Sherlocked on screen

The Hound Baskervilles

It's a timeless classic and yet, there's so much to look forward to every time it is adapted. Written and published in 1901, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles remains one of the most popular Sherlock Holmes titles. Over the decades, it has made its way to cinema halls around the world, TV screens and yes, theatres.

The cast includes Vivek Madan as Sherlock Holmes, Arghya Lahiri as Dr Watson and Nadir Khan as Sir Charles Baskerville

City-based veteran actor and theatre director Akash Khurana first brought a production of it, adapted by Steven Canny and John Nicholson, to the National Centre for the Performing Arts' (NCPA) Jamshed Bhabha Theatre in 2015. It played to a full house then - a phenomenon that might seem far from reality today. But this week, Khurana's Akvarious Productions is set to revive it online through Aadyam's Digital Edition.

Akash Khurana

The idea of the online launch came about in August, and the play was pre-recorded live in an empty auditorium with the necessary safety protocols in check. Although the plot is in tune with the mystery Doyle has laid out - Holmes and Dr Watson are invited to solve the case of the mysterious death of Sir Charles Baskerville, who is believed to be killed by a hound - the play is infused with humour.

Khurana shares that the new format and medium hasn't been intimating for the theatre company as Akvarious have been absorbed in the digital realm for a while since celebrating their 20th anniversary last year. "We had to have reduced physical rehearsals, and most of the technical work happened online. So, how do you rehearse with actors? That was the question. Then, we decided to plot all entry and exit points via storyboards and charts, which led to an in-joke among the cast and crew. You'd hear them say, 'There's going to be a quiz tomorrow'. We barely had about seven to 10 days of rehearsals to factor in logistics," Khurana says.

Starring Vivek Madan as Sherlock Holmes, Arghya Lahiri as Dr Watson and Nadir Khan as Sir Charles Baskerville, the magnitude of the production, Khurana says, was huge. He calls it an "atmospheric play," where the importance of light and sound is paramount. Yet, he adds, "It's essentially an actor's piece; the cast is top notch. The audience just needs to come and chill. The play is an institution in itself and the references are intact. It is one thing for people to read the book and then come and watch the play but I think this does appeal to the younger generation, who perhaps haven't read it. They might watch it and say, 'This is good stuff," and take to the book." And overall, we could all do with a bit of laughter right now.

On: January 9, 16 and 17, 6.50 pm
Log on to: insider.in
Cost: Rs 399 onwards