The Dramatic Arts : Ninaipadhaellam Nadandhuvittal

One of the many challenges that a writer of comedy drama faces is making a cohesive plot that ties together all the jokes, so that it doesn’t end up being just one random joke after another. Probably the easiest way to do this would be to take up a concept that is inherently funny and basically the jokes write themselves. This is why I am completely amazed by the writer and director of Ninaipadhaellam Nadandhuvittal, SL Naanu, because he takes a concept that is not all that inherently funny, a grandfather restoring his sons faith in the younger generation, and manages to combine it with wit, charm and most importantly good natured humor to create a play that won me over as it progressed.

Ninaipadhaellam Nadandhuvittal is basically a family comedy, as most of SL Naanu’s recent plays have been, but to its credit it has a lot of new things in store for us. While the concept itself may not be original, the execution is actually very well done. The spin that is added to the age old concept of Old versus New is that, here the newer generation is actually being supported by the older generation. The grandparents are actually very hip, despite not understanding much of today’s customs and technology, and place a lot of belief in the newer generation. The conflict then arises from the parents, or in this case parent, as there is a clash in terms of how the heroine must handle her life.

While a lot of clichés remain, an almost equal number of them are flipped on their head to make sure the play doesn’t look like an old car with a new coat of paint. This combined with both meaningful and funny subplots make the play that much more interesting. I liked a lot of things about the play, but what I liked most was how much the play chose to focus on the younger actors. Don’t get me wrong, Kathadi Ramamoorthy shone on stage with his absolutely incredible and impeccable comedic timing, but there was an equal focus on the other, younger characters too.

I loved Lavanya Venugopal’s performance as the steadfast, independent woman. Maheshwaran’s comedic timing was really good and SL Naanu was really amazing on stage. Looking at their performances, especially considering Kathadi sir’s performance in one particular scene, I have to admit, I would love to see them in a serious script without much comedy. I hope that this doesn’t end up being just wishful thinking.  Almost all the other performers on stage were really good, except for a few small mishaps here and there.

The lighting was well done which I suppose is a given considering its simplicity, and while the music was serviceable, I was not really a huge fan of it given the frequent lack of it during scene changes, and yes while it is a comedy, I would have liked to see some other music as opposed to movie songs. The makeup by Perambur Kumar was, as always, on point and the sets by Saidai Kumar were completely functional as well.

I also liked the message of the play, which assures the older generation that just because younger people aren’t doing things their way, they aren’t doing it wrong. I liked the way it was delivered without any unnecessary preaching and at the same time, the play also showed that while not everything may go according to plan, if you keep a clear head and an open mind, things will eventually work out. All said and done, I would like to have seen some justice done to the tried and true ways that the older generation follows because, they do work. A compromise would have been a much more interesting message but I get the intent and I do appreciate it nonetheless.

One of the core aspects of the play that I really enjoyed was the constant use of humor to subvert tropes which seemed to come as part and parcel of Kathadi Ramamoorthy’s character. He has a quip for every rebuttal and a comedic jab for every counter. His lines are spot on and the consistency remains even when they deviate from the script, as when correcting a fellow cast member. While I do have to agree that a large part of this is due to Ramamoorthy sir’s experience and affinity for humor, I do believe credit must be given to Naanu sir for penning such a character for him to bring to life on stage.

I also want to focus a bit on where the play faltered. Often with comedy plays it is difficult to set a pace, but once a pace is set it gets going smoothly. Unfortunately the pace is set a further into the first half of the play for my liking, rendering quite a bit of jokes in the first half unfunny. I was left chuckling at the ones that landed and silent at the ones that didn’t.

But as soon as the pace is set towards the end of the first half, I had a really good time with the jokes never letting up until the very end. I had more than a few laugh-out-loud moments and had a really big smile on my face throughout, even if I predicted a fake out twist. The twist itself is, fortunately, not played out only for laughs and I was really happy to see that, for such twists usually end up being laughter fodder. And while some jokes are made, I tip my hat to Naanu sir for actually making the twist actually have a lasting impact.

I really was pleasantly surprised to see the directions taken both in the script and the execution of the play itself, making Ninaipadhaellam Nadandhuvitta a fun watch despite its rocky beginnings, and partially predictable nature. It is a refreshing change of pace for stage creations that has a very interesting and much needed message to boot. I really am interested to see the future of stage creations and its incredible roster of actors. Maybe they will tackle a serious script next. Until then;

Peace!!!