Taking snatches from the myriad shades of life, Ballantine’s latest play, Salt and Pepper is exploring the ten shades of grey. Presenting an entertaining cauldron of ten plays, each of ten minutes duration, that revolve around 20 lives, director Vikranth Pawar delves into human relations and unravels the funnier part of the supposedly quirky side of the mind. “Under the umbrella of Salt and Pepper, all the plays explore love and the different facet of relationships,” he declares.
Interpreting the director’s vision, actors Mandira Bedi, Darshan Jariwala, Kuki Grewal and Vikram Kochchar, deftly change colour and character, and float with ease in different temperament and situations.
The first play begins on a grim note, a girl is standing on the edge of the rooftop and looks like she in on the verge of committing suicide. Just when you fear, she will take the fatal plunge, walks in a stranger. Perplexed and visibly scared he strikes a conversation with her. Will he manage to dissuade her from the act or will she follow the planned script, or an unexpected third scenario comes in the picture? The climax to the curtain raiser is as interesting as the conversation the lonely girl in a big city and the ordinary looking man strikes.
Next in line is a marriage counselling session for a very argumentative couple. The highly stressed couple agree to disagree at every given point and conveniently play the blame game. As humour underlines each of the acts, this too is laced with rib tickling one liners. And the banter brings a refreshing touch and saves the day for the couple.
Following the same path, in another instance, they comically indulge a reality check of relations while indulging a quiz session.
Looking back is an inherent human trait and like life, even in this fictional tale, the past is never left behind. It inevitably reappears, sometimes, springs like a surprise in the form of a pretty college mate for a man who has settled well into middle age and all its acquired clichés. This girl remains a timeless embodiment of his imagination and comes to life while he flips through an old album. Nevertheless she raises a few poignant questions for him. Mr Pawar plays the nostalgia card brilliantly as a former boyfriend of a woman who has recently become a mother pays her a friendly visit. Is she happy with her current status or still longs for a life that never happened with a man who was shy of commitment, is a question that lingers in her mind? Can a woman forget her love and happily live an ideal family life, the answer to that is somewhere hidden in a woman’s heart.
The director further highlights the measures (sometimes desperate and sometimes deliberate) that urbanites take to bring an end to their loneliness. A successful career does not guarantee a happy personal life but the pursuit to find a suitable company and perhaps happiness is never forsaken. Sometimes the search ends at exploring options like blind dates and other new age experiments. The end result can be happy or otherwise. As the heart yearns for company, treading on a taboo subject, the play boldly deals with the physical pangs by highlighting a generally practiced adult trait.
The next play marks the return of innocence with a not so young girl on a giant wheel, fighting her fear of height, a practice, loyally reserved to mark her birthday. A technical snag comes as a blessing in disguise as she strikes a chord with the person sitting next to her. Will this new found friendship get nipped in the bud or it will get cemented further, is one of the curious cases of Salt and Pepper.
Growing old together has all the trappings of love and companionship, but it can also fall prey to the perils of predictability. For instance, having spent a lifetime together, this senior citizens show that even in the twilight of life, relationships can still be all about adjustment and tolerance.
“A man marries for good food, sex and a stimulating conversation,” a man declares to his wife. In the same breath, he adds, “Men are like Macintosh and women are Windows... never compatible.” They squabble and bicker about their marriage, companionship and the many luring on the way that can be risky propositions. Thankfully, the conversation is punched with funny one liners and superb acting before it is curtains for the ten fold discovery of man, woman and their relationship.
After a successful run in Kolkata and Mumbai, Salt and Pepper is all set to woo the theatre lovers in Delhi, NCR, Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.