Archana Asthana
A murder mystery thriller, in true Agatha Christie style, presented by Naatak, opened at Starbright Theater in Cambell, with sold-out weekend shows! The audience was encouraged to not just sit back and enjoy the show, but to be active sleuths to figure out the culprit in this suspenseful drama.
A cast of merely eight characters created enough suspicion and disbelief throughout the play, to cast doubts on the veracity of each others’ stories, and push them in the spotlight as the next potential suspect!
The play opens as a recently married couple, Mr. and Mrs. Banerjee, excited and anxious are preparing to welcome the first visitors into their guest house, situated in a remote location, during a severe snowstorm. As the guests arrive, news on the radio informs them of a murder of a woman in the city, and shortly thereafter a determined detective arrives on skis, since the road is closed, and suggests that the killer is in their midst, to their intense horror!
The storyline centers around the depiction of events that occurred in the city at least three decades ago, and the connections to the present-day mystery rely on the strength of retelling that story through the characters. Some hiccups in the plot flow notwithstanding, the timeline is stitched so the events become relevant and substantial to the discovery of the killer’s identity. As the plot moves forward, each character is revealed to have the requisite opportunity and motive to be the killer of the woman who ran a foster care home all those years ago.
An unexpected second murder occurs midway through the play, and all present again come under suspicion, vigorously investigated by the detective, and are found to have plausible connections to both murders. Recurring references to, and use of the melody of the nursery rhyme, “Three blind mice”, adds the element of “creepiness”, elevating the oddities occurring on stage.
All aspects of this production seamlessly melded by Alka Sippy and was a refined presentation. Each actor authentically portrays the characteristics of their role, through mannerisms, clothing and dialogue delivery. Aishu Ramamurthy as the anxious Madhuri, and Vikram Ramanarayanan as her inexperienced husband, Gagan present quite the hapless duo; new actor Yash Desai does an amazing job of portraying the high strung, neurotic Chetan; the caustic, complaining, stern Mrs. Sharma is well played by veteran Anjali Kirloskar; seasoned actor Mukund Marathe as Major Malhotra delivers to a tee; Himanshu Jolly as Pravar is truly the strange, unexpected guest; Juhi Mohan works at being the distant, peculiar Charu and Ritwik Verma packs a punch as the over zealous detective!
Manish Sabu, the director revealed that he wanted to enliven the dramatization with humor, and introduced witty, funny dialogues that enhanced the Indian flavors in the tightly written adaptation. The final twist goes against the common expectations of a typical murder mystery where the astute detective examines all the clues, solves the crime, and exposes the perpetrator. If you are a focused audience, be the sleuth to figure out!
Photo courtesy: Kyle Adler
Thank You For Your Vote!
Sorry You have Already Voted!
