Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Stage set for yet another ribtickler

HUMOUR APLENTY: Maadhu and Crazy Mohan in ‘Chocolate Krishna’.

CHENNAI: His plays are rib-ticklers of a special kind. Fans seem to consider the characters in his plays — Maadhu, Cheenu, Janaki and Mythili — members of their families.

Playwright Crazy Mohan’s new production ‘Chocolate Krishna’ will be staged this May by Crazy Creations.

“I chose this subject because everyone, including children, can instantly relate to Lord Krishna. Being Krishna is something that is possible. He is an embodiment of humour and entertainment,” Mr. Mohan says.

The story revolves around Maadhu, a sales executive in a company that manufactures chocolates. Despite his hard work, he does not get rewarded appropriately.

Maadhu also battles several challenges at home — a flautist father, who whines about not being given opportunities to perform, a depressed sister and his grandmother, a kleptomaniac, who makes a living out of embarrassing him.

While family members rely on astrology and numerology, Maadhu, a devotee of Krishna, prays to his Lord, hopeful of being relieved of his struggles. In one scene where the numerologist comes to their house to “give solutions” to their problems, he tells Maadhu that eight is his lucky number and urges him to change his name to ‘eight’.

A shocked Maadhu, who finds this ridiculous, asks: “What about my wife, then?” Says the numerologist, “Oh, she could be called ‘four’. After all, she’s your better half.”

Seeing his devotee in so much trouble, Krishna actually comes to their home and is visible just to Maadhu. One day, being himself, Krishna steals butter from the fridge, eats it up and faints immediately. Maadhu panics and sprinkles water on Krishna’s face. “I’ve heard about Krishna consciousness… but here, it seems to be Krishna unconsciousness,” Maadhu would say.

He later asks Krishna why he fainted. “Oh, it’s not like my childhood days. Now I’m an adult and the butter is adulterated,” says Krishna. “Don’t worry, Krishna. Butter luck next time,” says Maadhu. Crazy Mohan himself plays Krishna, while Maadhu Balaji plays Maadhu. “I’m getting trained in magic as I want to perform small tricks on stage, just like Krishna,” Mr. Mohan says.

“I have also tried to convey a message that says problems are eternal, God is a vehicle and the driving is free will. It is upto us to drive this beautiful vehicle the way we want and solve problems.”

But here’s a play that promises to help fans forget their problems and laugh away an entire evening.

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