Theatre Review: Ekdin Aladin

Duration: 105 minutes
Director: Kanchan Mullick
Cast: Kanchan Mullick, Shantanu Nath
Language: Bengali
Star: ***1/2
With its slapstick comedy, saffron costumes and snappy dialogues, Ekdin Aladin could have just been a political satire. However, while it successfully takes a dig on the current scenario in the state, the play goes beyond being a mere political play and becomes a humane chronicle of a pained politician.
Madhab Marik (Kanchan Mullick) has recently changed his party.With his successive poll wins, he is appointed a leader in the new party too. He dreams that one day, he will become the Prime Minister of India. Suddenly, one day, he meets his childhood friend, Satya (Shantanu Nath). Along with Satya, Madhab recounts his childhood, when he was innocent and less manipulative. While Madhab doesn’t want to dwell in nostalgia, Satya refuses to leave him alone in his manipulative and murky world. Instead, he gives him a lamp that helps him to understand what other people are thinking about him, and his ordeal begins.
The entire second segment of the play is how Madhab rediscovers people who surround him all the time. Their lies, hypocrisy, love and pathos unknowingly confront Madhab and engulf him. And the play goes on.
Ekdin Aladin is Kanchan Mullick’s directorial debut and he proves that he knows the stage like the back of his hand. From minimalistic stage design to powerful background score and immaculate makeup — his diligence is reflected in every aspect of the production. Acting is, no doubt, the play’s strong point. Kanchan himself offers a fascinating performance as a shrewd yet empathetic politician. While his emotional crisis comes to the fore, other characters too offer full support with stunning performances. Taranga Sarkar as Madhab’s assistant Somnath and Indrajit Chakraborty as his son-in-law Amar are brilliant. Sumona Mukherjee as Madhab’s wife Lokkhi, Indranil Mukherjee as his party’s senior Chittoda and Shantanu as Satya deserve special mention.
Overall, the play is a good entertainer with minor glitches. The script involves
a bit of stereotyping like portraying Satya’s mother as an old, poor and
blind woman surviving in a wretched condition.
But the script also offers unapologetic humour. Also, from taking a dig into the syndicate bully to mentions of man ki baatein — playwright Bratya Basu leaves no stone unturned to mock the political parties without naming or identifying them. His take on cultural lumpenism under the façade of Bengalis’ love for Rabindranath is not only hilarious but also thought-provoking.
Ekdin Aladin, overall, is an entertainer that has the potential to draw people to the theatre, which otherwise
suffers from a lack of a big audience. Go watch it.