After the successful plays Ek Mulaqat and Gardish Mein Taare, Saif Hyder Hasan is back with Mr & Mrs Murarilal. And this time, he doesn’t get into the intense zone and doesn’t get inspired from the lives of yesteryears personalities. Instead, he comes up with a fictional play and what’s more, he brings veteran actor Satish Kaushik back on stage! Funny, sweet, heartbreaking - Mr & Mrs Murarilal packs in a lot in 2 hours and also entices viewers with few unpredictable twists!
The story: A married couple (Satish Kaushik, Meghna Malik) decide to spend some quality time in a secluded park at night, much to the displeasure of the watchman (Amit Pathak). However, things change for the better and even worse as the couple teach the essence of life to the watchman and much more but also end up revealing the pain and the burden they have been carrying in their hearts since a long time.
Mr & Mrs Murarilal commences with an endearing entry of Satish Kaushik that instantly sets the mood. However, the next 15 minutes doesn’t really impress much – Mr Murarilal peeing in the open and the couple talking about Kashmir all of a sudden fails to evoke any emotion. Things get better when Mr & Mrs Murarilal urge the watchman to make a phone call and from hereon, the play stays on track right till the end, more or less. The intermission point gives viewers a slight jolt. Post-intermission, things become clearer as the secrets of Mr & Mrs Murarilal start tumbling out one by one. It is praiseworthy how the maker managed to touch upon issues like loneliness, generation gap, marriage etc but added a touch of humour and optimism. This prevented the play from become too serious or depressing.
Any blemishes? Unfortunately, yes. As mentioned above, the beginning portions aren’t that great. Although the play remains on track after that, it does go off track and stretches at places. The end part is definitely unexpected but slightly unconvincing. It surely is a good idea as nobody would have expected such a finale but I wish it was executed in a better way. After all, it’s the climax which will stay in one’s mind for long. And this portion has to be the best part of the play, which doesn’t happen, unfortunately.
Talking of performances, Satish Kaushik makes a rocking comeback on stage! He’s totally into character and his occasional English speeches make for a nice watch. The way he flirts with Mrs Murarilal is quite endearing. At the same time, he moves viewers with the phone call he makes in the second half. Satish Kaushik has had a long, illustrious career and Mr & Mrs Murarilal is definitely another feather in his cap! Meghna Malik maintains a strong position despite the presence of Satish Kaushik. She sparkles throughout and both Satish and Meghna nicely compliment each other. Amit Pathak has a supporting part but leaves a mark in several scenes.
Chetan Chand’s sets are very appealing. And nice use of lights – it does seem like a scene straight out of a park at night. Parivesh Singh’s music is neatly incorporated in the narrative. In fact, music plays an important part in the play and Parivesh has managed to come up with some good tunes. Saif Hyder Hasan’s story is interesting and very relatable. In fact, people of various age groups will be able to relate to the various issues tackled in the play. Direction and script are also fine but could have been better. After all, Saif is coming after 2 brilliant plays and Mr & Mrs Murarilal fails to reach to that level sadly. It could have been bit shorter, tighter and the ending could have been a bit more convincing for a better impact. But nevertheless, a fine effort!
On the whole, Mr & Mrs Murarilal is a feel-good play that speaks about loneliness, generation gap etc but in a fun and light-hearted manner. Satish Kaushik makes a fine comeback to theatre and impresses thoroughly with his performance. And his better half in the play – Meghna Malik– too shines. It could have been better and shorter but nevertheless, go for it and learn a thing or two about life and optimism from this adorable couple!
My rating - *** out of 5!
