Katha Ghera’s “Harek Babaal Kura” is a brilliant, affecting show about mental health

The play manages to make the audience internalize that one needs to embrace and accept the highs and lows of life, its rhythm and contours, lights and shadows.

Photo: Katha Ghera

Anushka Nepal

  • Read Time 3 min.

Kathmandu: The stage is bathed in the soft glow of red light, shimmering in the dark. A man in a casual shirt and pants is sauntering about, at ease, and wearing a look in his eyes that seemed to say that he wanted to be heard. He engages with the audience, seated in a semicircle downstage, distributing papers which, it turns out later, consists of lists he created after he found out his mother had attempted suicide, when he was all of seven. The list is the note of things that he thinks make life worth living. The list grows as he grows up, consisting everything from ice cream to sex.

“Harek Babaal Kura” is the Nepali adaptation of the 2013 English play “Every Brilliant Thing”. Produced by Katha Ghera, its first physical play in two years, the play is directed by Akanchha Karki and features Sudam CK as the sole actor. It is translated into Nepali by Karki and Kshitiz Parajuli. The adaptation is infused with humanity and warmth, and is engrossing throughout its runtime of about 70 minutes. 

The play is all about how the mental trauma faced by the protagonist’s suicidal mother has affected his entire life. The way a seven-year-old child thought that the list of some ‘babaal’ things would keep his mom from taking her own life is, with all honesty, quite affecting. It shows how simple the mind of a child is. With gradual growth, that same mind starts to complicate. So much so that it can merely handle itself, let alone someone else.

The play gets its spark from actor CK who delivers a restrained, layered performance. His movements and enunciation feel natural and aptly carried out for a play with such a sensitive subject. The play never feels contrived and has a documentary-like feel to it, as if the audience was not witnessing a fictional act but the actual narration of an individual’s life story. Credit also goes to the Nepali translation, which is simple yet effective.

Although it is just one man standing on the stage, the direction made sure that the audience was involved, literally. Throughout, the actor interacts with the audience and invites a select few on stage, asking them to enact and improvise with him. In this way, the play not only tells but also shows the lighter and darker moments life has in it—through small acts that are plays within the play—be it the feeling of falling in love, the loss of one’s beloved pet or the sound of music.

The play gets its spark from actor CK who delivers a restrained, layered performance. His movements and enunciation feel natural and aptly carried out for a play with such a sensitive subject.

The play gives a very strong message to the audience without them even noticing while the play goes on. While everyone is so much focused on the narration, many fail to ask one crucial question, “How did it all start?”

It is visible that the narrator himself has his mental health issues, but it did not originate out of empty space. The rollercoaster of emotions he went through as a child and an adolescent, with multiple suicide attempts from his mom, must have taken a toll on him.

This play does not just reflect on mental health issues but also one of the most pervasive causes for it, emotional and mental stress within the household. It is something that every household should be aware of, and with this production, Katha Ghera has managed to convey that message to the audience.

The play manages to make the audience internalize that one needs to embrace and accept the highs and lows of life, its rhythm and contours, lights and shadows. And to look around, reflect, and take note of the brilliant things every once in a while. Hope, as they say, springs eternal. 

The play is being staged at Katha Ghera (Kausi Theatre), Teku, and will run through September 19.

Photos: Katha Ghera