JADAR

Come Fall in Love – The DDLJ Musical, which is based on the record-breaking Bollywood movie Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, is currently having its international premiere in Manchester, following its world premiere in San Diego. Whilst the show was still in rehearsals, we travelled down to London to chat with the cast and composers at an exclusive showcase, with writer and lyricist Nell Benjamin.

Jena Pandya and Ashley Day

After performing three group numbers – including the European version of the title song (Act 2 opens with the Indian version) – I sat down with the leads, Jena Pandya (Simran) and Ashley Day (Roger, aka Rog – based on Raj!).

“Simran’s similar to the film in her upbringing. She is an Indian girl who’s been brought up in the UK but whose family is very much from Punjab and has always grown up knowing that she is set to go back there after her studies and have an arranged marriage to her dad’s best friend’s son,” Jena explained.

“So, you know, it is very much within people that she knows but that is her future, and then she meet this guy” – she looked at Ashley – “and is really taken off in a different direction, and the path she was on changes.”

Casting a White British man as the lead (they cast a White American in the US production) was, unsurprisingly, not without its controversy, especially because Raj was played by Shah Rukh Khan (SRK), a titan of Bollywood.

Ashley explained that Aditya Chopra, the writer and director of the film (and director of the stage musical), “wanted to tell a new story but with the same themes.”

“So, it’s not just bringing two families together, it’s two cultures and two identities, which, I think, right now, especially, it could not be a more told story to put in front of everybody’s eyes.”

Ashley went on to explain how Roger’s background differs to Simran in more ways than just race, colour and ethnicity.

“Roger’s upbringing and his parents are very, very, very wealthy, and Simran’s family, her father, they’re working every hour of every day to put her through school – so there’s classism there as well.”

Ashley elaborated that he relates to this story because his husband, Adam Kaplan (who was there on press night), is Jewish (and American).

Whilst I initially had reservations, Ashley did a good job of explaining to me why this big change works, so I went in with an open mind – and it worked even better than expected. Come Fall in Love is Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge for 2025 Britain. It is actually even more relatable for British Asians, particularly those of us with immigrants parents and/or grandparents (I’m the grandson of immigrants, and my dad moved here as a baby whilst my mum was born here).

South Asian musicals are not so common. There have been a few smaller productions in recent years: I reviewed a touring production of Frankie Goes to Bollywood (Rifco) last year and a touring production of Bombay Superstar (Phizzical) back in 2022. Also last year, Bhangra Nation (led by Jena) had its international premiere in Birmingham, following its world premiere in San Diego (just like Come Fall in Love) last year.

But the last major South Asian musical was a West End stage adaptation of Bend It Like Beckham (starring Irvine Iqbal and Harveen Mann-Neary, who play Simran’s parents) a decade ago – and a full decade after a West End stage adaptation of The Far Pavilions (also starring Irvine).

The last major Bollywood musical, however, was over 20 years ago: Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bombay Dreams (also starring Irvine – the only actor to have starred in all three South Asian musicals on the West End!). Bombay Dreams ran on the West End from 2002 until 2004, Broadway in 2004, and toured North America in 2006; it sadly never toured the UK.

Combine this with the film being so iconic and still playing in Mumbai (Bombay was renamed Mumbai a month after the film’s release!), and starring icons SRK and Kajol, has made this musical hotly anticipated – and thus a lot of pressure for its cast and creatives.

“These are iconic, legendary Bollywood stars. But, to be honest, it’s more of, like, I feel really honoured to get to step into those shoes. For my family, they are so excited,” Jena explained.

“It’s all of the vibrancy of the film, all those iconic moments are in, but also, Adi’s added a different twist to some bits of it. So, if you love the film, you will love this show; it’ll give you all the nostalgia. But also, if you don’t know the film, you’re also just gonna have a shock of, ‘Wow, this story’s so refreshing.’”

Ashley followed, “I have a very different experience to it because I’ve never seen the movie. We did a workshop last October, and I hadn’t seen it then, and Adi was like, ‘Oh, that’s good,’ and I was like, ‘Okay.’ And the more I hear people talk about it, the more I’m like, ‘I’m good until this is…’, not done, but I found my Rog. Because I’m very aware, this is now about a White boy, I don’t wanna be disrespectful, and also, just having that in my head, it’s not healthy to deliver what now is brilliantly written.”

I finished the interview by asking the pair to describe the show in one word.

“I hate that question!” admitted Ashley.

“Well, we said this before, it’s a celebration,” Jena said. “And love.”

“Come fall in love…” I replied.

“But I want it to sound… That sounds fluffy,” said Ashley, before Jena explained, “But love in all forms, not just in like romantic love, but love with your family.”

