Kapil Sharma, I am not a stalker!!!- Hira Mehta

Laughter is the best medicine-who ever said that. Some might say that laughter is a medicine to hide a hurt, some say it frees me from sadness, some say it is an exercise to keep happy. So let me think this through. I got it.. Laughter is Kapil Sharma and his team for me and my infection has not been cured yet..................... and hey, I don't want a cure. I want to be infected more.. so waiting now for The Kapil Sharma Show.....

but I am not a stalker.....just a genuine fan of the show because that's the only show that brings a smile to my face...I have tried watched other laughter shows (need I name) while Kapil Sharma has been off air, but they are so so dumb and silly ...that I might just die laughing (and by that I being sarcastic).....

I have not missed a single episode of Comedy Nights with Kapil show of course..........but then let me also count how many times have I got truly infected in person. In the audience for episodes starting with Farah Khan, Shekhar Suman/Adhyayen Suman, Shilpa Shetty & Raj Kundra/Harman Baweja, Sonakshi Sinha in the awesome deep orange outfil ( and hey,I asked a question too), Karishma Kapoor & Armaan Malik, Rekha, Ranbir Kapoor/Deepika for Tamasha........ Salman Khan (love the guy) /Nawazuddin Siddique (such a down to earth person)....I recall raising my hand to say I would be happy to call Salmaan Khan "bhaisaheb" to much laughter and ribbing by Kapil Sharma.....and why not cause I am not a giddy headed person who loves a particular star....anyone that entertains becomes my favourite......... and then what can I say about the awesome Shamitabh episode with Amitabh Bachchan/Dhanush/Akshara (Yes,I ran on stage to dance with Mr. Bachchan too). You may ask how I managed to be there so many times. Well, I'm not telling.... but where there is determination there is a way....... My only regret is not being able to be there for the ABCD2 episode to see my absolute favourite dancing stars (by the way ABCD is that one film that I have seen first day first show all alone in a theatre...and by all alone I really mean in all my growing up and present years and  yes I cried tears of joy at every dance performance (damn those 3D glasses) ..... 

Each time has been something more memorable than the other....and what's more surprising is that I never got that photo with Kapil Sharma too (except for the TV grab)....not once in all the times I went there..........So much energy on the sets....Kapil would come out and play drums sometimes...sing his favourite "mere mehboob kayamat hogi" (goosebumps) and talk to audience...and sometimes even give a dose in good jest to audience if they tried his patience .. My friends teased me that I was stalking him each time I landed there....... but no way, because watching Kapil and his team in person was like being a part of the Sharma family and besides there was so much more laughter to experience and so much more footage to see performed live on the sets than that which gets edited into a capsule for TV......  after all there is nothing more breathless than watching a live performance....

Let me share some moments I remember....The first episode that I was to attend was the Sonu Nigam one and there I was all excited and ready to leave when I get a message that its cancelled.....totally disappointed only to realise later that a fire had burnt down the set......but there I was at the first episode with Farah Khan and even got a photo with Dadi and Bua...... And then there was that episode when the pyros shot up in the air as Rekha entered onto the stage and break..some sound issues ...again the stage was cleared up and once again fanfare, entry and not again, I thought, again problem with her mike sound...flurry on sets...much discussion.... and I scream out to the production person "it's the lapel mike sound against the huge gold chocker around her neck"...back again fanfare and this time Rekha enters with a hand mike and the episode gets on way...but damn it took twelve hours to shoot as they recorded two back to back episodes with her....  Farah Khan episode was where I got to ask a question but it was edited out.....but I managed that in the Sonakshi Sinha episode where I got to debate with Kapil on the benefits of marriage....interesting and funny ....  and then how can I forget standing bang next to Ranbir Kapoor in the opening sequence of his episode where I dropped a coin in his hand...(want a grab of that but can't find the episode on youtube ...anyone???)....of course nothing can compare to a dream come true that remains with you for a lifetime....so what if I have seen Mr. Bachchan up front at my bank, shooting for the commercial as brand ambassador or getting a personalised autograph in his autobiographical  book  on my 50th birthday (thanks to my sister who designed his book "To be or Not to Be") .....though nothing can compare to grabbing the opportunity to be on stage to dance with the God himself.. and I did.. and that warm hug after the sequence ....just an icing on the cake ....

So what if it took hours before the actual shoot started hours later.....For me long hours on the set was not just pure fun observation time but most importantly when you are sitting there you realise and appreciate the amount of  hard work that goes behind each episode of just 50 minutes to reach our TV screens....... that itself was a big learning for a filmy keeda like me. 

And now team Kapil embarks on a new journey with The Kapil Sharma Show as I wait with bated breath to find a way to get there on the sets again to watch them perform .....waiting for them to give us the audience doses of laughter...Hats off Kapil Sharma for you are indeed my weekend dose of happiness ....

Outstanding Theater festival KHIDKIYAAN.COM

A twitter post from Mukesh Chabbra, the casting director who gave us the cute Harshali of Bajrangi Bhaijaan,  made me curious and I logged on to the Khidkiyaan Theater Festival site and booked myself and my friend, Shaila Shah for a theater experience over five days starting January 13th. We were soon joined by our friends M J Kaur and Dipna Patel (heroine of the Gujjubhai, The Great" fame) and Shariq Ahmed.

