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Photos: K.V. Srinivasan

Warp and weft of life From “Song of the Loom”

To say that ‘Song of the Loom’, the recent play by The Madras Players on the plight of weavers in Tamil Nadu, was an earnest and heartfelt effort is an understatement. There’s no denying that what it tried to do — raise awareness about the condition of these craftsmen — was extremely praiseworthy.

Unfortunately, it was let down by some elements, not the least of which was a repetitive script that tried to take on too much — class disparity, inter-generational clashes, and even romance and marriage.

Directed by T.T. Srinath and Indrani Krishnaier, produced in association with the Crafts Council of India (CCI), and written by Sabita Radhakrishna, it basically told the tale of two families — retired IAS officer Tilak’s (Shankar Sundaram) and poor master weaver Kulasekhara’s (P.C. Ramakrishna).

Tilak is passionate about textiles and in support of the cause of weavers such as Kulasekhara for years. But the weavers are now without work and their families are struggling in poverty. Kulasekhara’s wife Ponni (Amrita Shetty) wants her husband to be part of a government scheme and form a co-op, but Tilak is dead set against the idea because he believes the quality of their work will be compromised; Kulasekhara is caught between the two.

This conundrum is discussed at great length in the play — between the weaver and wife, weaver and son, his wife and his son, the officer and his wife, the officer and his daughter — and in a manner that is sometimes too transparently earnest. And while the English used worked very well in the middle-class context of Tilak and his wife Sundari (Ammu Chaterji), the dialogues for the weaver’s family lacked the same authenticity. The use of film clichés and melodrama to illustrate their plight did not help either.

Along the way, there’s many a debate on pragmatism versus idealism, on preserving paramparic skill versus joining industry for economic gain — Kulasekhara’s son Kandan (Vidyuth S.) has chosen to work at a call centre. The breaks in the fairly linear narrative are provided by a history lesson on the exploitation of weavers and a couple of song and dance routines.

The most entertaining parts come courtesy the spontaneously humorous interactions between Tilak and his wife Sundari, whose life revolves around her grandson in Boston and husband-hunting on the Internet for her daughter Dikshita (Namrata Kartik). These two turn in seasoned performances. P.C. Ramakrishna too imbues his role with dignity — though it is sometimes difficult to square up this gravitas with that of a hapless weaver without a mind of his own.

This is far from being a bad play; unfortunately, it is a tad lengthy, repetitive and lacking in dramatic relief.

DIVYA KUMAR

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