Shabana Azmi Teams Up With  Italy’s Greatest Living Writer

Shabana Azmi joins other  international stars to  collaborate  with   Erri de Luca, a major Italian author, some would even say the greatest Italian writing today.

Luca  has launched a new project The Decameron 2020 in which a selected group of authors from different nations have been invited to pen 1000-word long stories about the so-called virus crisis). Michael Mayer, Tony award-winning director, is working with Erri and Erri’s partner and manager, Paola Bisson, in order to turn the stories into dramatic recitations.

Shabana Azmi has recorded Prof Tabish Khair’s story River of No Return

Speaking on this  , yet one more  singular  honour in her  super-distinguished career  Shabana says “When I was approached for this project by Prof Tabish Khair I said yes immediately because I was very   touched by his story River of No Return.I was aware of Pasolini’s film Decameron and was honoured to be part of a project conceived by the great Italian writer Erri de Luca. Decameron 2020 has an extremely impressive line up of international stars.I am glad to be  part  of  such a distinguished lineup.”

  Not for the  first time in her life  and career Shabana Azmi brings up  the  of the artiste  and his/her  social responsibility.

She  says, “In trying times like this viral crisis– I prefer to call it a human crisis, but let us leave that alone– it is the artist who must rise to the occasion and create sense out of chaos. It was a new experience to work with the Tony Award winning director Michael Myers on a virtual platform without having ever met him .It’d be inconceivable just a few months ago .But I’ve always been one for embracing new challenges.”

So is this how we will  all be working  henceforth?  “You mean is this going to be the new normal ? I hope not ! I like to work with people around me not in isolation but with the future being so uncertain I’m ready to go with the flow .”