CHENNAI: ‘Manu Arts’ recently brought their production Bhishma — the grandsire to Chennai. It was a monologue act conceived and performed by Avant theatre.
The play focussed on the character of Bhishma as he lay on a bed of arrows and questioned his decisions in retrospect. It showcased his integrity and commitment to his king despite being aware of the final outcome.
The play not only entertained the audience but also put across strong messages and lessons about life. The play, in a nutshell, explored the inner secrets, trials and tribulations of the central character of Bhishma in the Mahabharata.
He was respected and considered as one of the gurus of his period. Yet, when we follow his footsteps and the path he crafted for himself, we question, why did he fall? Where did he falter? A man, who had the liberty to choose his own death, chose to live through the most difficult moments but decided to end his life on a humble request.
The play made an effort to dig deep into the hearts of those men in which no woman is believed to have ever resided. It attempted to examine the strength of a man who stood face-to-face to combat the two avatars of Vishnu, and even defeat one of them, but also put down his bow and arrow on seeing a man who was once a woman.
Through this play, one could evaluate the psychology of a worshipped mortal who has had one of the longest trysts with time during a period with such extreme events that led to the longest epic in the world.
He was the most glorified warrior, but Manu Arts threw a different light on his persona. The play made the audience listen to the sound of a long silence through Bhishma — the grandsire.
Bhishma — the grandsire was presented as a monologue in English and Tamil. Performed by an artiste for about 45 minutes, it had a 15-minute interval.
Presented with different episodes and styles for both presentations, the play sure made one think after watching it.