The small hall at the French Door looks inviting. There are neatly arranged chairs, a small stage and soft lighting by beautiful chandeliers. This is the venue for the two plays to be staged by The Coimbatore Book Club Theatre Group. As I wait in anticipation, the lights go off and the show begins.
Blind Destiny
The first play, Blind Destiny , has an ex-army man, Ajay (played by Somy Sridar) and his friend, Ravi (Karan Thacker) in conversation. Ajay has lost his eyesight in a war and is trying to come to terms with it. Nimmi (Priyankaa Jain), the girl Ajay is in love with, visits them. But, Nimmi has come there to inform him that she is getting engaged. Ajay is heartbroken. “How can I tell her about my love?” he asks. “I am blind.” Nimmi, who has returned to collect the purse she has left behind, overhears him. The audience expects her to go to him but she just leaves again.Ajay’s desperate effort to hide his blindness from Nimmi is beautifully portrayed.
Three Fat Women of Nilgiris is next. It has been adapted from Three Fat Women of Antibes, by 92-year-old Dinoo Hataria who has been involved in theatre for more than 70 years. “I added local flavour to it to make it more interesting,” she says.
Scene from 3 Fat Women of Nilgiris
Three middle-aged women — Babli (Ambujakshi Shankar), Frank (Sapna Umamaheswar) and KumKum (Monisha Mathur) — go on a weight-reduction regimen in Ooty. While they are eating tasteless food and playing bridge, Frank invites her cousin, Lena ( Shilpa Shah), to stay with them. Lena is lean, and nothing that she eats helps her put on weight. She eats “lemon martini, chocolate cake, bread with butter and jam.” It is funny to see the ladies struggling with their sugarless dessert even as they drool over Lena’s sugar-loaded dessert. This is too much of a strain on their friendship and Babli tells Frank, “It is not nice for me to see your cousin eating all the food that I particularly like.” After a fight between the friends, Babli secretly breaks her diet and eat all that she craves. Seeing this, Frank and KumKum join her as well.
The lighting and background music enhance the suspense and the mood of each scene.
Orange and Corn Crostini with spiced mayo
All too soon it is supper time and the audience and actors interact over platters of Orange and Corn Crostini, Spinach and Mushroom Vol-au-Vent, Potato and Leek Pie, Buttered Herbed rice with home-style Brandy and French Stew, and Panacotta with mango compote served by Chef Shreeya Adka and her team from The French Door. I sit in the balcony lit with fairy lights, digging into the sumptuous meal, sharing jokes and making friends.
“I like theatre. Supper theatre is more than just drama and food. It is a feeling” says Garvit Sahai, an entrepreneur in between mouthful of buttered rice. I couldn’t agree more and along with thoughts about love and diets, I go home thinking about the crispy Orange and Corn Crostini, the crispy and juicy Spinach and the buttery Spinach and Mushroom Vol-au Vent.
