A scene from Dolkar, Doma Aur YetiAS FABLES go, the higher reaches of the Himalayas are home to a mysterious bear-like creature, called the Yeti. Pramod Pathak’s play, Dolkar, Doma Aur Yeti takes the audience through an adventurous journey of a group of village children as they go in search of the furry creature. “The play is meant for children and has been written by me in a lyrical form,” says Pathak, its writer and director. The play is set in a village at the foothills of the Himalayas and showcases a special bond between two elderly sisters — Dolkar and Doma — and four other children of the village.
“The story goes that the duo once survived an avalanche on the village and were saved by a Yeti,” says Pathak, adding, “However, the entire village feels that the sisters brought bad luck to the village and made them live in a secluded hut. The most exciting part of their day would be visits from the children, who, in their innocence, questioned why the village did not speak to them.” Meanwhile, Doma falls ill and the children set out to find the Yeti, to fulfill her wish of seeing it one last time before she dies.
The idea of the play came about last year. “Right after I wrote it, we started casting and that was a huge challenge,” says Pathak.
“I had to find actors who could act as well as sing, with music playing an important part in the play,” he adds. The play has been performed four times since last year and Pathak plans to take it to other cities in India, besides staging it in Mumbai. “We received a great response from kids and even adults in Mumbai and we look forward to keep performing it in the future,” he says.
The play sends out a message of friendship, trust and relationships between the young and the old. “We also plan to perform the play in schools as it sends out a strong social message,” says Pathak.
“It is performed in very simple Hindi that most children should understand and what stands out for me is the similarities between the old and the young. They have this innocence about them, and that really makes for a great story to unfold,” he adds.
The play is being performed at Prithvi Theatre in Juhu, Mumbai, today, and Pathak hopes to have more shows in cities such as Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata in the near future.
