Scene two is when I realise there was more to the introductory scene than meets the eye.Walking into NCPAs Experimental Theatre for Naseeruddin Shahs The Father all I see is a minimalist stage and a few pieces of furniture.Andre (Naseeruddin Shahs) is old and wishes to live in his apartment without any carers. His anguish over losing control makes you feel just as helpless, leaving you in tears. Rooms and doors have been marked with tape on the ground, like those we see in blueprints.The set often changes, with pieces of furniture being added or taken away, allowing us to experience Andres scattered thoughts and memories.Andre struggles in the most basic aspects his daily life, you feel his struggles, you experience just a tiny bit of what it must be like to not remember things that are so essential. She is strong yet sensitive and holds her own despite Andre not appreciating her efforts. The changes in the set and the progression of the script take the audience on a journey of the mind’s slow progression into the land of oblivion -- dementia.A perplexed Andre (and audience) wants to know who this is. He has forgotten a lot it seems. Always asking about Eloise, he seems almost cruel to Anne, complaining to his carer Laura (Trishla Patel), "She never touches alcohol. 

But wasnt Anne going to go to London?However it seems this information is foreign to Pierre, and thats when Anne (Bhavna Pani) comes home from the market. The stage execution, carried out by Jairaj Patil and his crew, takes mere seconds to move around when the lights go out.The sound design by Saahil Vaid solar license plate light is amazing, with the sound effects being timed so perfectly that I was waiting for a glitch, but there were none. He has forgotten about what happened to his younger daughter Eloise, his favourite as he claims."Naseeruddin Shah takes us on a ride with his acting.This is when the feeling of unease sets in, is this Anne real, or was it the first one?It is here that the director has wonderfully woven in the entire crux of the play and you just begin to realise, maybe the director is suggesting that Andre may have dementia. The audience feels his anger, confusion, pain and when he laughs you just want to chime in. It makes you truly feel what Andre must have felt -- to have become a shell of a man he once was.You feel his helplessness when Anne doesnt trust him to be capable enough to take care of himself. That’s why she’s so sober.The Father will run in NCPA till September 30, and then have its November run in Prithvi Theatre from November to December.When Andre sees faces or hears information he seems to have never been exposed to, he reassures others (although it seems more for him), and that he is well aware of everything that is happening. The light design by Arghya Lahiri is clever and highlights the changes in mood, time of day and the plot progression onstage.And thats where the beauty of the play lies. Pierre introduces him as Annes husband of five years. I will later realise that this was a very brilliant and clever set designed by Arghya Lahiri, Anuradha Parekh Benegal and Ratna Pathak Shah.It feels different already; as the first act ensues you think you know whats happening.Pierre doesnt recognise her, neither does the audience.

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