“Khidkiyaan” such a beautiful name that immediately brought to my mind a picture of myself standing at an open window looking into the horizon, this time it being the world of theater. Yes, and there was a beautiful Khidki made for visitors to pose and click photos.Presented by Mukesh Chhabra Casting Co. as its first ever stint in theater, the festival was worth every moment and definitely worth a visit for sure. Open Mic and sessions on a stage outside revolving around literature and theater before the plays were performed in the auditorium added to the fun not to mention the young budding actors and actresses adding to the magic.

Day one, we landed up much earlier than the show timing and I was pleasantly surprised to see a warm and comfortable environment with the bustle of young and bubbly people hanging around interacting. The air was filled with celebrations as it was Makar Sakrant festival that day. A bonfire and songs were sung while we all stood around it filled the air with festivity. Amongst that crowd stood two outstanding directors Imtiaz Ali and Vikas Bahl who had inaugurated the festival and it did not take me long to approach them for a click. I have to say that they were so down to earth men that both of them actually offered to click each other's photos with me turn by turn. Ha ha ha ha ha.. Lucky me!

GUNNO BAI, play of day one with its outstanding performance and singing by Chittranjan Tripathy, the director and actor was one of a kind experience.  Gunno Bai told the story of a high profile eunuch in Delhi known for her singing.  Her life story is revealed through flash backs of theatrical events, monologues and songs beautifully sung by the lead actor himself. As it unfurls Gunno Bai turns out to be a young man who had come to Delhi to become an IAS officer but fails at this dream. The audience is transported back and forth into a flash back of his life as he tells us that money was not easy to earn and one evening sees a man dressed as a woman singing on the roads. He decides to use the same ruse to earn and no one ever realises that he is actually a man disguised as an eunuch until the day he gets a telegram that his father is visiting him. Gunno Bai is in a dilemma and because he reveres his father, he decides to kill himself before his arrival, but he also has a huge score to settle with someone. Does he kill himself and what was the score he needed to settle is what keeps you completely engrossed and gripped. Beautifully penned songs to one poem, where Gunno bai speaks to death completely stole my heart.

Day 2, it was SHADOW OF OTHELLO about a small group of men enamored totally by the film Omkara to such an extent that they decide to perform it and ask a theater director to direct them.  What starts off as a gang of enthused actors turns into a conflict when one of them is not chosen to play the part that he wanted to, leading to jealousy and intrigue. Othello / Omkara becomes a part of their lives and thereon how the shadow of Othello consumes them all forms the crux of the story. A talented cast and a hilarious representation helped. Guest of the day were Piyush Sharma, Richa Sharma, Sushant Rajput Singh and Makrand Deshpande.

Day 3 - A band "TROUBADOURS" belted out fantastic and outstanding numbers followed by a performance by Khushaal Pawaar (of Bajrangi Bhaijaan fame). Sunil Shetty, Manoj Bajpai and others graced the occasion that day. This was followed by the play OLD MUNK which I found a bit confusing and inaudible as the actors did not really throw their voices . I did mention this to the lead actor the next day though. Old Munk is the story of three characters - DK, his wife and his wife’s friend Anjana who visits the couple after a long time. As the evening progresses, untold stories and actual truth behind their relationships and lies come to light as the skeletons fall out bringing unimaginable revelations.

Day 4 - BLACKBIRD is the love story of two characters. Uma, a 12 year old girl who mature beyond her years, falls for an elderly man Rajesh. Rajesh who also is attracted to her decides to runs away with her, but confused and out of fear abandons her for some time at a hotel when all hell breaks loose as he is convicted of raping a minor. Uma lives through the years being talked about while Rajesh does his time and rebuilds his life.  Uma searches him out and the confrontation goes back and forth between anger and the search for truth and unresolved issues. Swanand Kirkire, as the elderly man proves his mettle with a power packed performance that holds the play together ably supported by Mabel Vyas. Guests of the day were Manav Kaul, Kabir Khan, Nawazuddin Siddique and Radhika Apte..

Day 5 - KOI BAAT CHALE a romantic comedy revolving around a 35 year old unmarried drama teacher who loves Supriya but is unable to profess his love for her. He resorts to the services of a marriage bureau to help him find her mentioning especially of the black mole on the left cheek right below the ear  which leadis to him meeting many girls that fill the bill, but not the girl he wants. Ultimately he takes the bull by the horns and gets the girl. This play marked the finale of KHIDKIYAAN theatre festival with the most out of the world acting by Yashpal Sharma and Ritu Sharma in the play and ending with Ayushmaan Khurrana's performance.

It was not just the guests that I mentioned that came to wish the festival well. There were so many actors, actresses and theatre personalities all around interacting and very happily agreeing to clicking selfies and believe me I did get them all. Bumped into so many of my young actor friends and made so many new friends that believe me, I had withdrawal symptoms for days thereafter missing the wonderful theatre world that I enjoyed for five full days without a break. A big "lets do it again next year" to my friends Jeet (MJ Kaur), Shaila Shah, Dipna Patel and Shariq Ahmed.... All I can say is a well organised, commendable feat and a big thumb up to Mukesh Chabbra and KHIDKIYAAN theatre festival and as Sunil Shetty said it should be taken to every city in India.