Tiatr Mogi
Every tiatr aficionado looks forward watching the tiatrs or non-stop dramas staged by Comedian Agostinho because every time he stages a new tiatr he has something new to offer. He is one of the few tiatrists who do a good study on the matter, and writes his tiatr with in depth knowledge. Mera Bharat Mahan is a good eye-opener and an insight into the political circus going on in our country in current times.
Legislature, judiciary and executive are the three pillars on which the democracy of our country has stood firm since independence. But now with the over zealous legislative members bent on being dictators and power wielders, have the judiciary and executive fallen flat at the feet of the ministers in power? When the three pillars combine for selfish interests and personal gains, will the common man take law in his own hands and redeem the democratic values that are at stake?
Comedian Agostinho’s latest tiatr release gives a thorough insight into the happenings within democratic India and yet cries loudly Mera Bharat Mahan.
Script: The script is a remake of one of his earlier tiatrs. As the tiatr was going on, the audience sitting on my side as well as in front and at the back remarked about this re-make. One guy even saying it loud is enough for the actors on stage to hear. But to me it was the script that went in line with the plot of the tiatr and unfolded the theme Mera Bharat Mahan in a convincing manner.
The script is in the non-stop tiatr style. The lead storyline and the comedy plot is different. However, the writer has made some intermingling between the two with comedians interacting with the lead characters to meet the criteria of inter relating comedy in the tiatr plot. Like the non-stop style, the comedy has an independent storyline. There is a lot of satire in the script including the climax.
Comedy: The comedy is clean, simple and manages a decent laughter. Selvy displays a good form and comic timing. Agostinho being in a double role, tries a different voice for the comic character which is inaudible and incomprehensible to the audience most of the times. Jose de Velim gives the comedians good support. Fiona, a relatively new face on the tiatr horizon, displays a lot of promise. Her timing is great.
Sets: The sets are beautiful and impressive. However no attention is paid to the stage furniture. Imagine the bungalow of a powerful and corrupt minister with splendid walls but no basic furniture to even sit. It is the ‘sitting room’ of the minister, but no furniture even for the minister to sit. Wow! If our ministers in Goa had such lifestyles what a pleasant place this State would have been.
Acting: Agostinho has always picked up a good and experienced set of actors. This time in absence of the hunky Willy Severes and veteran Annie, he has roped in youngsters, and a mixture of the seasoned tiatrists along with the new hands produces a great team of artistes. Pradeep Naik is at his usual best; his natural style of acting and powerful dialogue delivery is very impressive. Prakash Marathe as the son of the minister is great but his diction of the Roman script needs to be polished. Jaju plays the bad cop with ease. Pascoal Rodrigues who has given up writing and directing tiatrs, to concentrate on acting brings out the hapless father’s emotions nicely, though there was over-acting at times. Filipe Almeida was convincing in the role of the differently-abled son. Cia acts well but her costumes need more work. Alika is impressive but lacks confidence.
Music/songs: All songs are well sung. Cajie de Curtorim, a product of Prince Jacobs troupe displays a good singing style and composition. Benny de Aldona has begun to get monotonous and repetitive. Alika and Pascoal Rodrigues were appealing in their solo rendition. There is a duo, duets trio and quartet too; besides the trio all songs were interactive in nature. The duo by Benny de Aldona and Cajy de Curtorim was very pleasing to the ear. The band led by Jr Temudo was mind-blowing with great phrasing music with Richard on the Keyboards and Jack on the drums. Richard another recruit from Prince Jacob’s troupe was fabulous with the background music score and effects.
Direction: A good effort with sleek direction. Most of the movements of the characters on stage were microphone oriented. The light effects enhanced the beauty of the performance. Had there been a little more efforts on the comedy front, Mera Bharat Mahan could surely romp home as one of the top tiatrs of the season.
