of Urdu poetry, emotion, wit, reflection, and live mehfil energy. From the first sher to the final applause, the atmosphere carries the warmth of a packed audience listening, reacting, smiling, and sometimes falling completely silent.Hosted with grace and command by Azhar Iqbal, the evening moves through many shades of poetry. Ajm Shakari brings ghazals filled with heartbreak, pride, and emotional intensity. Nausha Israr speaks of homeland, hope, distance, and belonging. Shik Kaifi delivers sharp, memorable lines that make the audience pause and smile. Hilal Fareed brings poetry with a social and political pulse. Then comes Javed Akhtar, whose words cut through noise and reach straight into thought. The mehfil closes with the timeless elegance of Waseem Barelvi, reminding everyone why the ghazal still holds such power across generations.This episode is for anyone who loves shayari, ghazals, Urdu adab, live mushairas, and poetry that speaks about love, loneliness, truth, society, language, memory, and the delicate relationship between words and meaning.