THAT’S LIFE! A DOUBLE-TREAT

Dazzling and unforgettable on stage, That’s Life! by Sharon Prabhakar is an unadulterated portrayal into the triumphs and tribulations the actress-singer has encountered over the years.

Humble beginnings

Having left her childhood home in her late teens, Sharon followed her ambition all the way to Mumbai where she scraped the barrel on ₹500. She later ended up in London where she started carving out her path to a music career. Singing at nightclubs led her to sing Mere Jaisi Haseena for the 1981 film Armaan to headlining for Michael Jackson when he performed in Mumbai in 1996.

Putting ‘Life’ together

Six months ago Sharon, who’d long been acquainted with Mohammad Ali Baig, shares the two were brainstorming for her next production. After months of trial and error, the idea of using her life as framework spirited about, and then everything quickly fell into place.

“When looking back on my life, I realised the era we live in is so Photoshopped and it’s all so ‘Facebook’ where we are all smiling. This begs the question, ‘is life really so perfect and cheerful?’

True to theatre form, she shares that revisiting the memories can sometimes be so painful she has to hit pause on her performance. “I’m stripping myself raw on that stage; I’m telling it exactly how it is. I want people to confront their pasts and move on with their lives”

Dreams of a true individual

Sharon’s work as a corporate trainer is reflective of her goal to help people and empowering women, not through explaining her successes but her failures. “I have not found a single woman who is living her dream; she is conforming to society and to her husband— throughout her whole life. And not being a conformist, I don’t really care what other people think. That’s Life! doesn’t ask for opinions or rulings, but it will be a ray of hope for people who have forgotten how to dream.”