Thursday, September 30, 2010

Safar: A rambling journey

Play: Safar
Language: EnglishDuration: ~100 minutes
Genre: Humour (satire)
Rating: Watchable
Troupe: Header and Footer Club, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore

We checked out 'Safar' at K.H Kala Soudha on 26th Sep 2010 Sunday. Directed by Vysya Shastry ) who also plays the role of the protagonist, 'Safar' is a play made by the students at IISc.
 
The story is about a research student  (Not co-incidentally, Vysya Shastry is a real-life researcher at IISc)  who begins in postgradual research with IISc.  The character is overconfident and has a misplaced sense of importance. As the narrative unfolds, reality dashes his dreams and he is all set to turn into just another research Joe.
 
While the synposys appears grim, the play itself is punctuated by many a laugh. The writer has not spared cricket, Bollywood, spiritual leaders or IISc faculty.Written, directed and played by a closed group, one does not grudge that portions of the play are better enjoyed by the group. The plot is rather rambling but then it was probably intended to capture the life and time of the 'hero'. For an amateur hobbyclub production, the performance was brillant. For us, (me and Sunil) it was welcome to watch the performance of an original script after long time. Presumably, written originally by someone within the club, it was welcome  The researchers turn out to be fine artistes too managing off-stage with equal aplomb as onsite. The need for onstage set and props were eliminated by use of an LCD projector. However, one is disappointed with the promotional literature. Even allowing for self-aggrandisement ("Smash hit") the play failed to showcase 'apathy against initiative'. Yet, one does not regret the show, as the performance is eminently watchable. A pity that were very few in the audience who were unrelated to the cast and crew.


 
P.S I found another blog on the play here.

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