Albert Camus's first novel, L'Étranger/The Stranger (also known as The Outsider), published first in French in 1942, is a masterly crafted novel which is illustrative of the absurd writing that was happening around the time in Europe, mainly as a response to the Second World War.
A Hindi adaptation of the novel was staged at the 28th Arvind Deshpande Memorial Festival (3rd to 11th January 2015) organised by Awishkar. It was the only Hindi play to be staged in the festival of Marathi plays. The play has been directed by Gouri Dutt, an Interior Designer by profession. She also happens to be the granddaughter of legendary Hindi film actors Guru Dutt and Geeta Dutt. Gouri Dutt manages to bring some interesting and contemporary flavours to her staged adaptation.
The story revolves around 'M' (Meursault in the original text) whose behaviour does not adhere to the norms of the society around him. Instead of being outwardly sad about his mother's demise, as would be expected, he gets into all kinds of recreational affairs with his old employee Marie and has a physical relationship with her, showing no feelings for his mother who has been cremated just the day earlier.
The seasoned theatre and film actor Kumud Mishra essays M's role effectively. He is both the protagonist and the narrator, and shows a certain softness and vulnerability. M even lends a helping hand to his friend and neighbour Raymond in writing a letter to Raymond's girlfriend, which would help Raymond revenge her as he feels his girlfriend has been cheating on him. When she's there, Raymond has a conflict with her, which then leads to a brawl at a friend's beach party, where the girl's brother and his Arab friend encounter M. M happens to kill the Arab man, for which he is convicted and incarcerated.
Raymond, played by actor Ghanysham Lalsa, is loud and crass. Lalsa is pretty emphatic in his characterisation of Raymond, adding a bit of earthiness to the character with his dialogues and actions. The promising and pretty actress Amrita Bagchi plays Marie, who is young and high-spirited, and efficient in her portrayal. She adds an exuberant charm to the character which lifts up the otherwise sombre play.
Other members of the cast are equally proficient. The two lawyers played by Vikram Kocchar and Ashish Pathode bring adequate newness to their characters yet sound suspiciously familiar to certain yesteryear actors. Jaihind Kumar (as Judge) and Narottam Bain (as Salamano) are justified in their roles, as are the younger actors Avinash Gautam (as the Witness/Waiter) and Deep Bhimajiyani (as the Guard). There were a couple of slips here and there by some new actors as well as the older ones, but overall it didn't let the production down.
The play has some lighter moments, but mainly has the audience engrossed with M's atypical life and his circumstances. Gouri Dutt's direction has a freshness- the movement is rhythmic and the use of props minimal. Most exceptionally, she has weaved in the story of a young brother and sister, who are separated for 20 years and later meet as strangers, not realising the fact that they are siblings, resulting in a tragic end. The performance of the two actors, Farrukh Seyer (as the stranger boy) and Dilshad Edibam Khurana (as Iffat) are refreshing and touching.
The tactic use of western music in the background highlights the entire setting. The use of lights has also been effective in taking the story ahead. The different physical movements represent the mood of the play. The aggression of the society contrasting the protagonist's state of mind adds to the atmosphere and plays a big role in carrying the play forward and in the end is also very interesting to watch. OUTSIDER is a worthy effort by a new director who shows her potential for future productions to come.
Abhinav Goyal is a theatre enthusiast and has been involved with the Performing Arts since his school days. He has been able to pursue his passion beyond college with various theatre groups in Delhi/NCR along with his job in the IT industry.
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