Love in December

What I’m writing about might seem almost blasphemous. Today, when the world is celebrating the Oscars, and we Indians in particular, are celebrating the victory of ‘our’ film, here I am, extolling the virtues of a completely different piece of art.

 

On a friend’s recommendation, I downloaded a copy of a play staged at IIT* Mumbai - ‘Love in December’. To begin with, I was rather skeptical of it. In fact, I distinctly remember waving a hand, with a dismissive expression, and saying, “What nonsense! IITians staging a humorous play? Ha!”

 

In fact, like those crusty, old British curmudgeons, I probably would’ve offered to eat my hat, if proven wrong, but thankfully, I don’t wear a hat. Moreover, I guess I’m too prudent to offer to eat any other item of clothing.

 

Anyway, let’s cut right to the chase. At first glance, it sounds like a typical, run-of-the-mill story – boy meets girl at railway station, the train is delayed by 4 hours, they start talking, and towards the end, they realise that they used to know each other in school, and had major-time crushes on each other.

 

However, the acting, the direction, the sound editing, and the dialogues are simply fabulous. Even if you are a die-hard cynic (I’m not!!!) or an Indian-movie hater (Ahem…. sometimes I am one), you probably will grow to like this one.

 

Sugat (my roommate) and I had organised a special screening of the play in our room for ourselves and a few friends. And it would’ve been a perfect experience, if only we’d had popcorn and cola.

 

We loved it so much, that we’re planning a repeat broadcast.

 

Of course, academic constraints are acting as a major deterrent. The worst part is that you can’t even crib about the rigors of academic life. The moment you say that, people shut you up, saying, “Who asked you to ditch your job, and go study for an MBA? Now that you are at XLRI, obviously, you will have to study.”

 

Thank you for those wise words, all ye folks! But for now, stop reading this, and go check out that play if you can.

 

*IIT stands for Indian Institute of Technology. The IITs are the most prestigious engineering institutes in India.