A comical take on marriage

The Scent Of A Man’, a comical play held at The Leela Palace recently, was a humourous take on married life and the communication between couples.

Starring Ash Chandler, Suchitra Pillai, Deven Khote and Bhavna Pani, this play was a unique combination of creative talent and energy. With a minimalistic setting like most contemporary plays of today, ‘The Scent of A Man’ also had a simple script. Though the story has earlier been told by many theatre performers, the humour was fresh.  The adult comedy, opens in Mumbai with two couples — advertising executive Nikhil (Ash) and homemaker Mallika (Suchitra), and Ananya (Bhavna) and her cynical husband Partho (Deven). As Ananya (also known as ‘Tupperware Lady’) goes to Nikhil and Mallika’s house and is invited with her husband for dinner again, a series of comical events unfolds and discloses a story of lust, lies and infidelity. As the story moves on, one slowly discovers the different twists and turns in the comical script.
The actors did a neat job in expressing what goes on in most households and were clearly enjoying themselves on stage. Every time a scene faded out, the audience sat patiently waiting for the next scene. The twist in the climax made everyone laugh and think about their own lives.

Talking about the experience of making the show, Ashvin Gidwani, director of the play, said, “It was a lot of madness and fun. I always want my cast to enjoy what it does and thus, it was a very enjoyable experience.” Appreciating the audience in Bangalore, Ashvin said that Bangalore is receptive to most forms of art. He was happy to hear that people had enjoyed themselves. “I thought of the concept nine years ago and this is something that happens in most households,” he stated.

The audience was also joyous and entertained by this supper theatre performance. Chaitanya, who works in the banking sector, said that the humour was the best part about the play. “It was a really good show and the actors gave their best. Though the topic was something that many must have explored, the overall content was good,” he said. Shared Raju Shahani, another audience member, “Apart from the entertainment, the show was managed well and the lighting and sound system were perfect. Though the concept of supper theatre has been around for a long while, it’s something relatively fresh in the City. It was a pleasant evening for everyone.”