In the Tamil play ‘Kanneru’ masks are not mere props

From the play Kanneru.
| Photo Credit: Praveen Raj and Shaan

The Tamil play ‘Kanneru’, staged at the Indianostrum Theatre, Puducherry recently and directed by V. Sathish Kumar of Erode Naadaga Kottagai, is based on the relevance of a drushti bommai in the modern world. Kanneru is simply a drishti doll or nazarbattu hung at the entrance of a house intending to ward off evil eyes or to drive away bad omen.

The play investigates the socio-psychological reasons behind this phenomenon. The drishti mask reveals more than it conceals. The play metaphorically tells how people today wear multiple masks and try to hide the real self. Every appearance is deceptive.

Masks are used universally to represent characters in plays. This 90-minute play, ‘Kanneru’, a blend of the folk and modern theatrical styles, portrays how insatiable greed is creating chaos in the society.

The play begins with the sounds of the conch and drum as an invocation. And then on the darkened stage emerge six masked dolls, each introducing itself and showing its vicious identities. The riveting performance by actors C. Deepan, S. Prabhakaran, S. Sakthi, S.L. Hemanathan, G.B. Shri Hari and M. Pranesh made the play extremely engaging. ‘Kanneru’ is a physical theatre with a social message.

Written by E. Kalaikovan, the play is partially based on the folk stories by veteran K. Rajanarayanan. ‘Kanneru’ seeks some sort of introspection by every human to attain peace and social order. It is sort of a call to look within oneself, and to stop being ruled by machines, masks, or monsters. Kalaikovan has also authored Pathimugam, a book on the youth unrest.

Started in 2019, Erode Naadaga Kottagai has performed 20 plays so far. Besides staging proscenium plays, the group also performs street theatre on social issues. V. Sathish Kumar, trained under NA Muthusamy of the Chennai-based Tamil Modern Theatre group, has been staging minimalist plays without seeking any financial support. He trains his actors in body movement, martial arts, mask movement and vocal modulation to be able to do justice to the powerful narratives of his plays.