A woman's predicament as a body double

‘Jokhad’ unfolds the moving story of Meena Satarkar, a body double of a famous yesteryear actress. She lives a life in melancholy, hating the woman for whom she had been masquerading

R angadhara Theatre Stream presented a Marathi play ‘Jokhad’ (The Burden), at the Marathi Granth Sangrahalaya in Koti. The play was written by Rajiv Joshi and directed by Swati Watve. The play unfolds with Meena Sa- tarkar giving an interview about her role as a body double to a small time reporter. The lead protagonist, Nirmala Devi keeps changing with time, accepts the roles which suits her age and becomes successful in the process. Meena Satarkar, the duplicate carries the burden of being a duplicate whose demand as a stunt double dwindles with time. Behind the façade of a star, Nirmala Devi lives a pathetic life of her own, a victim of her own success. One day she gets an opportunity to chuck it. She grabs it and starts living the life of self imposed exile in peace. Discovery of this sensational news by the cub reporter Kulkarni threatens her lifestyle. Would the heartless media expose her and bring her back to limelight? The play ends with a question mark.

Swati Watve, playing a dual role of the body double Meena Satarkar and the yesteryear's heroine does full justice to her job, both as a director and the actor. Her efforts are ably supported by Sandeep Kale as the reporter. Stage design and lighting was arranged by Anant Kulkarni.