TABLE FOR TWO, directed by Digvijay Savant, enfolds as a series of unconnected pieces that take place around a table. The table is the central motif. Various characters seated around a table - in a club, cafe, restaurant - discuss the quirky situations they find themselves in. Most stories seem predictable and they do stick to the tried and tested formulae to elicit laughter. But the play does manage to surprise in bits and pieces and that's always a good thing.
The play begins with a Hitch-inspired piece about a bumbling, geek hitting on single, pretty women having a drink at a nightclub. Kashin Shetty's character comes across as someone who has paid for a session with a 'date doctor' and is then successfully applying the tried and tested method to get lucky. The 13-minute piece takes a while getting to the point but there are plenty of laughs along the way so it's pretty entertaining.
The second piece starts with playwright-director Digvijay Savant (Imran) and Ahlam Khan Karachiwala (Kavita), two strangers who meet at a cafe, arguing over picking up a phone call from the "girl's ex". Imran is forced to pick up the phone call after Kavita emotionally blackmails him. One conversation leads to another and another casual fling situation crops up. This piece is ridden with a number of cliches but the two share a good chemistry which works well for the time they're on stage.
How would a guy come to terms with his ex-girlfriend turning lesbian - that's what the third piece explores. This one's yet another predictable piece salvaged by the actors but it ends with a male version of Britney Spears' 'Hit Me Baby One More Time'. There's a danger of that song getting stuck in your head and it might take too long to purge your brain after.
Ahlam Khan Karachiwala appears back on stage in the last piece before the interval. The piece about two women sharing the same man is the first one that surprises so it's best to keep the storyline under wraps. The fact that this one is a short piece also helps since the plot isn't stretched.
The first piece post-interval finally moves away from love, sex and one night stands to a conversation between best buddies (Kashin Shetty and Divyang Thakker) bonding over a Chowmein on a roadside stall. The piece has an interesting setting and some worthy laughs but it's marred by Facebook-marriage cliches. Kashin continues with his man-on-the-edge act, seen in way too many plays by now.
The best thing about the piece titled 'Dessert' is the transformation in Kashin's performance. It shows that the young actor is capable of giving more than what is usually expected from him on stage. He does a great job playing a middle class old man (Chandu) who meets a lady outside a noisy nightclub. This one also has Ahlam (Aruna) in a third avatar. The two oldies reminisce their better days while cursing the current generation.
The final piece of the performance has a man and a woman discuss Ayn Rand's Fountainhead through various situations. The format of the piece is interesting and it's nice to see Shruti Vyas and Digvijay Savant keep pace with each other throughout the piece.
*Aditi Sharma enjoys watching theatre and writing about it.
