Shabash Anarkali is a Hindi-Urdu parody

Parody

A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...

 of the historical romance of Saleem and Anarkali

Anarkali

Anarkali ; Anārkalī ) was a legendary slave girl from Lahore, Punjab . During the Mughal period, she was supposedly ordered to be buried alive between two walls by Mughal emperor Akbar for having an illicit relationship with the Prince Nuruddin Saleem later to become Emperor Jahangir...

 set during the Mughal

Mughal Empire

The Mughal Empire ,‎ or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...

 period in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. The play was written by Surinder Gulati, directed by Nadira Babbar

Nadira Babbar

Nadira Babbar is an Indian theatre actress, director and an actress in Hindi cinema, who is the recipient of Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2001. A leading name in Indian theatre, Nadira founded a Mumbai-based theatre group called Ekjute, a known name in Hindi theatre in 1981...

 (and others), and staged throughout India as well as on Doordarshan

DoorDarshan

Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster, a division of Prasar Bharati. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in India in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently, it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. On September 15, 2009,...

 (Indian state television) in the late 1970s.

Although it aired on state-run television, the play came in for some criticism in the Parliament of India

Parliament of India

The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body in India. Founded in 1919, the Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all political bodies in India. The Parliament of India comprises the President and the two Houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha...

 because it allegedly made disrespectful fun of Emperor Akbar, "a great and respected leader of this nation of ancient times." The play has received popular and critical acclaim since it first began to be staged.