It is always a delight to watch theatre people. The difference in sensibilities, the whimsical ways of looking at things, the easy flow of life, the dead pan expression that can take umpteen forms, the quirkiness, the subconscious and conscious existence; how they are so intriguing.

So, when the cast and crew of The Blue Mug takes the stage one can’t help look for all the ‘theatre-related’ attributes. You bet, we came back with a list of what and what not to expect from a star-studded cast of a play. One, don’t quiz them on the play too much; they expect you to watch it. Two, refrain from asking flimsy stuff - why did you choose the play? Last, certainly not the least, never ask the director what is he giving to the audience?

“No, no,” Atul Kumar, the director of play takes the mike. “We cannot answer this. Watch the play for your answer. Or may be you can do a one-on-one with the cast of the play, and you might coax them into answering this question.”

jasmine@tribunemail.com

What is drama without melodrama? Indeed. Etymologically, it comes from two words – ‘melos’ meaning song and drama. Used to depict exaggerated emotions, stereotypical characters and interpersonal conflicts; closer home it could be another name for Punjabi theatre. From tenor to storyline to characters, and often imagery, too little in the staple of Punjabi theatre is subtle.

At best a tearjerker, at worst breast beating and invariably sloganeering, melodrama might as well be the reigning deity of Punjabi rangmanch. By and large that is, with few exceptions that don’t quite prove the rule. “Not surprising at all,” says eminent theatre person Gurcharan Singh Chani, “As in life so on stage, loudness is in our persona. Moreover, since ostentation is part of our culture and has permeated even our religion, melodrama on stage is only an extension of this pomposity.”

Dr Atamjit, noted playwright and theatre director, concurs, “Exaggeration is a Punjabi way of life and reflects amply in our theatre as well.”

Dr Sahib Singh thinks that the association of Punjabi theatre with leharan and with Leftist movement in particular has made it susceptible to being used as a propaganda tool.

Besides, he finds yet another reason for Punjabi theatre being overtly emotional and explains, “Since most Punjabi nataks have grown out of knee-jerk responses to contemporary issues, we lacked dispassionate objectivity and distance essential for delving deep.”

Interestingly, even when history has allowed us the much-needed distance as in the writing of religious plays, once again melodrama has trailed Punjabi theatre like an inseparable shadow. Reminds, Dr Atamjit, “Theatre is not part of our religious tradition but our cultural ethos, which is loud. The folk tradition of naqal is loudness at its zenith. As we are moving from nakal to akal, we have not been able to get rid of our flamboyant behaviour, which shapes and reflects our collective psyche. ”

But why so much ado about melodrama…. what stumbling blocks does it create? “By its very nature, melodrama,” asserts Chani, “Is not porous and doesn’t allow you to absorb.” Since it tends to overstate the obvious and is often repetitive, scoffs Sahib, “It remains superficial. Punjabi plays begin with the refrain female foeticide is a sin and climax on exactly that note”.

Still, melodrama must be having some function? Says Dr Atamjit who often uses it consciously, “Yes it helps capture the attention of audiences”. In fact theatre titan Gursharan Singh has used it to involve people, particularly masses who get carried away by the rhetoric. But the moot point, questions Chani, is, “What is it they carry home?” Nothing argues Sahib. “Since melodrama has to resolve the conflict there and then,” he asserts, “It has no lasting impact and thus defeats the basic purpose of theatre, which is to provoke and initiate a debate.”

Chani thinks melodrama is a double-edged weapon that can hone a production to perfection or cut it apart. Few Punjabi theatre persons like Dr Atamjit know how to apply it intelligently and others like Pali Bhupinder and Sahib Singh, according to Chani, are learning to employ it well.

Sahib who confesses to peppering his productions with oodles of melodrama quips, “I guess we were swayed by immediate gratification and by the need to earn wahs wahs and taalis.”

However, now they are waking up to subtler ways of expression and are realising the immense possibilities of pauses and silence in theatre. Still, even though as lifestyles are changing and Punjabis are becoming relatively less brash, Punjabi theatre sans melodrama is still an unlikely possibility. Dr Atamjit deems that if it happens, theatre will cease to be Punjabi. Try divorcing melodrama from Punjabi theatre and it might become too highbrow and lead to a gnawing communication gap. So he fears.

