Three plays and a festival

The audience gives a standing ovation to Jaimini Pathak after "Mahadevbhai" Photo: K.Ananthan

The fifth edition of The Hindu MetroPlus Theatre Fest has just concluded. Three plays of varying duration and genres were staged and, going by the responses of the audience, they loved the performances, some more than others. Some comments stood out more than the others: “Why didn’t more schools and colleges come for the plays? At least they should have for Mahadevbhai .” We honestly do not know. But we too regretted the small representation of the younger brigade. In Mahadevbhai , history came alive in a way it rarely does in text books. Salt Satyagraha, Rowlatt Act, Quit India Movement, the Chauri Chaura incident… One man, just one man on stage made it all so gripping. But one must make a mention of the Isha Home School students and teachers who came all the way from Velliangiri, and we hope they took away something from the play.

The three days were an opportunity to break away from screens, social media and mobiles, at least for a few hours. It was a chance to sit in the real world with real people and have real conversations; it was an opportunity to laugh out loud and uninhibitedly, get caught up in the high energy drama on stage and later on talk to the actors, directors and producers who made all that happen.

Rafta Rafta was genuinely funny and Noises Off was “gloriously slapstick and superb”, in the words of a veteran theatreperson in the audience.

The Hindu MetroPlus would like to thank all its loyal friends who have turned up unfailingly for the theatre fest each year. We count on them to support the festival and enable us to bring it back year after year. People came down from the Nilgiris, neighbouring Kerala, Tirupur and Sulur. We are indeed grateful for their cheering us on.