Ashok Pandey takes on Dario

A classic 20th-century Italian play, Accidental Death of an Anarchist, is making its way to Mumbai, but in a new avatar. The play has been adapted in Hindi, and is being directed by Ashok Pandey. The storyline is similar to the Italian one, but Milan has been replaced with Delhi, and Inspector Tiwary has replaced Inspector Bertozzo.

Explaining the storyline, Ashok says, “The story revolves around a maniac, who visits a police station to file a report and meets Inspector Tiwary. The inspector is being outsmarted by the maniac’s wit. In the second scene, we see the maniac play a judge, and enter the same police station to inquire about an ‘accidental’ death. The said maniac traps the policemen in his conversation and unveils the mystery they were trying to hide.”

Although the story is originally Italian, Ashok’s adaptations depict the situation of all society. “There are many changes from the original play by Dario Fo. We have picked subjects based on what’s currently going on in the country. The play depicts the problems faced by people in the country — how police here behave, how society treats a common man, how a lunatic would talk.” And unlike other plays, Ashok believes this play would not only present problems, but also suggest solutions. “There’s a conversation between the maniac and a journalist, there they explain how the problems in the society can be solved. If media people do their job, if policemen do their job, if everyone is doing their work then there won’t be any issue,” he asserts.

When asked why he picked a Dario Fo story, the director says that the Italian playwright has deeply inspired him, “The specialty of Dario Fo is his humour; he tries to make the audience laugh through his writing. And through his play, you get to learn about things through humour.”

He adds that Dario has a unique way of presenting stories, where he not only makes his audience laugh but also makes them introspect. “That’s why he was such a great playwright in Italy, because he talked about problems in society. You will die laughing during the play but after you go home you will think about what you saw, you’ll realise that things like these happen in the society, policemen behave this way, so that’s his specialty,” Ashok explains.

Although various adaptations of the play had been performed in more than 40 countries, Ashok is confident that his adaptation is unique, “The thing is, when you adapt a play, everyone has their own way of adapting, I haven’t seen these plays. But I’m sure mine is different because I haven’t watched any performance of the story either, and the adaptation is based on my understanding of our society.”

The director is bringing the play back on stage after four months, and is hoping for a similar response from the audience. “I got the desired response from the audience, they were very excited and laughing during the show, but once it was over they came and told me that they understood the message I was trying to put across,” he gushes.