With cinema and OTT abounding in spooky tales, can theatre be left behind? Ballabhpurer Roopkatha, Badal Sircar’s comedy of errors set in a haunted house, recently saw a splendid screen adaptation. Why, then, not an adaptation from film to theatre? Chhayapather Sheshe (Girish Mancha, October 27), by Sohan Bandopadhyay of Nat-Ranga, lives up to the expectations of an audience craving for ghostly acts
on stage.
A spin-off of Anik Dutta’s delightful horror comedy, Bhooter Bhabishyat, where ghosts representing all sections of Bengali society team up to resist the realty boom, Chhayapather Sheshe decides to sing a requiem for the fading glory of Bengali theatre. There is no Chowdhury Palace here, but a ramshackle theatre house, which is about to be razed to make way for a shopping mall. The ghost of one Gyanendra Chowdhury (Bandopadhyay) continues to occupy the theatre house that he ran during the heyday of public theatre in North Calcutta. Chowdhury is supported by his actor-wife (Mousumi Sengupta), other actors and dancers as well as a Bhojpuri-speaking caretaker (Arindam Chatterjee). As the real estate developer (Sambuddha Banerjee) sends his men, the local toughie (Goutam Halder) and his sidekick (Arun Mitra) chip in to make a quick buck. Subtle jabs at the ruling dispensation make Chhayapather Sheshe a delightful watch.
Saumik-Piyali’s signature set, intelligently lit by Badal Das, offers a lot of room for comic situations. Md. Ali’s make-up skills, along with costumes designed by Shanker Jana, create the period effect as Swapan Bandyopadhyay’s sound design keeps sensationalism in check. One wishes that the song and dance routines are more pepped up.
The cast acts credibly with Bandopadhyay, Sengupta and Mitra winning our hearts. Ankita Majhi impresses in a cameo but Halder disappoints. While his mannerisms suit the part, an actor of his stature spitting out an expression like “R.G. Kar kore debo!” defies reason. Playing the character of a local goon does not give one the liberty to tinker with the sensibilities of an audience still grappling with the horrific incident.