“Seva,” Ashley said. “Oh, should I say that? That’s a spoiler.”

“If you wanna know, get to know what that means,” Jena said to the camera.

“Google it!” laughed Ashley.

Amonik Melaco and Millie O’Connell

Amonik Melaco and Millie O’Connell play the best friends of the two leads: Ben and Cookie, respectively.

“Great name!” I told Millie.

“Great name!” she said. “Simran’s best friend. Something happens, it’s Cookie’s fault; if this happens, ‘Oh, it’s that Cookie.’ When, actually, Simran’s like, ‘Nah, Cookie’s my bestie.’ They are so good for each other; they compliment each other beautifully, and I think it’s a really good showcase of dimensions in friendships and how can you ebb and flow between telling your best mate, ‘Babe, you have to do this for the best of yourself,’ and then the next sentence will be,” she then proceeded to make some silly noises, referencing the silliness of the friendship.

“My character’s name is Ben, and he’s Roger’s best mate, so kind of mirrored with the guys and the girls,” Amonik explained. “But backstory wise, he’s been friends with Roger for a long time, they’ve grown up together from school, and I think he looks up to him in a lot of ways. But in terms of upbringing, Roger’s very privileged, very entitled, in some ways, and I think Ben kind of is that force that pulls him back down to earth a little bit, ’cause he doesn’t come from the same wealth. So, I think he’s really good for him as a best friend, to kind of centre himself when he gets a bit too carried away with the money and the parties.”

Millie said, “For a show called Come Fall in Love, it’s so beautiful to have such a showcase of love and friendships – and there’s so much of that in this show, and it’s so beautiful to see that – and between you and me as well. Cookie and Ben’s arc is beautiful, and very real – it happens, you know, friends who’ve actually been like, ‘Oh, my gosh, I love you’ – we have fun and you realise. It’s a great opposing thing against Roger and Simran.”

“Like a foil,” I said.

As neither Amonik nor Millie are South Asian, I asked them how they have found it being immersed into Indian culture.

Ben admitted that he was completely unfamiliar with Indian culture.

“I remember the first day, we went to a singing call, learning Punjab[i], and I didn’t really know what I was coming into signing up to this ’cause my audition process was kinda late. I just took a step back; I didn’t think this was on the cards at all.

“It’s a privilege of not only creating a new show, but doing something where you’re learning a full new culture is amazing. I’ve never experienced [this] in musical theatre, in my career this far, so it’s so exciting to do that and to experience other people’s culture and learn about that while also getting to have fun and sing and dance and act. It’s amazing.”

Millie, however, had experience with Bollywood dancing when she was younger.

“It’s something that’s so close to my heart, and I just thought, I wonder if, you know, when you graduate and you go into the world, I wonder if there would be a gig, a job, where I’ll be able to dance and immerse myself in it. It’s just beautiful; I haven’t danced Bollywood in like 10 years, so to do these moves and this rhythm, and now immersing ourselves in the culture, and being able to sing Punjabi, with elements of so much Hindi inside, it’s the full package.

“We really have immersed ourselves into it, and in a space where it vibrates so high, like it’s not even surface level, like, we genuinely know what we’re speaking. The dialect coach is fantastic, by the way; she came in and, in the first day, like [Amonik] said, we were straight there. Our palettes were in the right place; our tongues were in the right place. And we learned about what we were saying. It’s not just like we’re singing a song; we know exactly the words we’re saying. So, it conveys truthfully.”

I asked the pair to describe the show in one word. Millie said “explosive.”

“Like Holi,” I said.

“Because you have to have that bubble before it pops,” she elaborated.

“Similar – I would say colourful,” Amonik said. “In a literal sense but also like in the different colours of the moods in the show and the themes. It’s just so diverse.”

“I love that,” I said. “Metaphoric.”

Garrett Tennant

Manchester’s own Garrett Tennant is a member of the terrific ensemble – who feature in all of the show’s best numbers.

Garrett recently played at Opera House Manchester, when he starred in Mamma Mia!, and when he was younger, he played at the sister venue, Palace Theatre Manchester, when he starred in Oliver! Whilst Come Fall in Love is his first world premiere as an adult, he previously starred in a world premiere as a child – where he also worked with choreographer Rob Ashford, making this a full-circle moment for him.

Garrett worked in Mumbai, India two years ago, which was “amazing in itself and beautiful”, however, this production has taken “it to another level because I’ve actually learnt a bit of the language, we’re learning the choreography, and it is just such a beautiful place and country, and I think this show is really gonna bring this side of the world and that side of the world together.”

“It’s been billed as a sort-of East-meets-West, isn’t it? This sort-of clash of cultures,” I said.

