‘Mr. & Mrs.’ Present Bold and Scandalous plot

mr-and-mrs-play-poster Banner: Terracomm presents, Atharva prakashit, Rutuja Productions.
Director:Priyadarshan Jadhav.
Story: Aslam Parvez.
Cast: Chinmay Mandlekar, Madhura Velankar Satam, Priyadarshan Jadhav, Aniruddha Joshi, Yashashree Upasani, Amit Surve.

‘Mr. & Mrs.’ Present Bold and Scandalous plot
Marathi theatre has always attempted bold and sensational subjects. New Marathi play ‘Mr. & Mrs.’ falls in this category; but it has turned scandalous, looking at its main plot. Directed by ‘Fu Bai Fu’ fame Priyadarshan Jadhav, this is not a romantic comedy, as expected; but, a bold and shocking subject, set on the backdrop of a scandalous reality show. Written by Aslam Parvez, the play presents a couple Amit ( Chinmay Mandlekar ) and Meera( Madhura Velankar Satam ) , who have completed six years of married life. While Amit , a former TV star is without work, his wife works for a Financial institution and manages the house.

Always doubting his wife’s association with her office colleague Rohan, frustrated Amit spends his time smoking, sometimes drinking and talking to his pet dog Silver, till he meets his old producer friend Ashwin( Priyadarshan Jadhav) . From him he receives an unusual offer to perform in a reality show, shooting of which is to take place in his own house. It’s all in ‘Big Boss’ style, with hidden cameras placed in his house including bedroom, except for bathroom, with Amit and Meera as participants. The idea is to present something cheeky & scandalous about the actor’s personal married life, which is supposed to end with real divorce in the climax. His wife is however, kept in dark about this show, which is shot in their own house, with Ashwin keeping track of the happenings through closed circuit cameras. He only gives directions to Amit, about the next situation through microphone, with the help of his crew posted outside.

mr-mrs-play-marathi-Initially, Amit is reluctant to accept this offer; but looking at the lucrative offer price, he agrees to do it. At a particular point, watching his wife’s bedroom video on Ashwin’s mobile, Amit turns furious and decides to back out. But, shrewd Ashwin shows his real colours and tries to blackmail Amit. In the climax, Meera having come to know about her husband’s plans and decides to leave the house, giving him a surprise news.

The play moves well till the interval, generating interest; but the usage of bad language intermittently, spoils the show. There was absolutely no need to use foul language, which is otherwise censored in Marathi films and TV serials. Even Bollywood films censor such bad words, uttered in films or issue A certification, or blowing the whistle. Traditional Marathi theatre audience, who come with high hopes of watching something good, should not be taken for granted. Even a famous Hollywood Cowboy style foul word has been openly uttered on the stage, shocking some of the sensible audience in theatre.

Talking about the plus points, the play has been able to present something different on the stage, with the use of Video screens installed at four places around, to show the screening of images captured by hidden cameras. Rishikesh kamerkar’s music is apt for certain important occasions. Madhura’s dress designs and hair styles are something special to give her glamorous looks. But, the costumes used by Chinmay look very cheap. Set design and lighting are good and so are the performances of the artistes.

Both Chinmay and Madhura have performed their roles with ease. Chinmay gets an opportunity to express his inner feelings on two occasions, in the post interval session and he does a good job, like a versatile actor. In the climax scene, Madhura instead of reacting sharply on her husband’s deeds, chooses to offer no reaction, which was surprising. Even,her low voice could not be heard clearly by the audience sitting in back rows, as observed by their reaction after the show.

As an actor, Priyadarshan has paid more attention on his voice over microphone conversation with Amit; though he has few scenes on stage too. In the supporting cast, Aniruddha Joshi, Yashashree Upasani, and Amit Surve have offered good backing. Yashasree has been used in double part very cleverly. Barring the occasional foul language and the ineffective climax, ‘Mr.& Mrs.’ has offered a variety, presenting something unconventional on Marathi stage.