Enjoy a non-verbal solo play featuring sonic experiments with water in Juhu

Yesterday when Dhanendra Kawade packed his bags to leave Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh for Mumbai his travel kit contained an unusual assortment Water taps mdash half a dozen of them mdash alongside pipes tubes and tools Kawade a familiar backstage name in Hindi theatre circles isnrsquot in town to add to the ongoing slew of neverending renovations These plumbing supplies are props for the theatre maker and set designerrsquos upcoming nonverbal solo play Nal JalA glass tank filled with water and miniature rubber ducks acts as a visual cue for the audiences to revisit memories from their childhoods involving waterA quick glance through the title and synopsis of the play and it would seem like Kawade is here to teach city dwellers a classic lesson in water conservation Kawade insists otherwise He elaborates ldquoWater conservation cannot be understood without first rediscovering the bond we share with water The fact that we have commodified the resource to an extent where we are bottling it to sell it speaks volumes about how disconnected we are The play is a handson exploration of a forgotten bond What the experience subsequently sparks in you is secondaryrdquoKawade plays with water in the opening scene of the playKawadersquos novel idea is backed by his peculiar methodology that blurs the line between a theatre stage and a science experiment in the backyard The backbone of the stage setup that the designer conceptualised and built himself are taps of varying heights and vessels such as mugs bottles and bowls all spread across a blue carpet made of plastic As the play unfolds the artiste who plays the role of a young man scouring for water fills them one at a time A unique sound in harmony with a prerecorded background score fills the room every time a stream of water hits the surface of a vessel ldquoEach of these threeminutelong pieces of sound evoke memories of our everyday interactions with water and the inherent music in it that we tend to overlookrdquo reveals KawadeThe artiste plays a tune on the flute to set the tone of a scene during a previous performanceThe 46yearold admits that getting the sounds right hasnrsquot been a breeze especially in the absence of a team We learn that over the last decade Kawade has extensively researched and learned from repeated trials and errors both during shows and in rehearsals back home ldquoI watched a video of percussionist Sivamani creating music with water bottles in a live performance sometime in the late 2000s I was intrigued and set out to recreate itrdquo he recalls As he juggles between props tomorrow pouring water through tubes pipes and bottles Kawadersquos learnings will come to fruitionThe music that arises from these experiments is accompanied by other embellishments such as a recurring mini flute While the artiste admits he isnrsquot a trained flautist he explains the intention ldquoI play a set of two notes that repeat in a progression to signify the absence of water the sound mimics that of a hollow parched well On occasions where the protagonist finds water in one of the taps I change the key of the progression to a brighter soundrdquoWe learn that the stage is dotted by smaller contraptions that act as visual cues and complement the many isolated experiences the artiste will present A glass tank filled with water and rubber ducks for instance symbolises the ponds in his hometown that Kawade grew up admiring ldquoThese interpretations will differ between members of the audience and thatrsquos fine This is precisely why I decided to take the nonverbal route with this play The moment you declare the meaning explicitly it is no longer personal for you or the audiencerdquo he remarks At the end of Kawadersquos 30minutelong experiment fuelled by five litres of water tomorrow the stage will be open for audiences to come and explore the setup It is this closing act that will reveal the true source of the water Kawade uses along with a takehome message for the audiences ldquoI want them to engage all their senses and interact with the set to feel one with the lifesustaining resource Only when you feelshy a personal connection will your eyes open to the way we mistreat the resource todayrdquo Kawade signs off On May 11 7 pmAt Prithvi Theatre JuhuLog on to inbookmyshowcomEntry Rs 150 onwards