Veteran theatre practitioner Bansi Kaul has evolved his distinct theatre idiom with elements drawn from various sources, especially sports, circus, wrestling arena and nat – indigenous acrobat. Another distinct aspect of his art is his concept of stage design. As a designer he has achieved national eminence. Whenever we watch a Bansi Kaul production our attention is invariably captured by impressive and meticulously designed set. In case he produces a play with a small budget, he provides a painted fabric as the backdrop, suggesting ambience in which the action is set. One of the highlights of his productions is colourful costumes as part of the décor. As we watch his latest production of “Khel Mandali Khel”, which was presented by National School of Drama’s second year students at Abhimanch auditorium this past week, it has all these elements of Kaul’s oeuvre in abundance, offering the audience amusement for one hour and 40 minutes.
As soon as we enter the auditorium a big structure of set attracts our attention. Meticulously designed, upstage a platform is constructed to create another space for action. Most of the vital actions unfold down stage. The upper platform is connected with down stage through steps and two poles are erected which are used by the performers to come sliding down. These poles are in the centre. There are also slanted objects used by actors to slide down. This device is more an attempt to display actors’ acrobatic skills rather than contributing to thrust the narrative forward. Using space horizontally and vertically, the set often distracts attention from the performers.
As for the play, Kaul writes in his note, “‘Khel Mandali Khel’ is a play inspired by Hasya Churamani, a prahasan, written by Sanskrit dramatist Vatsaraja. I say inspired because it is quite different from the original script. This play was first conceptualised and designed for Rang Vidusha by me along with Satish Dave and Waqar Faruqi.” According to production brochure, the script for the production under review is adapted and written by Bansi Kaul, Satish Dave and Faruqi and the performance text is written by Ravindra Tripathi, a senior media critic and writer. What emerges after the collaborative efforts of these creative personalities is a structure which is light, straight forward and facile. (In fact, writing a play is a solitary creative process that reflects writer's world view and his aesthetic sensibility. His vision is further enriched by the creativity of director and actors.)
The play deals with the interactions of three groups of characters – Nagar Vadhuyen – courtesan, Pehlwan Mandali – wrestlers’ party and Guru Mandali – ‘group of Holymen’. They are comic characters. The wrestlers boast of great physical strength but they all turned out to be miserably weak, presenting an image that is ridiculous. The ‘holy men’ are in the garb of saints but in fact they are swindlers. The group of Nagar Vadhuyen consists of courtesan with Amavasi as their head. In a way they are being used as embellishment. Both the disciples and the head try to out smart each other.
What sets further development afoot, is the disappearance of jewellery of the head of courtesan. There is hue and cry about the theft. (The audience knows who has stolen jewellery and whom these have been given as the token of love.) The entire group of courtesan go from pillar to post to discover the jewellery and finally they meet the head of ‘holy men’ who promises them to identify the thief. Meanwhile, he is enamoured of Rampyari, the daughter of Amawasi. He evokes magic to bring her under his control. A crafty disciple, using counter magical force brings the old haggard mother under the control of his head, making the head run away from the mother. This game of cat and mouse makes comic situation. In fact, the group of sadhus is effectively treated as the source of laughter. The entire group displays flow of movements, vitality and physical dexterity. The interaction of sadhus with courtesans is hilarious.
One of the highlights of the production is the treatment of music composed by Devendra Ahirvar under the guidance of Anjana Puri in association with Ajit Chaudhuri. “Sun Le Ree Mausi”, “Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke” and “Abhi To Main Jawan Hoon” are all sung in catchy popular tunes and some of the songs are rendered in the form of parody. These songs impart comic rhythm to the production. Kriti V. Sharma’s colourful costumes beautifully contribute to enriching characterisation. Especially the costumes of wrestlers enhance the clownish traits of these so-called wrestlers.
The play ends with the hope that the lovers after escaping from the world of courtesan and gambling may discover a happy world. There is a brief conversation about old age security but these vital elements, which should have formed the kernel of the play, are treated in a muted manner .
Members of the cast give fine ensemble performances. Niranjan Nath as the head of the sadhus brings comic traits of a crafty holy man to the fore. His comic portrait is marked by buoyancy and a remarkable sense of timing. His eyes mirror the foxy nature of a cheat. Though cast in a sketchy role, Pankaj Mathur as Bhurrilal, the incorrigible gambler, in outlandish costumes amuses the audience.
