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Dheepa Ramanujam
Krea Director |
Sometimes we are busy sowing the seeds that
we forget to smell the flowers. This statement sums up the play
'Seeds and Flowers' by the professional theatre group 'Krea'.
The play was staged at Music Academy on Saturday, July 7, 2007,
evening. The proceeds of the play went to Udavum Karangal, an
NGO for destitutes.
The play portrays the lives of Indian
immigrants in the Silicon Valley. It’s a looking glass into the
lifestyles of Indian families in the US, their trials and
tribulations. It showcases the lives of two families, both from
the IT sector and who are based in the US.
On the one side we have Jay and Charu – a
seemingly happily married couple. But their marriage is not so
happy after all. Somewhere down the line, Jay gets too caught up
in his work and begins to neglect his family. He makes a promise
to Charu that he wouldn’t travel during her pregnancy but due to
some business problems, breaks the promise. Eventually, they
lose the baby and Charu undergoes a traumatic experience. She
blames Jay for not being there with her when she most needed
him.
In a parallel frame, we have Raj and Priya –
the typical South Indian couple. Raj is always being laid off
and claims that he would be winner of the show American Idol.
Whereas Priya is the nagging wife who keeps wanting to invite
her parents to the US.
Meanwhile, we have Kari, the power-hungry CEO
who forces Jay into focusing more and more on his career than is
warranted, thus making him a rich man – but only monetarily. The
only thing that Jay has to feel happy about is his bank balance.
His marriage is going downhill and he is unable to do anything
to mend matters.
Things worsen when the company that Raj works
for is taken over. Jay successfully makes the deal but loses his
wife in the process. On the other hand, a few of the employees
are laid off and Raj happens to be one of them. Jay soon
realises that there is no point in sacrificing his life for his
work. When he tries to tell this to Kari, he is fired. Jay gets
depressed and attempts suicide. Meanwhile, the two stories
intertwine. Priya and Charu get into a partnership for an
interior decorating firm. Raj and Jay meet at the therapist’s
clinic and have a showdown in which they realise that one is
unhappy because he is unsuccessful and the other is unhappy
because he is successful. They both realise that they are so
worried about their careers that they have forgotten to stop and
smell the flowers.
The play ends on a happy note with each
finding their passion and pursuing it. Raj decides to write a
book titled 'Lay off for Dummies'.
All in all, it was an entertaining
two-and-a-half hours. The play was well attended. Television
stalwarts like Mohan Ram made it to the play as did eminent
director K Balachander.
During the interval, there was a screening of
a moving documentary on the work done by Udavum Karangal.
The play, directed by Dheepa Ramanujam, was a
good watch and brilliantly showcased the lives of NRIs in this
day and age.
Shilpa Krishnan
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