Full disclosure: my knowledge of Hindu mythology is woefully sketchy. Since many plays staged in this city are based on the same, it sometimes makes theatre a challenging affair.
However, along the way, I have learnt more about the subject. For, the beauty of good theatre is that it can evoke emotion, provoke thought, and inspire new ideas even for audiences who are completely unfamiliar with the story, the language or the backdrop.
A play can move audiences via the intensity the actors bring to a performance, the vision of the director and the brilliance of the sets, sounds and lights. I knew that Madaiah the Cobbler — conceptualised and choreographed by award-winning director Prasanna Ramaswamy, and based on the work of Kannada playwright HS Shivaprakash — was going to be a show that demanded undivided attention. The play, presented by The Madras Players, was a two-hour performance. However, by the time it ended, I had already spent one restless hour waiting for the curtains to come down.
In its crux, the story was simple: Samana, a tyrannical king, played by a compelling Nikhil Kedia, had enslaved the Sun and the Moon. Greedier than ever, he also desired Mother Earth (essayed by a distressed yet proud Mekha Rajan). This shocks the six guddas, who narrate and stitch together this story with fluid movements.
Finally Madaiah (V Sarvesh Sridhar), an avatar of Shiva born to cobbler parents, steps in to save the day. Many more characters are introduced along the way, whose significance I struggled to understand. Because: there was too much content, and not enough context.
The performances of theatre veterans like PC Ramakrishna and Shankar Sundaram made many scenes appealing. In others, the ensemble work revealed rough edges; amateur performances were apparent and the choice of music sometimes felt mismatched to the mood of the scene. It may have worked nonetheless, in a shorter and snappier production.
There were however some memorable scenes like the one where Madaiah’s parents stitch shoes torn from their flesh and soaked in their sweat, where the actors were in their element and the intensity on stage drew in the audience. Involuntarily, I leaned forward in my seat, engrossed in the emotion, stunned by the depiction. The smooth light work, by Victor Paulraj, deserves a special mention. As does the music, which often made the narrative richer.
Theatre, in this city, is niche. And at a time when there are so many activities competing for audiences’ attention, it is only going to get even more niche.
Contemporary theatre formats are becoming increasingly inventive to cater to today’s viewers’ shortening attention span. In this setting, staging such a serious play, which boldly focusses on form and movement deserves applause. It was an interesting experiment and perhaps a treat for the mythology-buffs in the audience.
However, theatre should be democratic, allowing all kinds of audiences to find a space to connect. A performance like this, which didn’t feel inclusive, but rather self-indulgent, only makes serious theatre seem even more intimidating.
