Play Review: The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (8/10)

The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial is your classic quintessential navy court-room drama – intense, evergreen and clever. It is a two-act play (one act each for the Prosecution and Defense respectively) by Herman Wouk, which he adapted from his own novel, The Caine Mutiny.

In India, the Motley Group under the experienced direction of Naseeruddin Shah performs this celebrated play with oodles of zeal.

Ankur Vikal (the guy who played the negative role in Slumdog Millionaire) is the star of the show, hands down. He plays Lt. Commander Philip Francis Queeg, the captain of the Caine, with sheer brilliance. He captures the emotions, mannerisms, thought process and body language of the character with perfection. His strong performance drives my score for this play to go from a six to an eight. His court-room monologue, with the marbles in his hand, and dimming lights is a masterpiece. I truly have never seen something like it before. The Defense Attorney does a commendable job while the two doctors who come as witnesses play small cameos. Some of the other actors are a let down, the novelist of “Multitudes Multitudes” for example, stutters with his English diction and pronunciation, which in itself is an oxymoron. The play, in my opinion, has potential to be amongst the best ones, but for the lack of attention to detail in casting.

Though it is a gripping post-World War 2 courtroom drama, the play emphasizes the psyche of those at the forefront of battle rather than the battle strategy or a complex plot. This is definitely a must watch to complete the spectrum of contemporary Indian theatre. I’m pleased I did so and more so because I was accompanied by my “core-group” of friends.

Play Review: Ismat Aapa ke Naam, Part 1 (9.5/10)

Remember when we you were young? Remember your grandmother’s stories before you went to sleep at night? Remember the days when your forehead never wrinkled with worries? Seems long ago, right?

Relive those days by spending a couple of hours with Naseer-ud-din Shah and his family as they take you along a journey into Ismat Aapa’s land of fiction. Revisit that corner of innocence, which you did not know existed in your mind anymore. Come out and see the world in a new light, at least while the impact lasts. It’s been over 24 hours and I’m still feeling the impact – it’s a high in itself.

Okay, I have to digress here. Unfortunately, or rather sadly, I had not heard of Ismat Chughtai before. The loss was mine. Naseer-ud-din Shah begins the show with an introduction of Ismat Aapa and takes her name alongside O’ Henry.”That might be stretching it a little”, I thought to myself. I’ve read some of O’ Henry’s short stories, and they’re fascinating. But after listening to narrations of three of Ismat Aapa’s Indian, very earthy and captivating stories, I surrendered all my suspicion.

Ismat Aapa ke Naam is a collection of three stories, “Chui Mui”, “Mughal Baccha” and “Gharwali” narrated and acted by Heeba Shah, Ratna Pathak Shaah and Naseer-ud-din Shah, individually, one after the other. So it’s not your conventional play.

Ratna Pathak Shah –I always thought she was nice, but I would never really refer to her as a “beautiful” woman. But that was before this play. As she dresses up in unique attire, kajal in her eyes, and warmth in her persona I realized that this kind of “beauty” is priceless. Her narration of Mughal Baccha is so genuinely surreal.

Post interval is the master himself. Naseer-ud-din Shah has kept the most exciting story under his experienced hands. The expertise with which he conducts himself never stops amazing me. Such a master of his craft. Just look at his eyes – the depth, the experience, the skill, it’s all there. Also in his narration, be prepared to laugh

The lights, set design and background music is simple, yet so perfect.

I’m glad that I’m disproven in my hypothesis that famous actors make not so good plays. (Waiting for Godot, Salesman Ramlal, Kuch bhi ho sakta hai, The Blue Mug)

I’m glad that I could watch this play and experience the magic of Urdu – a truly charming language.

I’m glad I did so with the right people, followed it up with good food, and a solitary car ride home with Fuzon’s Aankhon ke Saagar.