Prakasam is back with its comedy Mr Shambho Shiva Shankara. The play is an adaptation of Carlo Goldoni’s Servant of Two Masters. The highlight of the play is a situational comedy which has been topped with some contemporary yet simple and clean dialogues by the playwright. The play has a lot of twists and turns which is clearly suggested to the audiences. While the characters get into multiple modes of confusions created by a chain reaction to a single lie, the cast makes the play even funnier.
Mr Shambho Shiva Shankara is cantered on the confusions created by a liar who names himself differently to weave a web of stories, which for the characters on stage is truth while for the audience the lies are clearly visible, maximising the fun element.
Each of the characters has been very intricately sketched by the writer and provides the necessary support to the script. The play ends on a high note with one wedding turning into three.
Mr Shambho Shiva Shankara has been conceptualised, written and directed by Nagendra Shah. He says, “‘One who knows how to speak can survive even in toughest of situations’ is a well-known adage and so is the saying ‘Never say a truth that hurts’. But ‘One can build a life by telling harmless lies’ is what Carlo Goldini says.
“This play has been staged across the globe in various languages and countries and now it is our turn to stage it. This play was first staged when M C Prakash started his repertory Rangabhaarathi. It was staged with the same name Shambho Shiva Shankara and was a huge success. Whenever I saw P D Satishchandra, I always felt that he suited the character of Shambho and I mentioned this to him as well. He agreed to do the play, if I were to direct it and here it is. In these times where I have been keeping myself away from theatre for various reasons, I thank Prakasam for roping me into this venture.”