Keeping the stage relevant

Theatre is a medium that has kept the audiences entertained for around 3,000 years. It continues to exist despite being threatened by cinema, the television and now the internet. With a passion for the art, veteran theatre artists Rakesh Bedi and Ananth Mahadevan along with others were in the city to stage their play The Last Over, written by Abhishek Pattnaik and directed by Suketu Shah. The play is an urban, situational comedy in Hindi, revolving around a young and newly married couple from Pakistan and India. The play was organised by Rotary Sunrise Service Trust, a charity wing of Rotary Club of Secunderabad Sunrise to raise Rs 40 lakh to provide sanitary systems to 27 government schools.

Talking about how the theatre culture is evolving, Rakesh says, “Theatre culture doesn’t exist in reality. It is a very small tribe. Theatre has always been a part-time or weekend activity. This is my biggest grouse. But overall, in the last eight years, the theatre scenario has improved, not only in Hyderabad but across many cities in India. Hyderabad is a very important venue for theatre.” Agreeing with him, Ananth, too, pointed out that as long as theatre remains a part-time activity, it will not develop. “We don’t pay our theatre professionals enough. In Europe, it is a highly paid activity,” he says. With its perfect punches, the two-hour-long witty play kept the 600 plus audience on their toes and concluded with a thunderous round of applause.