<h3><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Conversations Before the Curtain</span></h3>
<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Before the lights dimmed and the curtains rose at Natarani, I sat across from Juhi Babbar Soni &mdash; Writer, Director, and Performer of the much-acclaimed With Love, Aap Ki Saiyaara. Warm, grounded, and articulate, Juhi spoke of her play with a quiet conviction that instantly drew me in. She called it a lyrical monologue, but as I would later discover, it was so much more, a mirror reflecting every shade of womanhood.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When asked if Saiyaara, her character, felt alive to her beyond the stage, Juhi smiled and said,</span></div>
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<div><em><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">&ldquo;I would love to ask her that after all that&rsquo;s happened in her life, where does she get the strength and will to smile, laugh and love?&rdquo;</span></em></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It was a line that stayed with me through the evening, long after our conversation ended.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Juhi described Saiyaara as a woman who is both familiar and fictional.</span></div>
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<div><em><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">&ldquo;We are very similar, but it&rsquo;s definitely not my story,&rdquo; she explained. &ldquo;We could be similar in life instances or personality-wise, but this is completely fictional. The way she loves her parents and the way she looks at life is definitely a lot like me.&rdquo;</span></em></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When I asked if Saiyaara ever finds her way to film, what she wouldn&rsquo;t change, Juhi laughed and said without hesitation,</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">&ldquo;The lead actor - it&rsquo;s me!&rdquo;</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">And finally, when asked to describe Saiyaara in three emojis, her answer was simple yet telling:</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">🤗🙏🏻🫵🏻</span></div>
<div><br><br><img src="https://ibp-benefits.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/prod/news/uploads/images/1760268871696_WhatsApp%2520Image%25202025-10-12%2520at%252017.00.25_a34f81cc.jpg.jpg" alt="WhatsApp Image 2025-10-12 at 17.00.25_a34f81cc.jpg" width="250" height="208"></div>
<h3><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When the Lights Came On</span></h3>
<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">There are performances that entertain you, and then there are performances that move you. With Love, Aap Ki Saiyaara is undoubtedly the latter.</span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">When Juhi Babbar Soni walked onto the stage at Natarani, the lights seemed to soften just for her. In the next 90 minutes, she wasn&rsquo;t merely acting; she was becoming every emotion she spoke of. Her transitions from laughter to tears, from heartbreak to rage were so effortless, so deeply human, that the audience could feel their own chests tighten with her words. It wasn&rsquo;t just theatre; it was catharsis.<br><br><img src="https://ibp-benefits.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/prod/news/uploads/images/1760269136338_WhatsApp%2520Image%25202025-10-12%2520at%252017.00.21_5d35ed24.jpg.jpg" alt="WhatsApp Image 2025-10-12 at 17.00.21_5d35ed24.jpg" width="250" height="333"><br><br></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">By the time the play ended, there wasn&rsquo;t a single soul unmoved. The standing ovation she received wasn&rsquo;t out of courtesy, it was a spontaneous outpouring of admiration for a woman who had turned vulnerability into strength and storytelling into art.<br><br><img src="https://ibp-benefits.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/prod/news/uploads/images/1760269239218_WhatsApp%2520Image%25202025-10-12%2520at%252017.00.21_41b8b821.jpg.jpg" alt="WhatsApp Image 2025-10-12 at 17.00.21_41b8b821.jpg" width="250" height="333"><br></span></div>
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<div><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino, serif; font-size: 12pt;">Written, directed, and performed by Juhi herself, With Love, Aap Ki Saiyaara tells the story of a modern woman - intelligent, witty, resilient, and flawed, navigating love, identity, and self-worth. The writing is lyrical, the light design immersive, and the direction unpretentious yet striking. Co-actors <strong>Achint Marwa</strong> <strong>and Neha Sheth</strong> delivered outstanding performances. Every element serves the same purpose: to let the truth of Saiyaara breathe.</span></div>

Juhi Babbar Soni, Mallika Sarabhai, Milan Shah

From Laughter to Tears: Juhi Babbar Soni’s Saiyaara Leaves Natarani Spellbound

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From Laughter to Tears: Juhi Babbar Soni’s Saiyaara Leaves Natarani Spellbound

October 12, 2025 | 22:43 IST