The tragic comedy

The play was a mess...
I must bow down to them, the play was a real torture...
Next time onwards, don't let these junkies come on stage without audition...
What a bore...
What have you made these juniors do...



If you are wondering what all the lines above mean, these were just the critical acclaim that the play 'Dhanno ki Khoj' got from the IIMK junta last night at the freshers' party.

Unfortunately, I had the temerity to write this play and direct it, too. I should have done a better job out of it...the lengthy screenplay did not help at all. There was a lot to improve on the music co-ordination too...and most of all, I could not really get the things going. The play was cancelled a number of times before it finally went on stage in all its half-baked glory. But what the heck...we had fun...and so did all the supposed critics.

The best part was when in the end, amidst chants of "1234 band karo ye atyachaar", Tateja actually came up on stage and literally dragged Amar out of the stage...poor Amar, sitting all alone on his throne, playing the blind Dhritrashtra to the hilt...sorry, buddy but even I couldn't resist the temptation...I laughed my head off at the side of the stage. It simply was hilarious and much better than any scene in the play that we could have stage managed ourselves.

Well, on a more serious note...if you ask me what I really thought of it, I will say that despite everything and anything that the people might have said, I know that my cast did a great job and I am really thankful to you, guys. With the preparation (more accurately, the lack of it), you guys stole the thunder. The nahiii of Dhritrashtra, the shaking old man's voice of Gandhi, the absolutely outrageous costumes and hilarious performances of Pushmeup and Munia, the comic villainy of Kabbar and Fasana, the boorish Aloo, the crisp Chitlar, the accented Chinton...the Hakla Khan in his stammering style, the courageous final monologue of Dasanti, the style of James Tond, the one-shot daring of Dhanno and above all, the now-so-popular act of Bajgayee...how can anyone even dare to say anything bad about my cast...and who are you to pass judgements when you did not have the guts enough to come and perform yourself.

It is so easy to sit and pass judgements but it is only when you come on stage with a preparation of half-an-hour and not even a single full rehearsal with the entire cast, that you know what it takes to get up and be counted. Once again, even though I am repeating myself, I am really proud of you guys, the show rocked...

Talking about rocking, the freshers' party rocked too, well...all of it except the food. I did expect a better quality of food at Taj but then again, with all the other sidelines coming up after the drinks were on, nobody was complaining. The drinks (not for me) and dancing (I did shake a leg or two) went on till three in the wee hours of the morning and when we finally reached the hostel, half of the people were puking and the other half too tired to even puke.

So here goes, another party at IIMK, where we work hard (no doubt about it...you just need to take a look at our submissions and quiz schedule) but party even harder...