Bangladesh Theatre to bring ‘Shahnameh’ author Ferdowsi to stage

Bangladesh Theatre is preparing to stage a new production titled “Mahakabi Ferdowsi”, based on the life and final moments of Persian epic poet Abolqasem Mansour bin Hassan Tusi (940–1025), best known for writing the literary classic “Shahnameh”.
The play has been written by Apurba Kumar Kundu and directed by actor-director Khandaker Shah Alam, who will also perform the solo title role. The production marks the troupe’s 18th stage production.

Centred on the final hour of Ferdowsi’s life, the play portrays the ageing poet waiting outside his home in Tus for the reward promised by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni for completing “Shahnameh”. As he waits, memories from different phases of his life return — his childhood, literary journey, friendships, struggles, exile, and the emotional toll of creating one of Persian literature’s defining works.

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The production revisits Ferdowsi’s relationship with poet Daqiqi, whose unfinished writings partly inspired the epic, alongside the support he received from companions and patrons while composing the monumental text. The conflict between Ferdowsi and Sultan Mahmud over the promised gold coins also forms a central dramatic thread in the play.

According to the production team, the drama blends historical narrative with theatrical imagination to examine themes of artistic dignity, sacrifice, recognition, and survival.

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Playwright Apurba Kumar Kundu said the work grew out of years of engagement with Persian literature, Iranian cinema, and biographical theatre. Kundu, who has previously written plays on figures including Saadi Shirazi, Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, Michael Madhusudan Dutt and Leonardo da Vinci, said research support for the production came from translator Moniruddin Yusuf, the Iranian Cultural Centre in Dhaka, and the Persian Language and Literature Department at the University of Dhaka.

Khandaker Shah Alam said he had long wanted to bring Ferdowsi’s life to the stage, describing the poet as one of the towering figures of Persian civilisation. He added that audiences in Dhaka continue to show strong interest in new theatrical productions rooted in history and literature.

Rehearsals for the production are currently underway at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. The troupe plans to premiere the play after Eid-ul-Azha.