A laugh riot that kept the audience in good humour

Figuring out the hard matters of life can leave one exhausted, even depressed, but understanding a light comedy drama and that too in our national language is as easy as pie! 

The show named Aafat Mein Jaan presented by ‘Manch Aap Sab Ka’, over the weekend was unadulterated fun all the way and a fantastic way for the harried Dilliwallah to unwind and forget the city blues. Directed by Dinesh Ahlawat, who was also part of the cast, the show was replete with comic acts and funny characters that kept the audience engaged till the end.

The plot revolves around an ageing grandfather who lost his wife years ago and falls in love with his neighbour. He lives with his granddaughter (playing a lead in the show) who is unmanageable and many a time plays party pooper to his romantic trysts. Later, the romantic couple go to the police station to drop off the girl by describing her as a ‘street child’, as they want to enjoy a movie together. The best part of the drama was watching the policeman and sergeant being reduced to tears by the little girl’s antics. The over-an-hour act was a complete laugh riot, a real ‘paisa vasool’ show for the audience with simple, every-day dialogues and clean humour.

“I started doing theatre from March 1979 with the show Aasma roti de directed by Aabhushan. Till 1983-84 everything was going well but serials like Hum Log and many other popular soaps and epics changed the peoples’ mind who got caught in the ‘serial fever’. This badly affected theatre and proved detrimental to theatre directors and actors who started moving towards the small screen rather than theatres after learn acting. But now, the situation is good, people are again taking interests in theatre,” says Dinesh Ahlawat describing his journey and the ups and downs in his profession.

Alisha Parveen, who plays the lead role in the show, says she “started acting from the age of seven. I have been working with this group since the last two years. This till now,  has been the best show I have ever done. I am very happy today.” Speaking about future projects the 12-year-old says, “I will also be seen in the upcoming show of ‘Manch Aap Sab Ka’.”

Truly, there is a crying need to revive and promote our rich literary and cultural traditions, like theatre, which have suffered a setback on account of the television
and Bollywood.