“Yeah, but they come together at the end, and it’s just amazing,” Garrett explained.

I asked Garrett if he feels the pressure of starring in such an important Indian film – which is still playing in Mumbai, where he has worked, 30 years later – especially as somebody who is not South Asian.

“It’s a huge film, and I’m still doing research on that film and the production behind it,” Garrett said. “There’s a little bit of pressure but you gotta have that on our shoulders and just be proud about what we’ve made, and I think it’ll show on stage, and I think it’ll be amazing.”

However, Garrett feels in safe hands, working with the original writer and director and huge Bollywood composers.

“They’ve been really accepting of us never having done singing in Punjab[i] before. And they’re just like, ‘No, this is how it is,’ and we’re like, ‘Great, we’ll take it on and we’ll do it.’”

When asked to describe the show in one word, he said, “It’s out the box but I can explain – can I explain? So, my word is ‘colour’, and that is because there’s so many different colours, and so many colours mean different things. If you bring different ones together, they can make new colours.”

“Or a rainbow,” I said.

“Yeah, and that’s amazing, and that’s my word,” he said. “And holi hay.”

Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani

We then moved from the rehearsal room into the room where all the costumes were being kept to interview Vishal–Shekhar, an Indian music composition, production, singing, and songwriting duo consisting of Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani. Known predominantly for their work as music composers in Hindi cinema, Vishal–Shekhar have also recorded in Telugu, Tamil and Marathi with the likes of Akon, The Vamps, Imogen Heap and Diplo. They have been streamed over 3 billion times on YouTube, have had 72 number-one singles, and have been featured on over 350 film sound tracks.

Whilst Vishal-Shekhar are incredibly well-known in Bollywood, having composed scores for lots of huge films, this is their first time branching into theatre.

“It’s very exciting for us. It’s also a learning process. We started working on this during lockdown so we’ve had time to sort-of grow into it, to understand how the process works, to sort-of relax a bit. We come from a world where we start working on a song, and then Shekhar and I do everything, we bring all our musicians in, we put the song together, and it’s final when it leaves our room,” Vishal said.

“But the difference with theatre is that the song evolves, and as more minds get into it – so there’s Adi, Shekhar, me, Nell’s writing of course, then Rob Ashford [choreographer], Shruti Merchant [co-choreographer]. As more people get into it, new layers come into it, the songs breathe, they evolve, they grow – and it’s an ongoing process. So, it’s something that we’ve had really learn to relax and start to enjoy and watch our own songs take on their own identities and lives. It’s quite miraculous.”

Shekhar said, “It’s taught us a lot of patience. A lot of patience to really let the song grow, let it develop.”

“Enjoy that process,” Vishal added. “Because it reaffirms to you that a song is not just about the composition; it’s about all the energies that come into a room and attach themselves to it, and our song grows through that wonderful sort-of inclusive process.”

“A film’s song is mixed, mastered and it’s gone, out in the world, so you have to let it go, but [with theatre] you don’t have to let it go, it lives with you, it grows with you,” Shekhar said, with Vishal adding, “You have a new idea tomorrow, you can try it.”

I asked the composers how they have found working with a lyricist who is writing in English, as opposed to English or Punjabi.

Vishal told me that they already have English writing in some of their songs but what makes it great working with Nell is that she has written not only the lyrics but also the book.

“She reinterpreted the story through her lens, and all the lyrics and the characters have all grown through that – and we get to be part of that process.

“So, it’s 18 new songs in English. The original film, of course, is a benchmark, but with Hindi films, the songs decorate the film. But with this, with a musical, the songs are the story; they tell the story. Like even the smallest conversation is a song – and how that works, and how it’s still lyrical and still musical and still beautiful. It’s been a voyage of discovery for us.”

Shekhar described working with original writer and director Aditya as “the most surreal thing” and understanding the emotion of each scene. Whilst the original film had a mere six songs, the musical has 18, which Shekhar described as “scenes, basically, which have been made into songs.”

Whilst Vishal-Shekhar are themselves renowned artists, I wondered if they felt a lot of pressure bringing such an iconic Indian film to life.

“DDLJ is DDLJ; there will never be another. It’s a benchmark, it’s a standard, it moved the culture and needle. It’s a very rare film that actually does that,” Vishal explained. “What we get to do is work with an adaptation of that story. Now, I think we all believe that, at the core, a story of love is a universal story. That was the core of DDLJ as well, and that is the core of Come Fall in Love as well. So, the nostalgia is there for the people who love DDLJ, but what it actually is is a whole new experience. The characters have evolved. The story’s evolved; Adi’s telling the story in a new way. Nell’s inputs are priceless.

