"Are you excited about your debut?" asked one of the many attendees at the Mayapura retreat, referring to our first performance of "Grandsire".
"It's in good hands," I said, meaning that our cast has put in a lot of hard work to the best of their abilities. Cronje—who is now Karuna Avatar (initiated name)—is the lead actor. It's a big job for him—lots of lines to memorize and blocking to remember. He's also involved in numerous martial arts scenes in this production. He and the other players have given it their all.
The crowds could be heard outside the auditorium an hour before the doors opened. They were in great anticipation. I went out to form a proper queue, and even lined up shoes neatly for the first few arrivals to help set a standard for an onslaught. Well, an onslaught it was. Pushkar, the monk in charge of the Samadhi Auditorium, opened the entrance doors, and experienced a flood of people. The place was packed. Unfortunately, some people had to be turned away.
So, there we were, experiencing a sauna of sorts, with bodyheat thick in the air.
"Turn on the fans," I urged Srinivas, our sound man. "Fans" could be a play on words because the drama fans here at Mayapura were indeed turned on, especially when South African, Jambhavan, came on the stage. He is our consistent performer. The audience loves him. Thank you Pariksit, assistant director.
Some people know me as "The Walking Monk" while others, as "Drama Maharaj."
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