Theatre Review: Vinay Varma’s Ismat - Ek Aurat is the perfect ode to Chughtai’s brilliance

sweata.kumari
@timesgroup.com
Plot: Sutradhar’s three-act play Ismat-Ek Aurat celebrated writer Ismat Chughtai’s 103th birthday through an autobiographical piece and two powerful women-oriented short stories. Guftagu, the first act, was an autobiographical monologue on the acclaimed writer’s life. Deepti Girotra as Ismat gave the audience a peek into the writer’s life and narrated important aspects such as her upbringing, the atmosphere at home, her journey as a writer and how she broke stereotypes regarding women through her work.The story also highlighted how parents were being treated as a burden instead of a responsibility by children. The second act Saas, offered a hilarious take on the saas-bahu relationship. The story dealt with a bossy mother-in-law, a careless daughter-in-law and how the son expertly juggled both. The last act, Chidhi ki Dukki, revolved around a good looking man and a witty lady of dark complexion. Both the characters don’t gel with each other. While the woman is disliked by the man for her attitude and appearance, the man’s flamboyant nature doesn’t go down well with her. The plot focused on how intellect and attitude in a woman is more attractive than looks.

Review: Though the performances, direction, dialogues and narrative in all the three acts were equally engaging, it was Chidhi Ki Dukki that stood out for its powerful ending. Ratika Sant Keswani, who played the protagonist in the act, gripped the audience with her infectious energy. With perfect demeanour and voice modulation, she ensured the stage wasn’t dull even for moment. The energy she displayed right from the opening scene, when she enters the stage with a jump, set the tone for the rest of the act. Pallavi Verma too made sure that all the characters she portrayed on stage received a thumbs up. With her apt expressions, she made each character interesting and unique. She was easily the best performer. Deepti Girotra, who essayed the role of Ismat Chughtai in Guftagu, gave a subtle yet mature performance, doing full justice to the role of the acclaimed author. director Vinay Varma deserves kudos for ensuring that the transition between the acts were seamless. He ensured that the audience were kept hooked even as one act gave way to another. the sets, minimal yet functional, were smartly designed to meet the requirements of all three acts.

Verdict:Ismat — Ek Aurat, was a great watch from the word go. The storylines focused on feminism, but in Ismat Chughtai’s subtle style. It also gave the audience an insight into the author’s work and life, her courageous writing that dealt with women and their issues, sprinkled with humour. In short, it was the perfect ode to the Padmashree-awardee who dared to talk about feminism way before the word became fashionable. The intense performances by the actors, good-humoured dialogues and the use of refined Urdu enhanced the beauty of the stories. The chaste Urdu may have been lost on a few, but the story had told in the language which is the main essence of Ismat’s writings. Without need for any improvement, the play is a rivetting watch.