Sukhmanch Theatre is a Delhi-based theatre group that’s known for thought-provoking plays on socially relevant topics. The group organizes various street plays and stage acts across the country. As part of their theatre show, they presented a collection of seven acts in the NAB Audi.
The event started off after a two-hour delay, opening to a jam-packed auditorium, with people sitting on the stairs and gathering around the backdoors to get a look.
The first act was about inter-religious strife and the relationships people form despite the societal norms that dictate that one should only be close to people from their own community. Set against the backdrop of the Hindu-Muslim riots, it showed a Sardar fighting against all odds to save his Muslim neighbour, getting killed in the process.
The second act (Kaash) also dealt with intercommunal conflict, focusing on a south Indian man Umesh and a north Indian woman named Shefali. The pair fall in love but aren’t allowed to marry, because of Shefali’s father being afraid of getting cast out of their community. She is subsequently forced to marry someone she doesn’t love and gets trapped within the confines of a regressive household. The act had many intense scenes, including one where Shefali’s father slaps Umesh and shoves him across the stage, causing Umesh’s father to violently lunge at Shefali’s father. The act ended with Umesh and Shefali proclaiming their unrequited love for each other, wanting the other to be happy even in their absence.
The third act (Rangmanch) was about Sunil, an aspiring actor. He joins a theatre group open to all amateurs, as the group believes determination is the only requirement for success. Their father, in his disapproval, shocks Sunil about the nature of his dreams by showcasing his own failure as an actor. After a couple of time leaps, Sunil is shown in his late 50s. While he has quit drama officially, he still finds it in his daily life, declaring himself the sole performer and audience in his life, and vowing to help anyone who is willing to learn from him. This also forms a metanarrative about the group, whose life echoes that of Sunil’s own theatre group.
The fourth act showcased the plight of a group of villagers from Saharanpur who move to Delhi in hopes of a better life but are caught in the city’s problems. Forced to live on the streets, the group is routinely assaulted by policemen looking to make a quick buck. In a powerful monologue delivered by the protagonist of the group, he exalts the Machiavellian ideals of living for oneself but admits that he won’t reduce himself to an animal while doing so. In the last scene of the act, the group is conducting a tamasha on the road to entertain the onlookers and make some money, when a policeman walks up, harassing them under the guise of an arrest unless the protagonist entertain him. He tries to perform a dangerous routine trick of his but accidentally ends up stabbing his son in his haste.
The fifth act showcased a father grieving for his only child. His son, Ali, is a college student who likes to perform theatre and takes up a side job as a rickshaw driver to help his father. The act depicted the grim, cruel reality of the aftermath of Ali’s death, where the father is left helpless with no one to take care of him.
The sixth act dealt with issues like slutshaming and double standards of society, wherein a woman is called a “slut” and a man is called a “stud” for doing the same exact thing. The lead character is tortured by her ex-fiance, who constantly shames her behaviour and harasses her. The act had multiple scenes of comic relief sprinkled throughout, oscillating between the humourous and the emotional.
The seventh act was about the love story between Nitesh and Kajal, who’s a eunuch. The first half of the act shows Nitesh convincing Kajal to marry him, who refuses to leave her community house and live with him due to fear from constant threats. The act ended with attackers barging into Kajal and Nitesh’s house, showcasing the reality of being a transgender in contemporary India.
As soon as the last act ended, the group received a tremendous standing ovation as the cast came on stage for the curtain call.