There is a scene in the play where the characters discuss the need to take it easy, to hang loose, to relax and to let go.

I wish the members of this evening’s performance had taken the advice. Starting with Mehr who should have appreciated that the theatre audience is a different kettle of fish…she should have taken it easy on the script and the hype…she is one of the best announcers I have seen and heard, and I wonder how this one slipped through. But then, she only introduced the play.

And the play was fun. It lived up to the promise of being a comedy. And though the laughs were a bit slow in coming, they were there. And the reason for the initial lukewarm reaction wasn’t hard to find. Unlike Madhuri who slipped into her role with utmost ease and effortlessly flirted with her dialogs, Shashank who had a more layered role took some time to find the balance between the stiff, boring man he was supposed to be and the cool, relaxed cat that is his true persona. It was only post interval that he truly came into his own, and after that there was no looking back.

The girl who played Lulu, a debutante I was informed, did a damn good job but I think she was let down by the gentleman who played Granpee. Somehow he came across as an alien from another galaxy and didn’t find common rhythm with the standards set by the other three. I suspect it has something to do with the missing uniformity of accents.

But I am being petty. He did get his laughs and role played well enough even if he could improve a wee bit on the timing.

All in all, an evening well spent. Watching Madhuri on stage is always a pleasure. And Shashank is usually the icing on the cake. Today they almost got there. But were let down by loose connection mikes, unnecessary light flickers and a self imposed limitation of owning the space they had at their disposal.

My own feeling is that tomorrow’s performance will be far better and do full justice to what is undoubtedly a brilliant script. Kudos to Vikram Vepa for having pulled this off and yes, I loved the way he connived to have the last word and simply said…nobody’s perfect:-)