Deep Deluge

Somtimes,the end is a new beginning. Like death is a start of a brand-new life. Inspired by an Inuit folk tale,the real and the fantasy come together in ‘The Skeleton Woman’,Quaff Theatre’s first presentation which they bring to Chandigarh,after Mumbai and Delhi. Winner of the Metroplus Playwright Award 2009,it’s a story that has been ‘’following’’ Kalki Koechlin for a long time,including being a part of a theatre exercise. “And then finally Prashant and I decided to pen it down as a play,inspired by the beautiful folk tale which I read in the book,Women Who Run With Wolves,given to me by Anurag Kashyap as part of my research for my character in Dev D,’’ Kalki and Prashant play the lead roles too.

Bizarre,deep,funny,creepy…is how Prashant and Kalki describe the play,“just leave all your reservations home when you come to watch it,’’ Kalki says it’s the story of a young writer (played by Prashant) with a potent imagination,who finds himself entangled in his own creations. With sharks in his living room,a goose that speaks,and a skeleton that’s driving him mad,he struggles to keep a grasp on what’s real and what’s in his head. Through all of this is his wife (Kalki),who is constantly trying to bring him back to earth. Love,loneliness,personal relationships,creative endeavours,struggles to be a part of each other’s lives and stories,‘The Skeleton Woman’ indicates the power of endurance and happiness and touches various facets of life,with wit,humour and fantasy.

For Nayantara Kotian,who has directed the play,the experience is novel,for she’s a documentary film-maker,who has for the first time taken up theatre direction. “What was most challenging was that the play is surreal and most situations are intangible,so there’ a lot of improvisation,use of body movements and it’s physical theatre with the actor’s body being the best prop,’’ Kotian says they’ve been many changes since they first staged it in Mumbai and what was challenging was the fact that’s it not an adaptation but an original script,one that’s contemporary and near to life.

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Produced by Anurag Kashyap,Kakli says theatre is something she’d always do for it touches her deeply,in spite her film commitments,“and I’m not on a signing spree,for I don’t believe in stereotypes and doing the same roles,it’s alternative cinema that interests me and I want to find my own way,’’ smiles the actor.

Presented by Modern Business Group,the play will be staged on July 19 at 7.30 pm at Tagore Theatre.