He took Hyderabad places with his rib-tickling 'Adrak-ke-panje', one man comedy show. On stage he is humour personified and off-stage he is no-nonsense man. He is the first Indian whose play was computerised and translated into 27 foreign languages, and his one man show runs parallel to Dustin Hoffman's in New York and his autographs appear in the Washington auditorium along with Michael Jackson and Frank Sinatra. Yes! We are talking about Babban Khan, the man who rewrote history.

Babban Khan's 'Adrak Ke Panje', was included in the Guinness Book of Records in 1984 under the STOP PRESS Column for the longest one man show. With a continued and steady response from the audiences the world over, the number of his shows soon reached the formidable 10,000 mark early in January 2000. "Now that I have reached the target of 10,000 shows, I have decided to put an end to the ongoing play," says Babban Khan, famous for his one liners and brief talks.

The 58 year old Babban Khan spread humour through 'Adrak Ke Panje' and with his simplistic tale of the trials and tribulation faced by a poverty-ridden family. The play was comedy born out of tragedy. It addresses the issue of family planning, highlighting the consequences of an unplanned family. " It was a situation faced by our parents. And seeing the traumas in different families, I decided to work out a play based on it, without knowing that it would fetch me this sort of name and fame" , recalls Babban Khan.

Babbab Khan's journey started in the city of Hyderabad, in Aghapura Colony amidst great poverty. He had two brothers and four sisters who died in their infancy because of malnutrition and lack of medical care. The only survivors were the youngest Babban and his frail mother. Babban studied till intermediate. He was natural at jokes and could always make people laugh.

One fine evening of August 15, 1965, a distressed Khan while brooding over his bleak future with hunger gnawing furiously scripted away, 'Adrak Ke Panje'. Without any prior experience on stage, Khan decided to stage his play even if he had to do it all by himself. This is when his playful journey started. " In Mumbai we stagged the last show of Adrak Ke Panje, at Vile Parle on 12th February, and now my audience will see a new beggining", revealed the Actor-Director-Producer.

Babban Khan already completed two more scripts titled , 'Adrak Ke Panje Part II', based on corruption and 'Gumbat-Ke-Kabootar', based on pollution and environment. " These two plays are all ready to hit the floors, and I hope that they will be equally appreciated by the masses", added Khan.

Over the years his play has received appreciation from highest dignitaries of different countries, different languages and various fields. He has received laurels, awards, honours and congratulatory letters from dignitaries and acadamies of the world - Queen Elizabeth II, Nelson Mandela, and Koffi Annan to name a few.

By: Sharmistha Chakraborthy