In times when intolerance is the buzz word, actor-director Saurabh Shukla is mounting a play that underlines the multiplicity of truth. “Barff” attracted attention for its theme during the just concluded Bharat Rang Mahotsav and this weekend it is back at the Kamani auditorium in New Delhi. Set in Kashmir, it is about a doctor who goes to a friend’s house to treat his daughter. What he finds is shocking. The mother is nursing a doll and is not ready to believe it. It leads to a battle of perceptions and ultimately the doctor realises that there is some logic in her belief. “It is based on a short story by Ranjeet Kapoor. I bought it to make a film on it but when I got a call from Bharangam to stage a play, I felt it could be turned into a play,” says Shukla.
He maintains that the play is not political but one can easily figure out that doll/baby is a metaphor for Kashmir or any vexed issue for that matter. “It is open to interpretation. In this world all the conflicts emanate from the fact when one person thinks that the other person’s belief is wrong. I narrated the story to Rahat Kazmi and he said he hasn’t listened to such a story on Kashmir but it is the story of Kashmir. Your inability to listen to other person leads to situations where you take an extreme stand. You say that the other person’s god is wrong and to control the situation you suggest send the army or let them go their own way. You should have the guts to listen to the other’s vision.”
However, in a polarised world if you take the middle path you are often criticised as ambivalent. “If somebody believes in it, I accept that as well but in my house if you try to question my belief then it is not fine,” avers Shukla. So when the doctor accepts the mother’s point of view, some might feel that he accepted the separatists’ point of view. “Some have interpreted like that but it essentially suggests that he understands that there is space for everybody’s belief.”
Adapting the play for stage was a challenge. “As it was essentially written for screen, it had a visual quality. It is set in winter during heavy snowfall. Now how do you show snowfall on stage? The machines that we use in films make a lot of sound and the silent ones, which are available abroad, are very expensive. It pushed us to experiment. We researched and made our own machines. It is expensive but I have a company’s backing. The whole thing has been designed in a way that the snow doesn’t obstruct artists’ movements.”
The play has Vinay Pathak and Sadiya Siddiqui in the lead.
“They are busy actors and I also have work but our passion comes because of a reason. We have to earn but we also have to grow as artists. So when we decided to stage a new play we also decided to practise from 6 to 10 in the morning so that it doesn’t come in the way of other work.” Many say they don’t do theatre because they have to miss out on meaty film roles but Shukla say he never had to give up on a good film role because of his preoccupation with theatre.
Like the multiplicity of truth Shukla, who grew up in Delhi in a musicians’ family, enjoys the multiplicity of genres in cinema as well. He likes Sholay but wants to be part of Bandit Queen.
“I enjoyed Dabangg but I know I don’t have the talent to make it. I grew up watching films like Ben-Hur and was fascinated by the works of Bimal Roy and Hrishikesh Mukherjee. I often felt that we over do emotions in our films. I don’t like hyperbolic cinema. The base has to be realistic.”
In the season of awards, his hugely improvised performance in Kaun Kitne Paani Main has gone unnoticed. He doesn’t mind it.
“It will never be enough. I always remind myself from where I started. When I started my biggest fight was that the industry should not consider me a fat man on whom they can laugh. And they have not done this to me. They have given me all kinds of roles. People do not take me because I am of certain weight. They take me because I lend certain weight to the story.” No two ways about it!
Back to school
Vinay Pathak who plays Dr. Kaul in the play, says theatre is like returning to school for him. “I get excited to pack my bag and learn 2x2 all over again. It helps me get rid of the rust that I acquire while doing films.” “Barff” is his first Hindi play but Vinay sees it just as a coincidence as he always had a good command over the language. “Saurabh’s writing is always serious and simple at the same time. Here again we are not making a political statement. It is more of a social satire. The challenge was that play is rooted in realism and we had to ensure that it doesn’t become banal. In commercial theatre you don’t have luxury to keep it completely artistic. I also like to play with formats. I feel nothing is cast in stone. Otherwise, a cast is available for everything in a grocery shop.”
Vinay says in theatre the performance evolves with every show. “You stumble upon a new truth every time you say your lines. You react to time and space. Sometimes after 60 shows you realise you are no longer doing things you were very particular about when you started. It is the contribution of the live audience. They make you take away all the frills.”
(“Barff” will be staged from this Friday to Sunday at Kamani Auditorium.)
