A packed auditorium, with expectant audiences was not suprizing to see at St. Andrews Auditorium, considering the fact that it was the 89th show of Rahul Da Cunha’s ‘Class Of 84’. After reaching into our bags and switching off our mobiles, at least most of us did, the play started. Reunions are always sentimental or they pretend to be. But this reunion attempted no such thing. Da Cunha’s ‘Class Of 84’ portrays a typical Xavier’s group, who thought they could change the world back then, when college was all about new ideas, a new spirit brimming with enthusiasm. But after 17 long years, it was not the world that they changed, but themselves. A group of seven friends unite to mourn the death of their friend Jojo. The funeral is followed by dinner at the beach house of the Mehra’s. His death becomes the reason for seven friends to meet up after a gap of seventeen long years. Also, there is some mystery shrouding Jojo’s death. No one knows the reason for Jojo’s death. During scenes we are introduced to the characters one by one, albeit briefly. And all other activity on stage comes to a standstill.
The spotlight is on the character introducing himself to the audience. This gives more gravity to the situation and circumstances of the character's life. There is Fuzzy, the Feng Shui freak, whose biological clock is ticking, Sanju, the busy banker and husband to Raveena. Raveena, the frustrated housewife. Bobby a wannabe superstar. Sarah, a bitchy columnist, Raghu the disillusioned film maker and of course, Cyrus the stoned hippie. But all these people have a dark side to them that they wont reveal to their friends. The play emphasizes on friendship and how hollow the word may sound sometimes. But in this case, most of the times. Most of them have secretly been in touch with Jojo, but they wont reveal this to the others. Initially, the reunion is a little awkward and unpleasant because having been friends for so long, they cant help critiquing the other’s lifestyle or profession. Each character has a dark side to them, old secrets to hide, and a few confessions to make
As friends, they ponder over Jojo’s death. They try to find clues and put two and two together but it leads them nowhere. They think their friend Jojo has died in an ashram in Pune. And to make matters worse, a mysterious person called Nikki arrives at the beach house of the Mehra’s. Raveena confesses to having got e-mail from Nikki. They all mistake him to be Jojo's girlfriend, but of all surprise, Nikki turns out to be a man! These friends then mistake Nikki and Jojo to be homosexuals! But as it turns out, Nikki is not gay. He and Jojo were good friends. As soon as Nikki arrives, the atmosphere becomes tense. Nikki knows too much about them, which makes all the friends uncomfortable. Who is this Nikki? How does he know so much about each and everyone of them? What is his story? Nikki turns out to be a lot like Jojo. Both of them got dangerously involved in a lot of activities. And Jojo was eventually bumped off. Nikki was only too lucky to escape. But to some extent, it is Nikki who helps each character get in touch with their past. Nikki to some extent helps bring these friends together. He makes them realize how wrong they were in turning down Jojo every time he needed them. Towards the end, seven friends start opening out to each other and confess their deepest secrets.
This was the best scene in the play where all seven friends sit on the balcony steps and realize how they distanced themselves over the years. Each character confronts ghost from the past. But towards the end, they shed off the lies, the inhibitions. Zafar Karachiwala as Nikki fit the part perfectly. There is some dark side to Nikki, which has been portrayed very well by Zafar.Rajit Kapoor as Bobby was exceptionally good with his typical wannabe style of dressing. No one could have played the character of Cyrus better than Sohrab Ardeshir. Not once did he stray from his character. Dipika Roy as Sarah was good too. Shernaz Patel as Fuzzy was good although her character as a bawi was stereotypical. Rituraaj played the role of Sanjay well but his Accent was a little hard to digest since it sounded a little put on. But then maybe, that was the whole intention. No one character dominated the stage. Each actor complimented the other's performance.. As for the director, Rahul Da Cunha has brought a lot of wit and humour to the script. The stage setting and lighting was fantastically done up. Attention was paid to minute details. In the end, these seven friends captured the evening, with a photographic smile for the audience.