Sure enough roti, kapda, makan kind of humdrum issues that have time and again dominated Punjabi rangmanch are certainly giving way to concerns about complexity of human emotions and relationships. And not just in celebrated theatre person Neelam Mansingh Chowdhry’s plays whose theatre, detractors often dub elitist.

However, one thing is crystal clear, the marriage of melodrama with Punjabi theatre is under no serious threat. The relationship is likely to witness some changes, but is not going to be severed any time soon.

Enter the room and you are 11,333 feet above the sea level, at the Jungfrau peak, looking at the Sphinx observatory. Take a right and there you have the prospects of a healing massage, under the shady coconut grooves, overlooking the backwaters of Kerela.

That's not it, for there is a lot of room for experience. A cafe in Venice, at the Rialto bridge, giving a vie of the Grand Canal with gondolas, pasta and pizza. Just in the opposite room is Aapno Des, the rustic Rajasthan. Beautiful palaces, princes and preening peacocks. It's not our imagination running far and wide, but it's the creativity of the students of the INIFD that turned its campus into a traveller's paradise, also the name of this annual exhibition. Celebrating the World Tourism Festival, the students put together stalls representing the best tourist destinations around the world, amalgamating essential elements and contemporary styles in their interior design and weaves.

"The entire concept deals with taking you to a global trip by bringing together the most exotic tourist places under one roof. The potpourri of art, culture, architecture, lifestyle, cuisine and themes of Egypt, Kerela, Paris, Kashmir Rajasthan, Goa, Swiss Alps, Venice and a lot more," says Nimmisha, the campus in-charge.

So, over one month of extensive research and putting together all the elements by the students of interior design, textile design and fashion design, we had Ayurveda from Kerela at the Jeeva spa with Shirodhara and aroma therapy herbs and oils soothing interiors done in green, blue and white, wooden ceiling for warmth, complemented by the banana leaf paintings, white pebbles, flowers and floating candles. From down south to the land of the royalty, the Rajasthani boutique had paintings and miniatures narrating stories of Krishna and jeweled Raslila elephants. Handcrafted artifacts like puppets, jewelry boxes, lampshades and fabrics in rich colours to meenakari jewellery in semi-precious stones, each element had a touch of royalty. Naquashi work, paper meche and rugs were the major attraction at the Kashmir corner.

The highlight of the exhibition is the motifs and murals made by using clay and POP. Replicating the Mughal aura and architecture, the inlay work with various motifs and arches inspired from the Taj Mahal, the students added the appeal by a large peacock painting. The mystical and spiritual Benaras, with its lustrous brocades and Benarsi paan too had stupas from the Kashi Vishwanath temple. The display also had a ghat and handloom, brocades against the backdrop of Ganga stuti shloks. Another creative clay display was at Cabin by the Nile, based on Egyptian theme. A clay mural of the famous pharaoh, Tutankhamun, extensive use of symbols like Ankh, wadget cobra, colours like gold, blue, green and yellow and mummies on display made the deal complete.

Tanah-Ro-Yang and Café Ice Age to were high on innovation and creativity. While the former was based on oriental theme, pillars with clay dragon motifs, and Buddha statue and Grand Palace of Thailand in the background. Café Ice Age, built in white and blue, was all about chills with polyfoam and glass interiors, geometric shapes and inbuilt aquariums.

nehawalia@tribunemail.com

Vahi doh char se sawalon mein, kat gayi raat phir khyalon mein/ Kisi ashiq ka baag ujra hai, phool mehka hai tere vaalon mein..." This couplet comes from an amateur lyricist, but a model, devout singer, actor and Urdu poetry lover, Barry Cheema (22), who has just announced his arrival on the Punjabi music scene with his maiden album winning the prestigious PTC Debut Singer Award-2010.

"Very handsome and a born genius, Barry is really talented, and is always ready for a performance at a short notice," recalls his father Lakhbir Singh Cheema, an agriculturist. "Shy and introvert, Barry rather prefers doing riyaz or reading poetry," adds his sister Dr Sandeep Sohi.

