'Marathi Manoos' from the theater is inseparable. It's part of his being. So an era was there, around the turn of last century that mesmerized him over the years, with its innumerable offerings. Not that Marathi Manoos has stopped loving the theater now, but over the years, it has metamorphosed so much that in today's times it seems, that the memories of the golden era are blurred but still holding on with its gilt and glamour, albeit from a distance. So has become its contents and acting styles. Stale? Old ? No, I don't have the correct word, but may be 'Too theatrical ' would be nearer the apt.
My son saw film Nat Samrat earlier and came telling me, 'Its' Marathi version of Baghbaan'. Was I nonplussed , yes for a moment but after giving it a thought for a minute, I felt it was right for his generation who had never seen Nat Samarat, the play and in all eventuality both the pieces of work were based on Shakespeare's 'King Lear'.
Late Mr V V Shirwadkar, a master craftsman in his own right, probably had his fingers firmly on the pulse of Marathi Manoos so he gave THE Marathi Garb to this universal tragedy on theatrical background , a weak point for all the Marathis. By doing so not only he did justice to the original theme but also left ample scope for Soliloquies, Dramatic duels,crisp dialogues, as if dancing to the sharpness of steel sword, ornamental language, larger than life characters, layers after layers of human relationships unfolded languidly for a common Marathi theater lover who was always gullible for such theatrics. And it worked. Worked so wonderfully that even by creative standards Nat Samrat the play became legend in its own right. More over the performances by the lead pair then, Dr Shriram Lagoo and Late Shanta Jog, took it to such a high pedestal that it had become too risky for any body to venture any where near it. It had become that iconic.
Naturally when Mahesh Manjrekar and Nana Patekar duo announced to adopt it for the screen, it became imperative to keep the fingers crossed.
And from here onward my dilemma started , as usual.
Cinema has laxity of space, play is confined to 3 walls of stage, the 4th one is open to the viewers. So Nat Samrat the movie takes you on a beautiful ride.The story is, as every body knows and there are not many cinematic liberties taken. Script remains loyal to the play, well mostly. By doing so at least for a while it takes you away from the theater, but does it leave the theater completely? sadly no. May be because the protagonist is a renowned theater artiste, the directer could not do away with the theatrical format. Every scene, every performance every dialogue delivered, is over the pitch.
Nana is known for theatrical deliverance , here he gets an open pasture. And given such an opportunity, for Nana there are no holds barred. In every frame you feel ' Oh what a marvelous acting' nonetheless you keep on feeling it's 'ACTING' after all in the end. Superficial ? Put on? Being a theater artiste, or any performer for that matter, is his own persona too overshadowed by theatrical mannerism in real life when not on stage ? May be, possible because as an artiste the line between the real and the theater may be blurred. So you are moved not by his performance but by the original script that has the strength to move you from within. May be Nana himself too got engulfed in the dilemma, the protagonist faces, 'So many characters came alive using my body but in the end who [nobody] bothers about the soul of an actor that makes them alive'. Could Nana be separated from the role he played ?
I have seen Dr.Lagoo from close quarters in a well known play 'Atmakatha'. He really used to seep in to character so effortlessly when the focus used to be on him that it was amply apparent who was Dr.Lagoo and who was the character. In Nat Samrat, you get an over dose of 'THE' Nana Patekar with all his histrionics, may be he will get away with it, because the role [ of a theater actor] demands it.
All in all again, the same dilemma, where to put this Nat Samrat ? The Nat Samrat in itself is so iconic that as an experience in different format too, it just can not be bad. But otherwise , may be nostalgia is always sweet so I would always vote for Nat Samrat THE play by Dr. Lagoo !
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