A powerful retelling of Diwakar Babu’s classic, Rasa Rajyam

Play: Rasa RajyamDirector: Kota Shankar RaoWritten by: Diwakar BabuCast: Kota Shankar Rao, Jyoti Rani, Karthik Rathnam, Maharshi, Sreeja Duration: 3 hours Language: TeluguRating: 4/5Plot: Adapted from a short story written by Diwakar Babu, a renowned screenwriter from the Telugu film industry, Rasa Rajyam is the story of a theatre artiste whose unwavering passion for his craft comes at the cost of his own family. The story is based out of an incident from the life of veteran actor MV Vasudeva Rao.
The play begins with Sita, wife of a famous drama artiste Keeriti, who waits patiently for her husband and brother Rajarshi to return home from their long tour. Upon arriving, Rajarshi, who’s also Keeriti’s assistant, tells

Sita

about how her husband received massive ovvation from the audience and heaps praise on his ‘greatness’. Sita, however, doesn’t relate to it, much to the chagrin of Keeriti. Frustrated by the lack of recognition he received for his art work from his own family, Keeriti finds a young artiste, Tara and sees the potential in her to take the art form to the next level. While mentoring her, Keeriti forms a special bond with Tara and the affair creates a rift in his family when his son Abhimanyu confronts him.

Review: It’s a delight to watch how Kota Shankar Rao retains the charisma of the play that was written over three decades ago and was performed numerous times at various places in the state. He employed a good cast, with each actor fitting their role perfectly. Jyoti Rani as Sita was brilliant as she displayed a wide range of emotions. Her innocence and kindness was there to see and her grip over the dialogues was top notch. Karthik Rathnam as Abhimanyu conveyed his emotions well as the son who cannot accept the injustice being done to his mother. Sreeja as Tara and Maharshi as Rajrishi are also equally effective and do complete justice to their characters, both displaying an impressive range of emotions. Kota Shankar Rao as Keeriti managed to elevate the story with his honest expressions and dialogues. He wonderfully brings out the inner feelings of an artiste, who’s burning with desire to contribute to his art form. While there was no scope for proper lighting, the sound design was appropriate in most scenes.

Verdict: The greatest success of this play is its cast, and the team does full justice to a renowned play like Rasa Rajyam. What was impressive to see was how a play written three decades ago, was showcased in a manner which makes it pertinent to the current times. Emotional and powerful, the story ticks all the boxes and makes for an entertaining watch.