Ponniyin Selvan - Stage Act by Magic Lantern

'Ponniyin Selvan' by Kalki, a historical fiction in Tamil, is a famous, loved book.

I read it when I was on vacation after my 12th standard exams. I read all the huge 5 parts of the book within 10 days, I think, or could have been a little less or more than that. Well, a teenager on vacation, with nothing else to do, can accomplish that I think. I don't know. My memories are hazy now. It's hard to believe that I had so much time in hand to finish the books in such short period of time. I know I was obsessed, because my nights were haunted by the characters.

It is one of the books that I want to re-read in my adulthood but have not gotten around to it, not completely.

When I was in Madurai for a short visit this year, I had the chance to watch the stage performance of the book, performed by Magic Lantern at the Lakshmi Sundaram Hall, arranged by Rotary Club of Madurai, as a fund raising event. It's a four hour event with a 15 mins break in between.

There was music, singing and dancing. The sound, mic and lighting setup were all done expertly. The music, art and costume design, dance and stunt choreography were all creative and aesthetic. The artists were brilliant, I thought, with proficiency in Tamil, stage presence and command of their character. The funny, adventurous and trouble seeking Vandiyathevan, the shrewd spy Azhwarkadiyan Nambi, the quirky and brave Poonkuzhali, the beautiful and smart princess Kundavai, the remorseful and love struck prince Aditya Karikalan, the mysterious Nandhini - all came alive through their performances. They all captured the essence of the characters in the book.

I thought they had done a pretty good job in condensing the huge book with so many characters and events into a single stage performance. Still four hours couldn't contain all the major events in the book. Parts that happen in Sri Lanka including the ones in Buddhist Monastery were omitted and few more.

I am not sure if it will delight people who have not read the book though. It might be hard to grasp the many different twists and turns in the story without the knowledge of the book. And a certain mystery element that hangs in the book is also lost on stage, as characters have to narrate the events in many cases, but music and the lighting setup make up for it, where possible.

Little Women - book and movie.

My favorite book, when I was 12 yrs old was 'Little Women' - Part 1 by Louisa May Alcott (I did read the second part of the book, few years later, not read as many times though). I have read it many times and loved it dearly during that time. 

I have loved the interplay among the four, very different March sisters.  I have especially adored Jo March, the one who loves to read and write, wishes she can fight in the civil war along side her father, is unconventional, wants to do something heroic or wonderful, and loves her sisters.

I used to be charmed by the parts where Jo writes plays for her sisters to perform, how the girls put the set together and enact it, the way they get ready for parties (burnt hair, mended skirts and all), the friendship they develop with the boy next door, the 'Pickwick Club' (which produced the Pickwick Portfolio, the weekly newspaper with all sorts of articles, stories and announcements contributed by all four sisters, who name themselves after the characters from the book 'The Pickwick Papers'), the 'Post Office' on the hedge where secrets, letters and trivias were exchanged, the 'Busy Bee Society', the plans for the future they dream about, the fights, the heart breaks and much more.

These are the parts that stuck with me through the years about this book. I re-read the entire book after a long time last year. I noticed that the book had a didactic tone that had evaded me (or rather didn't bother me) when I was young. 

Re-reading a loved book, especially after a long time, there was new layers explored, there was rekindling of memories and a brush with the younger self of me.

I also watched the movie (1994 version in which Winona Ryder plays Jo March) recently. The movie bypassed the didactic tone and kinda stuck to the dynamic aspect of the characters, which is what I love about the book. The book and the movie will remain special.

In the movie, there is a dialog exchange in a scene (where a bunch of men support women's right to vote, albeit rather patronizingly), that I love, which I feel decisively sums up women's rights. This particular exchange is not in the book. The book portrays a different situation.

Jo March: I find it poor logic to say that, because women are good, women should vote. Men do not vote because they are good; they vote because they are male, and women should vote, not because we are angels and men are animals, but because we are human beings and citizens of this country.

Mr. Mayor: You should have been a lawyer, Miss March.

Jo March: I should have been a great many things, Mr. Mayor.