I was very eager to watch this pantomime, because the previous one I had attended was brilliant. I love satire and humour. I always give first preference to comedy than any other genre. So with this expectation, I stepped into Narada Gana Sabha on a Sunday evening.
Koko was a pantomime that had the story of the friendship between a hen and human beings.
Chikki, the hen was a tired mother, who had lost many eggs to various factors. Finally she lays an egg and was hell bent on protecting it from anything that may happen to it. Her efforts bear fruits and she gets a cute chick, Koko, out of it. Like any doting mother, Chikki is smitten by her child and wants the child to excel in whatever forms of arts that were there. Martial arts, School, Running and tutorial classes came to the rescue of Chikki’s wish and she enrolls Koko in all of them.
From one class to another, Koko finds her day fully occupied and starts wilting under pressure. A pressure that every child faces today. Frustrated that she is not able to fulfill her mothers expectations and sad that she does not find time to play with her friends, Koko breaks down.
Timely interference of the three guys, who had once saved Chikki and helped her in protecting her egg, clears the situation between the hen and the chick. Finally all is well that ends well.
The play was amazingly crafted and each element was executed with finesse. The music, the set, the conceptualisation of the birth of the chick, the calendar etc were bang on and added value to the story.
I would love to place on record, a teeny tiny detail that I noticed in the play. I shall explain the “human” version of what was shown on the stage.
While the child is frustrated by the neck-tight schedule on one side and of not being able to meet the expectations of her parents on the other side, she yearns for someone to talk to, to understand her and to lend a shoulder for her to cry on. This is the time, for which many anti-social elements are waiting. They would try to swoop in and take advantage of the child’s helplessness and lure them into unspeakable things. A child will not know what is right and what is not. All that she would care about is that she has someone who is patient enough to listen to her wishes and cries. This was a brilliant effort by the team, to portray what the society is,to the audience. If anything, this minute detail must serve as an eye-opener for the parents to take care of their kids.
All actors did an excellent job in playing their part. A huge applause for each and everyone involved behind the screens. It is definitely not an easy task to do this without as much a breathing time in between the scenes.
Koko, is a must watch for every parent with their children. This is not just a pantomime. It is something beyond the art and comes with a message that is very essential for the society.
