Once upon a time there was a Gadha...His story and the horrifying face of administration were showcased through a satirical play ‘Ek Tha Gadha Urf Aladad Khan’.
It is a serious comic genre theatre play written by well known writer Padma Shree Sharad Joshi. Being staged on the first day of the three-day theatre fest at Shaheed Bhavan, the play was directed by Prem Gupta. It was performed by the artists of Children’s Theatre Academy here on Sunday. ‘Once upon a time there was a village, a Nawab, a washerman (Juggan dhobi), courtiers, kotwal, villagers and a donkey and a common man’.
The play centers around the ‘Nawab’ who intends to become popular and famous at any cost. The play opens up with the mourning of Jaggu Dhobi whose dear donkey Aladad Khan is dead, and the villagers tell the kotwal that a person has died named Aladad Khan. The kotwal in returns makes this as a huge issue and tells the Nawab that a very well known personality named Aladad Khan died in their village.
As the Nawab discovers this fact he announces various mega events in the name of Aladad Khan. He then declares a state mourning for Aladad Khan. Snow Nawab gets to know that it was actually a donkey not a person. What follows is not only a comedy of errors but also reflects on the present value system. It is a comedy that tells the truth through intertwined stories.
Sharad Joshi has skillfully highlighted the quagmire of politics. One purpose is certainly to bring among them an appreciation of art and theatre, but more than that is for them to experience and understand various shades of human sentiments and emotions. The play was much enjoyed by the audiences. Somewhere down the line it brought a huge smile on their faces as they burst out laughing at comical situations, it also somewhere told about the ill-fated situation of a common man in the society. Sensible acting skills along with a good presentation, the play received much appreciation of the audiences.