‘By2Coffee’ is a comic mother-son exchange on marriage

Watching Abhishek Iyengar’s Kannada play ‘By2Coffee’, I couldn’t resist drawing references from my life. Raised in a mostly rational family that never believed in excess, I couldn’t believe myself agreeing to my mother-in-law’s request to perform a ritual believed to ward off the evil-eye.

There is no right or wrong in this battle but I can’t deny the fact that I will forever be involved in a clash of beliefs. ‘By2Coffee’ staged at Ranga Shankara too begins in a similar manner, with the US-returned son trying to rebuke his mother’s faith in traditional practices. The mother also mounts pressure on him to marry soon even as he tries to avoid the topic.

Sounds relatable? ‘By2Coffee’ is a comedy drama that constantly touches upon pertinent issues faced by us in daily life. The topics are as contemporary as they can get. But there is enough drama in ‘By2Coffee’ for us to stay invested in it. The first scene begins with the mother breaking the fourth wall and talking to the audience about their families. It comes off as a strange scene but soon, you get the purpose behind it. She is a loquacious, extremely zestful and sometimes, delightfully over-the-top woman. Seasoned performer MS Vidya ensures the character grows on us with her exuberant performance.

The play was billed as an ode mothers. With this oft-repeated theme, there is a risk of glorifying mothers’ gutsy nature, so much so that they are put on a pedestal through glowing words even as we forget they are humans with desires and aspirations like anyone else. ‘By2Coffee’ thankfully doesn’t take that route. Through a self-aware son (Suraj Kiran in a measured performance), it talks about how children are caught between carving a career and catering to the needs of their parents. In a monologue, the son talks about his mother’s quirks and her sacrifices.

When the mother-son duo sits down to chat while sipping coffee, Abhishek’s writing treats the title ‘By2Coffee’ as a metaphor to many apprehensions of a married life.

The play is inventive not just in its hilarious wordplay but also how the music is presented through a character (Pradeep Pradyumna), a guitarist. He is woven into the drama seamlessly and offers the right music for every shift in mood of the central characters. Manju Narayan’s lighting offers a sense of warmth to the proceedings.

This is a play that banks heavily on humour but I heaved a sigh of relief when a sensitive topic wasn’t trvialised. After a long stretch of non stop chatter, Abhishek leaves us to sit in long silence and utter discomfort when the son breaks shocking news to his mother. After the initial comic ride, ‘By2Coffee’ takes up serious matters, like the idea of commitment and the hypocrisy around it. Even if the story doesn’t go deep into important matters, it has its heart in the right place and entertains to the right degree.

The magic of ‘By2Coffee’ tapers off a bit when the characters get dramatic towards the end. Till then, the reason we bought into their exchanges is that they were natural. The play struggles to handle its own weight of expectations as it offers a convenient end to a serious dilemma. But at 65 minutes, staying true to its title, ‘By2Coffee’ is like the most-loved beverage. Small in quantity but piping hot, and stimulating.

(Catch the play at Indian Institute of World Culture, BP Wadia Road, Basavanagudi, Bengaluru, on November 27)