BENGALURU: It can be said that our lives are a sum total of all the memories we collect over time. But what if those memories start to fade and fragment? The critically-acclaimed play The Father adapted by director Denver Anthony Nicholas and lead actor TM Karthik known for his roles in films like Life of Pi and Guru attempts to answer that question.
Coming to the city for the first time, the play is adapted from the original work of the French playwright Florian Zeller, whose English film adaptation won actor Anthony Hopkins an Oscar for the lead role. Nicholas says that they picked up the adaptation after perusing multiple scripts.
“Between TM Karthik and I, we were reading a lot of scripts. We finally landed on The Father which both of us were excited about. The writing is brilliant. I like the idea that it is about a man who’s losing his memory. At the same time, there’s a lot of subtext where you’re not sure if there is also a bit of gaslighting that’s happening. It’s very open-ended,” he adds.
The play, dealing with a protagonist grappling with dementia, presents a delicate blend of reality and illusion, often leaving the audience questioning the nature of the experiences depicted. Nicholas’ decision to retain the original English script was deliberate. “We have kept it the same because I think it’s a universal topic. We didn’t believe it would make sense to just change it to Mumbai or Pune,” he says.
Discussing the challenges of a play that is not chronological from the lens of a fragmented mind, Nicholas highlights, “The scenes are not chronological at all because it’s all in his mind. One scene is in the daytime and in the next couple of seconds, it’s night. That was our biggest challenge in how to show it visually. So, we are using LED walls to create the effect of the house. The portrait of his daughter keeps changing. The walls change colour, things appear and disappear.”
TM Karthik, known for his nuanced performances, says that theatre is not just about entertainment but also about impact. “Today, there is a lot of focus on comedy, and we all tend to go away from very serious issues. For me, it cannot be primarily about entertainment. The story has to have an impact on the audience where either they’re shaken, or they go back in time and reflect about things,” says Karthik.
Talking about his process of bringing the character to life, Karthik laughs, “I just forget my lines…problem solved,” quickly adding, “Just joking. Each actor has different ways of getting into character. One of the most important things for me is complete trust in my director. An actor has to blindly accept and follow what the director wants from you.”
Karthik shares his admiration for Anthony Hopkins’ portrayal in the film adaptation, yet he emphasises the need to bring his own interpretation to the role. “The question is what else can you bring to the stage? The point is that you do something that people relate to and if you attempt plays, which are so beautiful, it’ll make you a better actor.
You are attempting to do something which is at Mount Everest, the least you can do is stand on a small hill. The idea is to aspire to try to reach somewhere,” he adds. Performing in Bengaluru holds a special significance for him. Karthik finds the audience here to be diverse and unbiased, offering a true test of a performer’s mettle. “In my last play, there were many young people, old people, and foreigners. We don’t have that kind of diversity and generosity anywhere else,” shares Karthik.