Educated at the Sophia convent, Kalka, and DAV College-10, Chandigarh, Panchkula-based Barry graduated in music; fell under the tutelage of guru Pandit Bhim Sein and Gurmit Singh, before recoding his maiden Punjabi music album "The Rising" at Studio Mars in Mumbai. "Of all the eight songs I have penned six, including the award winning sad romantic song 'Chann dian raatan' besides 100 Bottles and Gabhru," he informs.

Blessed with an intrinsic understanding of Urdu poetry, young Cheema recites couplets from Ahmed Faraz, Momin, Mir and Zaved Akhtar. "But poetry of Shiv Batalvi and Surjit Patar is close to my heart," he stresses.

Barry has also joined Anupam Kher's Actor Prepares academy for a short course in acting and has received praise from the Bollywood star for his achievement. "I have planned another Punjabi album and a Punjabi feature film. I hope my training in music and acting will be an added advantage," Barry signs off.

It's okay to be forthright. And if it's trendy, why not. So, when we are introduced to Poonam Kaur, leading lady of South Indian movies, we can't help repeating an inference, 'Those who don't get work in Bollywood, take a detour to South.'

It’s only here that being curvaceous is looked at with great admiration, and it's only here being too short or tall doesn't make an iota of difference. What matters is work — by work we mean the pretty ladies to just jump around like jack out of the box, and lip sync.

Back to the lady, Poonam, because of whom we went overboard with our inference. Flashes a puckish grin first. "I love coming to Chandigarh. I relate to Punjab and the culture here," shares Poonam visiting the city to talk about Dream Whistlerz. With heart full of appreciation and love for Punjab, Poonam lands up in South! "Ya, because I did not get proper guidance. Had I got proper guidance I would have done well in Bollywood as well," Poonam makes her stance clear.

Having worked in Telugu films like Nikki and Neeraj, Mayajala, Kanada and Tamil films, Poonam is game for good roles. "Bollywood and Kollywood doesn't make a difference, I like to do roles that are good." — Jasmine Singh

Ferena Wazir, the Kashmir-born and Scotland-bred beauty makes her debut in Bollywood along with Shatrughan Sinha's son Luv Sinha in filmmaker Raj Kanwar's Sadiyaan, a period drama with Partition in the background. Ferena did a film course after school and then studied at Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. She has done theatre in Britain and in India under the guidance of Alyque Padamsee and Satyadev Dubey. She plays a Muslim girl, Chandini, in the film. She talks to Lifestyle about the film Sadiyaan, shot beautifully in the exotic locales of Gulmarg, Mathan, Palamgarh, Chandigarh in and around The Golden Temple, and more. The film releases this Friday.

How did you land in Sadiyaan?

I met Raj Kanwar and he wanted me to do the lead role. And I happily agreed.

What made you to choose a film like Sadiyaan?

I always wanted to be a part of a film like this. The script is rocking and the film will draw the viewers into the theatres.

Talking about rapports with co-starts, how was it shooting for the film?

Sadiyaan has been the enjoyable film to shoot. I was surrounded by actors I really adore, like Rekha, Hema Malini and Rishi Kapoor.

What lessons have you learnt?

One should be patient if one wants to be a part of good films. Signing any films just to be busy can result in taking up bad projects.

How was it working with Raj Kanwar?

It was a good experience working with Raj Kanwar who has made several hits. He has been a great support.

Would you call Sadiyaan a dream debut?

It is a dream debut for anybody. I still feel I am still living in a dream.

— Dharam Pal

Come summers, come cotton exhibitions! Since there's always space to fit in everyone, the more the merrier. Anyways, this one claims to provide both comfort and elegance.

Ongoing exhibition, Pehchaan, is an out and out summer spread. There are embroidered and hand printed suits, designer churidars and salwars, material, tops and kurtis. The range has base fabric in voile, chanderi and pure cottons. One row deals in lucknowi chiken, and summer shades in every dress material galore. There's quite a range of kurtis as well, some in electric combination of prints, others in sober mellowed hues. "All the products that are displayed have been made completely by our in house team," adds the lady over the counter. Lovers of cotton fabrics can pick from over a range of cotton suits along with duppattas. — TNS

On till April 3 at Hotel Aroma-22