“The female lead character, Simran, she’s not just someone who does what her father or boyfriend wants her to do. She thinks things through; she has her own reason for why she does what she does, why she says what she says. She is a woman that sort-of represents South Asian women. The new South Asian woman – where they stand for themselves. I think it’s really amazing, the inclusive nature of the staging. The magic of theatre, of course. The moving parts. And, of course, the core emotions. So, when Baldev, over there” – he pointed at Irvine Iqbal – “when he thinks of home, home shows up, and when it does, the warmth, the colour, the tone, the texture of Punjab, in the theatre, it’s something that brings a tear to my eye when I watch it, even now. So, I hope you all feel it.”

Shekhar added, “Anyone who’s left home will feel the feeling of being back home. We’ve tried to get that emotion in. But at the same time, there’s a lot of love, romance, dance.”

“Humour,” added Vishal, before Shekhar finished, “Party, funny – it’s got everything in it.”

When asked to describe the show in one word, Vishal replied, “Oh, wow.” “That’s hard, I know,” I said, to which Vishal responded, “No, that’s the word!”

The recording then cut off…

Irvine Iqbal and Harveen Mann-Neary

Irvine Iqbal and Harveen Mann-Neary play Simran’s parents, Baldev and Lajjo, respectively. Irvine starred in the original production, alongside Kinshuk Sen, who plays Kuljit, Baldev’s best friend’s son, who Simran is betrothed to.

Irvine described the parents as “one of the obstacles in this relationship,” with Baldev “very much challeng[ing] Simran, as well as dealing with his own issues and his own demons as well.”

Harveen followed, “They have set up their life in England. Baldev has a business that Lajjo very much supports him within. They want Simran to have the best education – and she does, she goes to Oxford – but they want her to sort-of be the best of both: be British but be British-Indian at the same time.”

I asked the pair if they relate to Simran’s experience as British Asians, and the children of immigrants – and if the show at all helps them understand where their parents were coming from.

“I get all of my source material from my parents,” Irvine revealed. “Also, observing other people’s parents as well. I very much relate to some of the issues that Baldev raises with his daughter, and I’ve experienced those issues as well, observed them and seen how parents speak to their children but also react as well. You can see with parents, especially first-generation parents in this country, the tole that’s taken on them, the sacrifice that’s happened, how they’ve had to work hard all their lives, and then also integrate and manage their own personal lives as well as their work lives too.”

Harveen agreed: “It’s that battle. I think it’s really important that we bring what we’ve experienced, and all those things that have been said that we’ve witnessed, but also just been at the centre of who we have been growing up. We’re able to put that into this story which makes it relatable, makes it real, makes it come from the heart.”

“And authentic,” I said. “Come from the heart and come fall in love!”

I asked the pair how they are finding the pressure of starring in the stage adaptation of such an iconic Bollywood film – and the first major Bollywood musical in over 20 years.

“Well, you’re lucky ’cause you did Bombay Dreams so you know the pressure already,” Harveen said to Irvine.

“Showing my age!” said Irvine.

“I mean, this is very much different to Bombay Dreams, but I think one of the things that’s special in this show, even though it has a lot of South Asian cultural references in the show, it’s very much a universal story. You could take the backgrounds of the these characters, make them Albanian and Nigerians. Boy meets girl. Girl meets boy. Faces some obstacles and challenges along the way,” he said whilst pointing at himself, before jokingly referring to the Indian culture as “the window dressing.”

“What’s unique now, about this story, is that we bring that love and understanding of Indian culture,” Harveen said. “But also, like Irvine said, you don’t have to be Indian to appreciate it. But what’s wonderful is we’ve got a show that represents multiculturalism – and we live in a beautiful multicultural country, so we’re finally being able to represent that on our stages, which is absolutely needed, and it’s about time.”

Irvine added, “But also, we’ve got the paintbrushes of Vishal and Shekhar, and Nell Benjamin, that adds the Indian flavour to the show, which, I think, is the unique thing. You have this lovely blend of East meets West creatives, which I don’t think has been done before in a musical. All these creative minds that would probably never have worked with one another before – so the first time Manchester is getting a show, an original show, with an original book and an original script and original choreography of two cultures, two creative cultures meeting.”

I remarked that it is great that Manchester is getting the show first because we have a big South Asian community.

“We are hoping that it opens the doors to a Western audience as well,” Irvine said. “I’m very keen to investigate that and hoping that a lot of the Western audiences come, as well as the South Asian.”

I, of course, ended the interview by asking the pair to describe the show in one word. “Irvine said, “Love,” and Harveen said, “Heart.”

Come Fall in Love runs at Opera House Manchester until June 21. Check out our review.

Photo: Craig Sugden