Date: 5th August 2018
Venue: Kamani Auditorium

There are some things that we are never tired of. Like Bollywood. Bollywood inspires every other art form all the time. “Nau Do Gyarah” – the latest play by Aadyam ( An Aditya Birla theatre initiative). season seems inspired by Bollywood. And noir.

Odd combination. But then noir has been hot always. And when it is noir comedy or black comedy – it is a double delight. No wonder, when we reached, Kamani Auditorium was overflowing with audience last Sunday evening.  A live band played oldies in the foyer and there was a photo booth beside that.  The warm-up was most encouraging and we were happy to have reached a little early.

The play started on time and for a change there was no stiffy announcement (viz. no recording / no clicking etc.) The curtains opened to a surprising space. It looked like a dim lit street corner cum a bar cum a stage. A live band was perched on an elevation on stage and they played fantastic music during the play. All this was most intriguing.

The plot was based on the underbelly of Bombay. We could finally join the dots vis-a-vis the Bollywood flavour. The protagonist Dr. Shekhar Kapoor, in his bid to rescue a damsel in distress with strong Meena Kumari hangover, gets involved with the underworld. The rest on the plot is what we would say sheer humor. Somewhat nonsensical, in a good way. He escapes, falls in love, rises against a mafia, solves a murder mystery and does all sorts of things that keep us amused. This character, assayed by Niketan Sharma, is a powerhouse of energy. The infectious aura keeps the audience at the edge of the seat throughout the performance.

All the actors work with clockwork precision. Clearly, there is great teamwork in play here who would have engaged in hours of rehearsal. Practice is something we often miss in theatre these days. The climax is abstract and we love the shock value of such an ending.

But the hero of the play is clearly the visualization. At the very outset, almost the complete cast assembles on stage and gyrates to live music creating impressions of motion. And then the train compartment is just a few chairs. A digital medium is used to advance the story and a certain portion is played on screen. This animation merges with the real act when Dr. Shekhar tears the screen and resumes his part. Kudos to director Atul Kumar for, amongst others, such lucid imagery and intelligent fusion of diverse art forms.

To sum it, this piece was a very formatting experience, a very apt weekend watch. It is after days that we saw a play that made us laugh. Thanks to Aadyam and The Company Theatre for a refreshing take on comedy theatre. Nau do Gyarah is a real Fun-Do and a must watch whenever it happens again. Meanwhile, we look forward to the next Aadyam presentation.