A refreshing twist

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Follow us:WhatsappFacebookTwitterTelegram.cls-1{fill:#4d4d4d;}.cls-2{fill:#fff;}Google NewsWhat do you get when you bring together love, sexuality, human complexes like envy and obsession, and death? You concoct a heady tale reminiscent of childhood fables and tales that we have grown up listening to? Hayavadana, part of The Park’s New Festival, is exactly that, albeit with a twist.The play, originally inspired by Thomas Mann’s The Transposed Heads and a folktale from Kathasaritasagar, was staged at the Museum Theatre recently Two men, Devdutt ( Prashant Praksh) and Kapil (Vivek Gomber), are poles apart but best of friends and fall in love with the same woman.Choosing friendship over love, Kapil willingly makes way for his friend to marry his ladylove Padmini (Preetika Chawla). But cupid’s arrow is never amiss and Kapil stays smitten by the beauty and charm of the feisty woman.Padmini, on her part, is impressed by Kapil’s well-built frame and doesn’t hide it. Trouble begins when the three embark on an arduous journey through a thick forest.Brimming with envy and complex, Devdutt begins to believe that his wife is happier with Kapil. He offers his head to Goddess Kali, deciding to sacrifice his nuptial bliss for his best friend.Guilty of indirectly cheating his friend, Kapil offers his head to the Goddess too, and seeks forgiveness. A bewildered Padmini begs the Goddess, who wakes up from slumber, to show mercy and seeks another chance to reclaim the two lives.The Goddess relents and allows her to place the heads back on the bodies. As fate would have it, in the darkness, Padmini fits the wrong heads.Devdutt and Kapil are happy to be alive again and don’t mind swapping bodies. But, Padmini has to swap her husband as well.So, will the head or the body win the woman that both their hearts love so deeply? Keeping the audience on the edge of the seat with welltimed comedy and snappy lines, Industrial Theatre Co’s production has given a makeover to the much-celebrated work that debated the ageold topic of brain vs. brawn.Alternating seamlessly between high points of drama and light moments of hilarity, you don’t mind the occasional slump in narration. The play certainly belongs to the lead characters who effortlessly enact their roles.The mise en scene is another highlight of the script that dabbles with an ancient debate, to give it a contemporary finish.Hayavadana may have sought to touch upon a work that already has had its fullrun in its original form, but it strikes the right chord in its new identity.first published:September 03, 2012, 08:48 ISTlast updated:September 03, 2012, 08:48 IST
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What do you get when you bring together love, sexuality, human complexes like envy and obsession, and death? You concoct a heady tale reminiscent of childhood fables and tales that we have grown up listening to? Hayavadana, part of The Park’s New Festival, is exactly that, albeit with a twist.

The play, originally inspired by Thomas Mann’s The Transposed Heads and a folktale from Kathasaritasagar, was staged at the Museum Theatre recently Two men, Devdutt ( Prashant Praksh) and Kapil (Vivek Gomber), are poles apart but best of friends and fall in love with the same woman.

Choosing friendship over love, Kapil willingly makes way for his friend to marry his ladylove Padmini (Preetika Chawla). But cupid’s arrow is never amiss and Kapil stays smitten by the beauty and charm of the feisty woman.

Padmini, on her part, is impressed by Kapil’s well-built frame and doesn’t hide it. Trouble begins when the three embark on an arduous journey through a thick forest.

Brimming with envy and complex, Devdutt begins to believe that his wife is happier with Kapil. He offers his head to Goddess Kali, deciding to sacrifice his nuptial bliss for his best friend.

Guilty of indirectly cheating his friend, Kapil offers his head to the Goddess too, and seeks forgiveness. A bewildered Padmini begs the Goddess, who wakes up from slumber, to show mercy and seeks another chance to reclaim the two lives.

The Goddess relents and allows her to place the heads back on the bodies. As fate would have it, in the darkness, Padmini fits the wrong heads.

Devdutt and Kapil are happy to be alive again and don’t mind swapping bodies. But, Padmini has to swap her husband as well.

So, will the head or the body win the woman that both their hearts love so deeply? Keeping the audience on the edge of the seat with welltimed comedy and snappy lines, Industrial Theatre Co’s production has given a makeover to the much-celebrated work that debated the ageold topic of brain vs. brawn.

Alternating seamlessly between high points of drama and light moments of hilarity, you don’t mind the occasional slump in narration. The play certainly belongs to the lead characters who effortlessly enact their roles.

The mise en scene is another highlight of the script that dabbles with an ancient debate, to give it a contemporary finish.

Hayavadana may have sought to touch upon a work that already has had its fullrun in its original form, but it strikes the right chord in its new identity.