Freedom of speech is increasingly becoming an anomaly in India, especially in the creative arts and like theatre personality Nadira Babbar recently said about the absence of collective liberalism, “Sab bura manne ko tayyar baithe hain.”  Or as the catchline of the play says, “Don’t you dare say that!”   

We at Unboxed Writers are proud to announce a web partnership with the much acclaimed play Butter and Mashed Banana (directed by Ajay Krishnan) which is a quirky, ironical and funny take on the forces orchestrating violence and censorship of thought, word, cinema, theatre and more. The play has been celebrated widely by critics at theatre festivals as well as by the ticket paying public and has been the only play from Bangalore in recent memory to have been invited to the prestigious Prithvi Theatre Festival, the Kala Ghoda Festival and the Open Space Festival –Himmat.

One of the three actors who enact the ebb and the flow of political, social and personal realities of our times in the play, is Vivek Madan, already a theatre veteran with a healthy appetite for self-expression as a director, actor, an entertainment professional and more. Madan has acted in numerous productions like WestSide Story, Bent, Flying Doctor and has also directed plays like Children of a lesser God and In times of War. He talks to us about the play, his work and what makes him reach out compulsively to so many milestones.

Unboxed Writers:  What is it about this play that excites you as an actor?

When I first started rehearsing for this play, I was the third or fourth actor to play the role. My fellow actors, Vinod Ravindran and Gulshan Devaiah had already done a few shows so even at the start, it was a new experience to attempt to carve out my own interpretation into the existing mould. Of course, they were super cooperative and helpful and at the end of it, I think we’ve managed to come out with a different flavour of the play, retaining the essence of the script and direction.

And having started rehearsals again after a gap of nearly two  years, this play is still funny, still so relevant and still a challenge. Why challenge? Because it is outside the boundaries of conventional ‘characters’ and ‘story arcs’ and so it is up to us as actors to weave the story and then tell it in a manner that stays true to itself while being entertaining and thought provoking.

Unboxed Writers: From your experience both behind the scenes and on the stage, would you say that you have finally found the balance you are looking for between creative fulfilment and just the business of entertainment management?

Hahahahahahaha! Good question. I’m not sure actually. I’m working on it and honestly, I don’t think there’s going to be a time where I can say, ‘That’s it! This is the right mix of creative and managerial input’. I think the key is to find the mix within each of these roles. You can be creative in Management and Business and you can be organised and disciplined and business-like (read: aware) in your creative pursuits. So I don’t think they’re mutually exclusive. But to marry the two, aah.. that’s a challenge all by itself. I’m working on it.

Unboxed Writers: What is the hardest and the most rewarding thing about working as a theatre person?

Hmmm… hardest? If I was the whiny type, I would gripe about audiences, funding, government subsidy and the whole host of problems that plague the theatre. But I think the hardest, in the here and now, is that there is no widespread and viable process of passing on knowledge and experience in the theatre. Whether it be for me to learn or for me to teach, most people have to learn from scratch, which, while character building and all that, is a bit of a waste.

Most rewarding? Watching a bunch of youngsters you’ve just workshopped with, put up a piece for their parents, the unexpected congratulatory hug backstage after a good show, the tea and samosas before show, this list… is endless. To adopt a cliche, being in the theatre is reward enough and in itself.

 Butter and Mashed Banana will be staged at Ranga Shankara on June 11 and 12. For bookings: www.bookmyticket.com and www.indianstage.in