It was Thursday evening when i got a call from my cousin, Ankit, "Would you and Rakesh want to come to watch a play on Saturday?" he asked. Rakesh is a very close friend whom i usually hang out with. "Yes!" i responded immediately, without thinking twice. It had been a while since Rakesh and i had been planning to go for a theatrical play and here i saw it coming, so it didnt take me much time to answer in affirmation. Sakshi's cousin (Sakshi, Ankit's very good friend) was the director of the play and it was she who had invited us and hence arranged for the passes.
The play was to be staged at Kamani Auditorium, at the Copernicus Marg.
So here we were on Saturday evening, all supposed to leave together(it would only be later that i would learn that Sakshi would be reaching at the theatre directly) Ankit and i decided to pick Rakesh first and then pick Sakshi. It had become slightly dark and the street lights had been lit. A combination when traffic at Delhi roads is at its peak. But being a Saturday the traffic wasnt as bad as i had anticipated. After reaching Rakesh's house i got to know that since Sakshi wouldn't leave her work place on time, she would reach the theatre herself. When we three of us reached, i saw Sakshi standing at the entrance of the theatre. She had reached earlier and was waiting for us to arrive. We exchanged 'hellos'.I saw the tickets in her hand which she without wasting time handed over to us. She looked visibly upset. If it was for us arriving late or for another reason, was hard to figure out. She was sporting a stole, wrapped neatly round her neck, with the end of the cloth falling from either side of her shoulder, the way one would find it done on the manneqins inside an apparel's showroom.
When we entered the theatre, i realised there is nothing in the name of security here. No security gaurd present, no one to frisk us. It was really surprising and uncalled for especially when considering that theatre capacity was close to 500 and the terror threat that always looms large over the capital city.
As soon as we entered the theatre, i saw that most of the seats had already been occupied and the possesion of seats was on the 'first come first served' basis. We somehow managed to find 4 empty seats next to each other. The theatre inside wasnt very well designed or huge and resembled one of the old Delhi sub-urban cinema halls. The stage though was neat and looked well built.
"The stole is looking lovely on you" i said. Sakshi looked a little puzzled and unsure of what it meant. " Are you trying to be sarcastic?" On numerous occasions when we had met earlier, Rakesh and i had fired sarcasm coated slapstick humour at her at our own will. "Not at all! I thought you could figure out when iam sarcastic" i replied. She looked more at ease and i could make out that she believed me.
"That is Anubhi!" Ankit exclaimed. She is his friend who, to his surprise, he unexpectedly located sitting somewhere in the theatre. Knowing Ankit, i knew he wouldn't let this oppurtunity go waste. What followed was a series of text messages from him to Anubhi which initially were aimed at making her think, 'How does he know that?' and then making her eyes take a role of a radar scanner, scanning the entire theatre for him. He finally put an end to it and eventually greeted her in person during the interval.
Upon the interval,Rakesh asked me if i would come outside along with him. Even though i was a little reluctant at first, i finally managed to leave the comfort of my seat. As soon as we got outside i knew what his eyes were searching for. We couldn't find any eatery around untill Rakesh, to his relief, found one right opposite the road. It was the only eatery around and was absolutely chaotic. But Rakesh, determined as he always is, with food especially, hustled his way into the chaos. But to my surprise, it took a long time before he managed to escape into the fresh air with some sandwiches in hand. "What happened, what took you so long?" I asked. "Oh! This vendor wouldn't listen and neither did he have a change of 500 ruppees." he replied, irritated with what he had been through. We managed to get back into the theatre in time, before the play resumed.
After the play came to an end, walking back to our respective cars, Rakesh asked Sakshi if she could help him by asking her cousin to cast him in his future plays. Seeing this and afraid of being left behind, i put my application forward too. The reply to which is still awaited.
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