"நாட்டுக்கொரு செய்தி சொல்ல நாகரிக கோமாளி வந்தேனுங்க
ஆட்டம் ஆடி பாட்டு பாடி அழகாக கதை சொல்ல வந்தேனுங்க"
Does it ring anything? Yes it was a Street play song from the movie "Anbe Sivam" starring Kamal Haasan. He used Street play to criticize the “vyabara kandams” (Business Magnets). Theatre artist Mr.Pralayan had written the lyrics and choreographed the song. After that I’ve seen street plays performed on stage in my college day functions. But those were extremely insipid. The next time I encountered a Street play, all I had to say was “Brilliant”. It took place in General Cariappa School, Saligramam, Chennai. It was the Republic Day celebrations.
Last year, from SWAT, we had distributed free footwear to the kids in that school. So as a follow-up activity, we wanted to stress on the importance of wearing footwear. We approached a Theatre artist group “Mactrics”. Its Head Mr. Victor was very happy to perform for a noble cause. We initially planned it in November-December, but due to rain and examinations for those kids, it had to be postponed to January. Things which evaded us in 2010 fell into place in 2011 and the date for the play was fixed. It was the day when India became a republic and boasted a constitution of her own.
We wanted a doctor to talk about the medical impact of not wearing footwear. I first approached my aunt who is a doctor and requested her to give a speech about the importance of wearing footwear. But my aunt got held up with her personal work. So we had to find a doctor. The function was just 48 hours away. I and Harish had a long telephonic conversation about which doctor we could approach. But at the end of the conversation, Harish took the full responsibility of finding a doctor. Harish too repeated the same to Victor. But finally it was he who invited his friend Dr.Swatik for the event. I have to concede here that, what started as a last minute setup became a blockbuster among the kids and students. It was not the eloquence or rhetoric that made him the cynosure, but it was his simple and direct approach in delivering the speech. He gave a good introduction about the streetplay and importantly about the importance of wearing footwear.
Now came the moment I was eagerly waiting for. Abhishek from Mactrics marched through the eager kids, who were waiting to comprehend whatever that is going to unfold in front of them. With a percussion instrument (couldn’t recall the name of the instrument even after googling) in his hand and beating it harder with his hand, he took the centre stage. And thus the Street play began.
After that all I remember was laughing, clapping and enjoying. They had given a play which was direct and simple. Moreover the kids were able to relate to everything and that was the most important thing in a street play. After the street play Harish gave a very short speech stressing on the importance of wearing footwear. We then presented a memento to Mr.Victor and the doctor.
After congratulating everyone there, I started my activa to the marriage hall for my relative’s marriage. Later while going to bed I recalled everything that had happened. I couldn’t remember how we got the guts to go into this footwear exercise. I and Harish were very naïve during the entire process. But the learning we got was priceless. The conversation that I had with Gajan and Harish before this Street play also crossed my mind. We didn’t want SWAT to be a cliché. We wanted it to empower people and I felt this street play was a step in that direction. I hope we can achieve that. Anyways hope isn’t a bad thing and with that I got lost into a sleeping limbo. Sweet Hoping Dreams.
