One is Company

Over six decades later,a group of over 40 one-man show performers celebrated the legendary writer’s birthday as Ekpatri Din. Santosh Chordia,Chairman of Amhi Ekpatri,the group of one-man performers,says,“The group was formed in April 2012 but it is only this year that we celebrated November 8,PL Deshpande’s birthday,as Ekpatri Din.”

Looking to revive their art,Chordia says the group wants more young people to join them. “We want to share their outlook so that we can all grow,” he says,adding that the group is planning to host lectures,seminars,performances and workshops revolving around one-man shows.

Pune-based theatre artiste Vandan Ram Nagarkar,one of the founding members of Amhi Ekpatri,who performs the show Ramnagri that is based on the life of his father Ram Nagarkar,says none of the younger theatre actors want to venture into this genre. “The problem is that there are many TV channels and films these days and most of the young actors want to go there. But they must understand that performing for the audience in the theatre prepares them well for the silver screen as well,” says the 52-year-old,who has performed the one-man show over 200 times.

Talking about the challenges faced by a solo performer in a stand-up routine,Nagarkar says,“The first challenge is,of course,the responsibility of wearing so many hats in one show. Also,in a play,the cast supports each other. Here,we are on our own.”

Performing in over 1,800 solo acts all over the world,Ujwala Kulkarni also shares an insider’s take on one-man shows. “One of the great challenges of a solo performance is that your ‘material’ or script should be interesting enough to catch and hold the audience for the duration of the performance. I have to edit my performance and dialogues according to the audience,” says Kulkarni,a former cash officer at a government bank,who has taken voluntary retirement from her organisation to focus on her career as a solo performer. She writes,acts and directs all her performances.