‘Wrong Number’ hits the right note with Delhi’s janta

Three couples, an extra-marital affair, a bunch of lies, and a whole lot of confusion. ‘

Wrong Number

’, a play by veteran director Raman Kumar, captures the predicament in the lives of the couples and the amusing outcome of a series of lies and misunderstandings.

Rahul Bhuchar

and

Delnaaz Irani

Staged to a packed audience at the capital’s Kamani Auditorium on Sunday, the slapstick play saw actors from the world of theatre, television and films come together and perform the lives of these six people who are on a journey fraught with comic misadventures.

Avtar Gill and Kishwer Merchant

Yashwant Singh (Rakesh Bedi), the “boss”, is married to Kamini (Tanaaz Irani), a social worker. Kamini is having an affair with Avinash (Rahul Bhuchar), who is Yashwant’s subordinate. Avinash’s wife, ‘Rajkot ki Ranjana’ (Delnaaz Irani), is sure that her husband is cheating on her, but doesn’t know who he’s having an affair with. In order to save their skin, Avinash and Kamini cook up a fake story and tell their respective spouses that Natwarlal Chaurasia (Avtar Gill), an accountant in Avinash and Yashwant’s office, and his wife Poonam (Kishwer Merchant), were having marital issues and that they have been trying to support them in this difficult time. The result: Natwarlal and Poonam are invited to the two couples’ houses on successive days with each meeting ending in disaster. The play follows a series of events where one lie is told to hide another, leading to more confusion and loads of drama.

Rajesh Puri narrating the story

Veteran actor Rajesh Puri served as the narrator in the play, where the set was so designed that the houses of the two couples were juxtaposed on stage. Often, Bollywood songs like ‘Aa Dekhen Zara’, ‘Maine Hothon Pe Lagai Toh’, ‘Dangal

Dangal

’, among others, were used as background scores to reflect the mood of the characters and situations in the play.

Raman Kumar, Director of the play

‘Wrong Number’ had its funny moments but elicited a mixed response from the audience. Neha Gupta, a homemaker from Sarvodaya Enclave, said, “Overall, it’s funny but at times, it was too loud.”

Mother-daughter duo Pammi Malhotra and Kamlesh Arora, residents of Janakpuri, felt that it was the stars who were the USP of the play. “The storyline was basic but the actors, who have been seen in hit soaps on TV and even films, were the main draw of this play.”

Meanwhile, Sanjoli from Punjabi Bagh found the second half highly entertaining. “The second half was a laugh riot. I thoroughly enjoyed it,” she said. Her husband, Ratnamani, who had come to watch the play with her, added, “I loved Rakesh Bedi, he was the best. I also enjoyed Delnaaz’s performance.”