Scripting a courageous tale

Strong Act

 The play, directed by Prakash Belawadi, was shown recently at the National Gallery of Modern Art.

 It was a delight to watch and left audiences contemplative about the situation in Burma. The one-actor  performance, set in the hospital wing of ‘Insein’, Rangoon’s largest prison was a soul-stirring narrative on Suu Kyi’s memories. It traced her journey from her return to Burma due to a stroke suffered by her mother to the aftermath of the Depayin attack, an assassination attempt on her in 2003.

Rukmini depicted a host of emotions experienced by Suu Kyi, from grief when her mother passed away to the euphoria as her party, NLD had a landslide victory in the general elections of 1990 to perfection.  The narrative transformed words to visuals and many in the audience felt they were witness to the atrocities in Burma.  The highlight of the play though was the fact that Suu Kyi was not only depicted as a great leader but also in the conventional roles of a daughter, mother and a wife. Her inability to contact her husband even when he lay ill on his deathbed was heartrending. 

The grief Suu Kyi was hounded by, on the account of not being able to be with her kids and husband, was beautifully portrayed by Rukmini. 

The Depayin attack, where Rukmini described hundreds of sto­nes pelting the roof of Suu Kyi’s car like heavy monsoon, was a tragic narration that left many in the audience sombre. The script requires special mention as most dialogues stayed with the audience, due to their bizarrely poetic nature.  Donning the role of Suu Kyi, Rukmini explained as to how hundreds of Suu Kyi’s followers were beaten to death as she stared in horror at the blood strewn on the ground. 

The end of the play brought the audience back to the hospital wing in ‘Insein’ where hope still prevailed in Suu K­yi’s, life in spite of the perils she faced.

Helen Haywood, an audience member, appreciating the performance said, “It is a very challenging role to portray and not many people can understand a woman like Aun­g San Suu Kyi. It was a wonderful and I really enjoyed it.”