The 107th show of this interactive Gujarati comed y that will make you laugh your guts out while making you reflect upon how people in pols share every sorrow and joy was staged in the city recently.
ગુજરાતી નાટક યુનાઈટેડ સ્ટેટ્સ ઓફ પાડા ની પોળ
United States of Pada Ni Pol
Director – Saumya Joshi
Duration – 65 minutes
Cast – Jigna Vyas, Prem Gadhavi, Saumya Joshi
Rating – 3.5 starsIn times of nuclear families, here comes a masterpiece by playwright and director Saumya Joshi based on Pada Ni Pol in Khadiya titled United States of Pada Ni Pol that reminds us of the joy of community living and social bonding particularly in pols of World Heritage City Ahmedabad.
Jigna Vyas besides narrating as Jhinal and asking the whistling, hooting audience to switch off their mobile phones as pol girl Chaki is also captivating in her lead portrayal of 75-yearold widow Manshi Doshi who aspires to go to the US, wear shorts and denims, click selfies at the Times Square, eat pizza and try her hand at casino in Vegas even if it means forging her age.
The laugh riot revolves around how she tries to get a visa by preparing to become a nanny to two kids of a rich NRG couple who want her to give them Gujarati sanskar and how all polmembers who have huge respect and affection for her take it up as a mission – “Aame aivo visa no biodata ready rakhiye ke e CG Road vala na hasta ben to chhoro pote Manshi pan na orkhi sakiye ke e enu chhe.”
Saumya Joshi and Prem Gadhavi in their narrative roles of Spandan and Tiniyo help build momentum of the minimalistic play while reminiscing the overzealous hospitality of pol residents towards a foreigner who had come to study the heritage but instead got diarrhoea after eating fulwadis and ladoos. Prem also delivers a strong performance in all his other roles of Popat, Naval, Akhil and Kanti kaka with quintessential pol mannerisms and Mehsana’s dialect.
Quirky lines penned by Saumya, “Doshi rame chhe saru, casino ma thi jo nikade jo tharu”, “Taari puja karu ravivare, baki kya chhe samay prabhu maare”, add a fun element to the play that is also a mild satire on the divide between east and west Ahmedabad, heritage walk and modern lifestyle.
The narration of how 56 pol residents manage to board a bus to the interview spot from Raipur bus stand but the interviewee Manshi and her detailed teaching of ‘how to eat daal, bhaat, fulwadi, churma and ladoo’ to the food reviewer stays with you.
Watch the play that bridges the gap between commercial and parallel theatre to celebrate the Gujarati spirit.