The Dramatic Arts : Yaar Paiyan

A still from Yaar Paiyan. Photo source : Paperless musings.

Yaar Paiyan is a stage play from the drama troupe Kalanilayam which was inaugurated in the year 2012, and has been brought back to stage as a tribute to ‘Kalaimamani’ K S Nagarajan’s hundredth birthday celebrations. ‘Kalaimamani’ K S Nagarajan founded Kalanilayam in 1960 and has played a very important role in the evolution of the drama industry.

Yaar Paiyan, written and directed by KSN Sundar, tells the story of a man, who finds out that he has been adopted and searches for a way to reconnect with his father. While the premise may sound simple, it is the complex characters and the performances, which bring the emotional core of the play to the fore front.

What I Liked:

The performances in this play are amazing to say the least. Baskar as the titular character Sridhar shines in every scene, displaying a wide range of emotions from childish happiness to rightful anger. KSN Sundar brings grace and gentleness of a caring father as Varadarajan. ‘Karur’ Rangarajan brings a comedic tone to the stage, but also forms an emotional center as Kitcha.

But the two breakout performances are given by Niveditha as Shylaja and ‘Kalanilayam’ Chandru as Athamanathan, both taking some time to warm up, but delivering their absolute best on stage. And to top it all off the legend himself, ‘Kalaimamani’ K S Nagarajan, climbed the stage to take on the role of the grandfather showing that age was just a number and nothing more.

While at first glance it may seem that there isn’t much in terms of music, this is the type of drama in which it is the restraint of the music director shines. Using just a few solid tracks, S. Guhaprasath manages to set the tone for each and every scene, but never in a way that it overpowers the performance. ‘Kalaivanar’ Kitcha shines (Pun not intended.) on the lights, providing adequate emotional depth to the scenes using not more than four lights and two spotlights, showing his finesses and mastery over the art-form.

The sets by ‘Saidai’ Kumar shift and change to convey different settings, never having to rely on curtain backdrops. The makeup by ‘Perambur Kumar’ is nothing less than outstanding as it goes to great lengths to make certain characters appear younger.

The behind the scenes magicians of Yaar Paiyan. Photo source : Jillmore.com

What Could Have Been Better:

While Yaar Paiyan strikes many emotional chords, mostly about family, a few of the scenes have lesser impact than others and some dialogues conveniently convey plot points which are needed to make the play move forward, but these are just a few nitpicks in a beautifully successful play.

Yaar Paiyan tells a beautiful story about family, at the same time shares a few important morals, which we must live by. And its greatest success is that it manages to do it without being preachy.

Final Thoughts:

While the story may not be too complex, Yaar Paiyan succeeds in hitting its emotional chords because of its simplicity, the incredible performances by the actors,  and the atmosphere provided by the behind the scenes team.

I give Yaar paiyan 4 out of 5 stars.

Unfortunately, Yaar Paiyan will not be staged any time in the near future. If you are interested in watching it this post will be updated, if any further shows are mentioned.


Peace!!!

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