I just returned home after sitting through a terribly boring play. The play was directed by a well-known theatre personality (or so I am told by my Mumbaikar friends) who insisted on also being the main actor, the narrator et al and I could not comprehend a thing about the happenings on stage but I got the distinct impression that I was not in a minority. A few months ago, I had watched another play by the same director with identical consequences . Why then do I watch plays when I actually cant figure out most of them? And why is it that people readily describe movies as "good", "average" or "bad", but when it comes to theatre, its always platitudes like "it was so intense" or "the characterisation was really well thought through" or worse still " I could really identify with so-and-so" . In my view, plays, like a lot else around us, give us a false sense of intellectualism about ourselves. I must sheepishly confess that I never told people I thought a play was utterly boring for fear of being typecast as unintelligent. I must also concede that while I have at best run into an odd friend or colleague in a cinema, I do find myself seated amidst a few well-known lawyers, writers and painters while I watch a play. As I reluctantly stood up and joined the crowd applauding the actors after tonight's performance, I couldnt help laugh at my own pretentiousness at having come back to watch yet another Makarand Deshpande farce.
But why just theatre. Lets take reading habits for instance. I once had a leading south-Indian lawyer gatecrash into a do at my place and wax eloquent on Machiavelli's "Prince" and "The Arthashastra" being essential reading for all those who breathe. Given my limited intellect, I had taken about 3 months to read the former (mind you, a pithy 150-page book!) but I actually managed to hold an animated discussion with him about the latter, a book that I am yet to read. I was quoting from the former and I easily managed to get away with it! I had to look pleadingly at the wife every few minutes to prevent her from giving the game away. Later, she confessed she was most impressed with my ability to talk confidently on a subject I knew nothing of with someone who did so for a living. I borrow the title of my blog from a path-breaking book, "Fooled by Randomness" (again, I took a full 4 months to finish it). I recommended it to a colleague who was caught raving about the contents and radical ideas of the author a mere 48 hours later. So much for trying to fool with randomness.
Most of us would probably readily agree at having "acquired" tastes. In plainspeak what it means is we made an effort to like something because societal pressures forced us to. One such category is Art. Its typically patronised by two kinds of people. The first who do not know what to do with their money and the second who have to differentiate the decor in their homes and a painting ensures exclusivity of some kind. Quiz most art-lovers and you will discover their appreciation journey comprises going to galleries every weekend, speaking to the odd gallery owner for tips and familiarising themselves with names of prominent and promising artists. (The latter is typically a term used to describe painters whose work one can easily afford) Ultimately, a purchase decision is based on the universal set of all 3 i.e. painters one sees frequently, recommended by gallery owners/fellow buyers and subject to budget criteria being met. It is extremely rare to find a genuine art-lover, one who reads about the history of various styles of art, researches the work of specific painters and goes on to take an informed purchase decision about something one likes too. In fact, several purists do scoff at the vulgar dimensions that investment in art has taken. On the intellectual aspiration pecking order though, there are few interests to beat art at the moment.
Places to be seen at is another inexplicable one. Shopping at Khan Market is my favourite in this category. While the market has lost all its former character and is as crowded, commercial and yuppie as any other, there is a breed (the wife included) which still believes in shopping there for toothpaste even though a store 200 metres away from home stocks it. And while Midlands book shop in Aurobindo Market is better stocked, one buys books from Bahrisons because it affords the privilege of standing behind Mark Tully at the cash counter. Somehow, shopping here seems to provide people with a sense of elitism. My opinion on this subject though is disdainfully attributed to my lack of exposure to a LBZ address and consequent ignorance of this venerable institution.
Having lived in Delhi for a while, one has come to reconcile to material snobbery. The kind which lends itself to flashing a gold Rolex,the ubiquitous Mont Blanc or as I recently discovered, loafers with loud, gold lettering that scream "LV". These folks are so much simpler to deal with given that they frequently confess to their indulgences being no more than a means of showing off. Intellectual pretensions though tend to run much deeper and most practitioners of the game tend to violently defend their passions as a means of deep-rooted gratification. Do write to me when you catch a theatre "enthusiast" confessing to watching plays for the sake of being seen there. Ditto for those who cant "live without Khan Market". That will be the day.
As for me, I belong to both categories of wannabes. Little wonder then that the wife considers me to be one of the toughest people in the world to put up with. But hey, at least I confess. I also confess to having watched one excellent play in the last two years. Slainte to that!
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6 comments:
Art is anything you can get away with. In fact it happens when painters stop looking at women and think they have a better sense of reality.
As for theatre, I fully agree with you. The quality of audience is inversely proportional to the histrionic impact of a play.
Misra ji... Good going... Two in two days does tell me the cart is rolling - Echohum unfortunately is yet gathering moss at the solitary first post!
That being said, at the risk of sounding patronizing - not my intent - dare add that the content continues to sizzle especially as you seem to come more and more into your own in style and substance.
Your first - on polity - coincided with watching CNN IBN revel in this shameless race to 271 in countdown to Tue, leaving one wondering what is actually at stake. And consider why this abysmal bidding game is being afflicted on a seemingly uncaring nation: a political formation who's bluff is finally called, an effete PM who's master continues to thank the Left for 4.5 years of 'support', a deal that not many know much of and care even less about and last-if-not-least an Opposition that awakens from its slumber as it realizes the call is closer than they'd presumed! Reading yours against this backdrop was a pleasure - if one can use that harmless verb for such charade, as much as a fodder for Echohum's next.
Equally lucid and true is your last post - though one would argue that we settle for Habitat only when denied IIC ;-) Perhaps this pull of overt intellectualism is some form of desire for 'belonging' in high places - presumably rooted in a shared small-town past. Would suggest we try Red Corridor at LTG next Sun to take this forward!
am quite impressed Mahesh! And kudos to honestly admitting you're one among the pseudos.
This post is so you - the loud, brash, show-off as I've always called you.
Much of Makarand deshpande goes beyond me too. And I've admitted as much to him too!
And yes, I too have shopped at Khan market (certainly not toothpaste tho)- but never b'coz it was the place to be seen in.. but quite simply b'coz one does get to pick from the best.
But amit's perspective on your blog I thot was very insightful - " Perhaps this pull of overt intellectualism is some form of desire for 'belonging' in high places - presumably rooted in a shared small-town past."
When I first read the last post I didn't see Mahesh making much of a serious point, though being he sure was being honest. It seemed far too simplistic and somewhow the folks being referred to here seemed to be a real sub-subset of humanity.
However, the preceding post does prove that they do indeed exist in real life and have a unique talent of being part of the author's social circle.
"Much of Makarand deshpande goes beyond me too. And I've admitted as much to him too! " Namedropping at it's best / worst.
"And yes, I too have shopped at Khan market (certainly not toothpaste tho)- but never b'coz it was the place to be seen in.. but quite simply b'coz one does get to pick from the best." The best of what? What do you get there that you wouldn't find in at least a few dozen other shops in Delhi itself.
Maybe it's not just a small town thing.
Mahesh, you haven't changed much over the last 21 years, have you? The writing style holds attention but also reveals.
Good to see your blog and posits.
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