Chasing the absolute
HYDERABAD: A refined production from the genre of the absurd, the play was originally written in Bengali in 2017 and was later translated into Hindi. It also had a few excerpts of poetry by Rabindranath Tagore, Shankha Ghosh and Sabyasachi Dev.
Shudrka, a theatre production company that was started in 2004, performed their play, Ek Durachari Raja at Lamakaan recently. Translated from Bengali, the play throws light on some significant socio-political issues.
It is an unfortunate human condition to repeatedly keep falling into one’s own existential lack, sometimes seen as an abyss. But to give representation to this absolute ‘hole’ and to perform it is something that only a master can do. Although the founder of Shudrka, Swapan Mondal says they are only ‘trying’ to do some theatre, the precision with each of the segments of the play was performed only showed their mastery in it.
Adapted from Albert Camus’s Caligula, ‘Ek Durachari Raja’ is the story of a king whose grief turned him into a narcisstic despot. Although seemingly a kind one, the king is actually lost in the non-existence of an Absolute and aimlessly chases a utopia. However, his actions become tyrannical and his words demeaning; half of his decisions are influenced by the opinions and perceptions of those around him.
A refined production from the genre of the absurd, the play was originally written in Bengali in 2017 and was later translated into Hindi. It also had a few excerpts of poetry by Rabindranath Tagore, Shankha Ghosh and Sabyasachi Dev. While the exceptional vision of the director was remarkably executed by the actors on stage, what left us blissfully amused was the use of violin.
Music remained a presence throughout the play, sometimes representing the synergy of the performers as a group, at times, accompanying the cascade of underlying emotions but mostly representing the uncertainty that remained persistent throughout the story.
Shudrka is known for other productions such as Kinu Ka Theatre, Kissa Andher Nagari Ka, Ajeer, Gadha Kahini and more. Among its upcoming productions, there are Oka Anokha Rupkatha: Chalk Circle (multilingual), Ebar Dhormorajya (Bengali) Rakshasudi Thota (Telugu).