An out of this world drama

What happens when sci-fi meets rom-com meets Sooraj Barjatya? It simply forms a somewhat political and comical potpourri called Sasuraal Chaand Par, a play the brainchild of Surender Verma, that was staged in the city on Friday.

Co-directed by Shubhangi, the play is about a couple who wants to get their son married, and owing to lack of opportunities on Earth, they figure it’s a good idea to look for a match on the moon. In the universe this play is set in, the Solar System has been colonised by homosapiens. There is some deliberate miscommunication on the part of the middleman and as a result,  the couple ends up finding a match for their daughter as well. Both, the earthlings and the lunar-tics, are dysfunctional families, and try to hide it from the other side, feeding the audience some hilarious moments as a result. There were many things that worked for this production. For instance, the acting played a strong part. Especially Shubhangi and her lunar fiancé Ravi who essayed their characters convincingly. The dialogues were written with a tinge of pepper and a whole lot of wit, which the audience greedily lapped up.

But there were many drawbacks, especially the writing. The last half hour of the play seemed unnecessary. The characters went into this family Boogie-Woogie mode, and just danced. This made the play 90 minutes long when it could have been a crisp 60 minutes. Second, there were some issues with the ideology behind the writing. The play raised some pertinent points about women’s safety, which were worth cheering for. But, in the flow, they went a little too far.

To quote one such instance, they say its harassment when a guy tries to talk to a girl in public. Well, that is exactly what the anti-romeo squads of UP are saying, who incidentally, they mock in the play. It is harassment when a guy tries to talk to a girl repeatedly who is unwilling to talk to him or when he tries to touch her without her consent. If just talking was harassment, then the writer proves the point of the anti-romeo squads for them. Social commentary notwithstanding, the play is a good dose of slapstick humour. Watch it for a good laugh but internalise it with a pinch of salt.