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Adhe Adhure - A road to nowhere
By Geetika Jain If anyone born under the Sun and living on this Earth among myriad of faces was perfect, probably Mohan Rakesh wouldn`t have written the play. `Adhe Adhure` probes into the human psyche and sends out a message that a search for `someone, somewhere perfect` is futile.
By Geetika Jain
If anyone born under the Sun and living on this Earth among myriad of faces was perfect, probably Mohan Rakesh wouldn't have written the play. 'Adhe Adhure' probes into the human psyche and sends out a message that a search for "someone, somewhere perfect" is futile. The last scene of the play, which was enacted at Delhi's Kamani Auditorium as part of Sangeet Natak Akademi's theatre festival 'Rang Swaran', leaves one asking for more. The intensity and spectrum of emotions on display by the immaculate artists is highly commendable.
The play is open-ended and leaves many questions unanswered. It deals with the widely discussed topic of a man-woman relationship. Love, marriage, yearning, disloyalty, society - these threads constitute the fabric of the play.
In the play, author deplores a middle-aged, middle-class woman for her search for 'absolute'. The story is about Savitri and Mahendra Nath, who are married for the past 22 years with two daughters. Their marriage is on the brink of collapse. Soon after marriage, Savitri had realised that Mahendra Nath is not the "perfect" man i.e. he lacks confidence and self-reliance. There are other flaws too. To suffice her urge for a complete man, she indulges into various relationships outside her marriage. But eventually she discovers that nobody is adequate enough. Meanwhile, Mahendra Nath inflicts physical abuse on her. He leaves her to stay with a friend Juneja, who enjoys immense influence on his life. Savitri is politely refused by all men in her life for permanent sustenance.
In the last scene, she gives vent to her long held frustration and screams her hate for her husband. Juneja, acting as the mouthpiece of the author in the last scene, holds up a mirror to her and tells her that she is herself responsible for all the suffering and plight that she has had to endure. Juneja has come to ask her to free Mahendra Nath of her thoughts. He claims that Mahendra loves her a lot and she has crippled his psyche and made him believe that in his life there can be nobody but her. Conversation reveals that Savitri had a short liaison with Juneja and her daughter's boyfriend also. But as usual, her search for perfection leaves her dissatisfied.
Juneja emphasizes that no man can satisfy her pursuit as after some time she would start looking yonder. She despises Mahendra Nath because he is Mahendra Nath. Similarly, she would despise everyone for their traits and yearn for what the person doesn't have.
On the face of it, the message seems clear and ubiquitous. Savitri represents a middle-class, middle-aged working woman, who is stuck in the quagmire of a failed marriage. She cannot even move out of the marriage completely owing to her two daughters and societal constraints. Yet, she looks for clandestine extra-marital affairs and receives physical maltreatment from her husband. The fault is completely hers and she deserves what she receives. Right? No!
A deeper study reveals that more than being a culprit, Savitri is merely human. The author condemns her but that is a biased view of the problem. Savitri can't eschew her share of accountability but that does not and cannot justify the mindless beating that she receives from Mahendra Nath. In fact, he had tried to hold her captive. He still wants to return back to her. Why? Does he think that she is perfect?
The author has put all the blame on the woman, while neglecting her human desires. He does not even give grace marks to her. He downplays the barbaric attitude of Mahendra Nath. If she was infidel, even he was careless and reckless in his approach towards his wife and family. At times, he used her as a showpiece in high society.
Nevertheless, the onus to maintain balance in the family has been put on the woman. Freudian philosophy clearly states that curbing one's natural instincts makes one unhealthy and unwholesome. Here, Savitri is following her instincts, though half-heartedly. This in no way exonerates her but she is not the sole accused. The author misses this point.
A lot of married couples can relate to the play, but there is no dearth of men also in this society, who seek someone beyond their partner. Well that doesn't justify the act of perfidy either.
If anyone born under the Sun and living on this Earth among myriad of faces was perfect, probably Mohan Rakesh wouldn't have written the play. 'Adhe Adhure' probes into the human psyche and sends out a message that a search for "someone, somewhere perfect" is futile. The last scene of the play, which was enacted at Delhi's Kamani Auditorium as part of Sangeet Natak Akademi's theatre festival 'Rang Swaran', leaves one asking for more. The intensity and spectrum of emotions on display by the immaculate artists is highly commendable.
The play is open-ended and leaves many questions unanswered. It deals with the widely discussed topic of a man-woman relationship. Love, marriage, yearning, disloyalty, society - these threads constitute the fabric of the play.
In the play, author deplores a middle-aged, middle-class woman for her search for 'absolute'. The story is about Savitri and Mahendra Nath, who are married for the past 22 years with two daughters. Their marriage is on the brink of collapse. Soon after marriage, Savitri had realised that Mahendra Nath is not the "perfect" man i.e. he lacks confidence and self-reliance. There are other flaws too. To suffice her urge for a complete man, she indulges into various relationships outside her marriage. But eventually she discovers that nobody is adequate enough. Meanwhile, Mahendra Nath inflicts physical abuse on her. He leaves her to stay with a friend Juneja, who enjoys immense influence on his life. Savitri is politely refused by all men in her life for permanent sustenance.
In the last scene, she gives vent to her long held frustration and screams her hate for her husband. Juneja, acting as the mouthpiece of the author in the last scene, holds up a mirror to her and tells her that she is herself responsible for all the suffering and plight that she has had to endure. Juneja has come to ask her to free Mahendra Nath of her thoughts. He claims that Mahendra loves her a lot and she has crippled his psyche and made him believe that in his life there can be nobody but her. Conversation reveals that Savitri had a short liaison with Juneja and her daughter's boyfriend also. But as usual, her search for perfection leaves her dissatisfied.
Juneja emphasizes that no man can satisfy her pursuit as after some time she would start looking yonder. She despises Mahendra Nath because he is Mahendra Nath. Similarly, she would despise everyone for their traits and yearn for what the person doesn't have.
On the face of it, the message seems clear and ubiquitous. Savitri represents a middle-class, middle-aged working woman, who is stuck in the quagmire of a failed marriage. She cannot even move out of the marriage completely owing to her two daughters and societal constraints. Yet, she looks for clandestine extra-marital affairs and receives physical maltreatment from her husband. The fault is completely hers and she deserves what she receives. Right? No!
A deeper study reveals that more than being a culprit, Savitri is merely human. The author condemns her but that is a biased view of the problem. Savitri can't eschew her share of accountability but that does not and cannot justify the mindless beating that she receives from Mahendra Nath. In fact, he had tried to hold her captive. He still wants to return back to her. Why? Does he think that she is perfect?
The author has put all the blame on the woman, while neglecting her human desires. He does not even give grace marks to her. He downplays the barbaric attitude of Mahendra Nath. If she was infidel, even he was careless and reckless in his approach towards his wife and family. At times, he used her as a showpiece in high society.
Nevertheless, the onus to maintain balance in the family has been put on the woman. Freudian philosophy clearly states that curbing one's natural instincts makes one unhealthy and unwholesome. Here, Savitri is following her instincts, though half-heartedly. This in no way exonerates her but she is not the sole accused. The author misses this point.
A lot of married couples can relate to the play, but there is no dearth of men also in this society, who seek someone beyond their partner. Well that doesn't justify the act of perfidy either.