Time-Weaving Love Triangle: ‘Betrayal’ Play Mesmerizes Delhi Audiences

Dilip Guha, New Delhi: Aadyam Theatre, the Aditya Birla Group initiative, produced by 3 Parts Company staged “Betrayal” play at LTG Auditorium, Delhi recently.

The famous Bollywood song “Babu Ji Dheere Chalna, Pyar Me Zra Sambhalna Bade Dhoke Hai Is Raah Me……….” best fits to explain “Betrayal” written by renowned novel literate Harold Pinter. This captivating play, a dramatical masterpiece, offers a poignant portrayal of delicate memories, and wounded hearts, unravelling our perception of reality. Often referred to as “the playwright of the pause,” Pinter’s work emphasizes the significance of those silent moments as much as the spoken words.

There have been so many time-twisting, backwards-moving cultural touchstones in the decades since Betrayal was first written in 1978 that it’s hard to fully clock how revelatory and surprising this reverse chronological order must have been when the play first appeared in theatres.

This exquisite play is brilliantly simple in form and courageous in its search for poetry that turns banality into a melancholy beauty. Perhaps with the experience of writing, Pinter tunnels backwards in time, starting the play with a meeting between his adulterous lovers, Jerry and Emma, two years after their seven-year affair has died. In nine scenes we move back through the stages of the affair until the play ends with its beginning in the house of Emmaís husband Robert, who is Jerry’s best friend also. It is like watching a flower blossom backwards, its petals inexorably closing. All three characters ‘of the play -Jerry, Emma and Robert-may have shared some mysterious complicity in their mutual betrayal. It was not hard for Jerry to seduce Emma. He adored Emma like a princess and the fish was caught on the hook. Both lovers were married, having kids and their own families. So they had a separate flat as the Nest of their love. A bold sex – scene of Jerry and Emma had the audience spellbound.

Directed by renowned director Rachel D’Souza the play featured a talented cast of proficient actors, including Abir Abrar, Sukant Goel and Vivek Gomber, who do complete justice to their characters that have been interwoven intricately in the play’s engrossing narrative, leading to a powerful and cohesive presentation.

The live music by Nush Lewis made the experience much more immersive and interactive. Her mastery of the Harp allows her to evoke a wide range of emotions, from subtle and delicate melodies to powerful and intense compositions. Her live musical interludes between scenes provide seamless transitions, allowing the audience to immerse themselves deeper into the narrative.

Renowned director Rachel D’Souza brings her wealth of experience and artistic vision to the production. She describes ‘Betrayal’ as skillfully weaving intimate stories of relationships, familial bonds, and friendships into a haunting and captivating theatrical structure. Unfolding in reverse, the play explores how an affair ignited, a marriage crumbled, and families were reorganized. D’Souza highlights its intriguing blend of a murder mystery with a deeply domestic, feelings-based narrative. She focuses on when and how events unfolded rather than why. She is successful in bringing the artistic vision to the production with her wealth of experience.

In terms of performance, Vivek Gomber and Sukant Goel, who play Robert (husband) and Jerry (friends/lover) respectively, played with fraught emotions, men who don’t speak their minds but take funny jabs at each other in any situation. Abir Abrar completes this unsettling love triangle as Emma, Robert’s wife and Jerry’s lover. The cast masterfully navigated the tightrope of mistrust/duplicity and loyalty while showcasing the empathy behind each betrayal-laden scene.

This popular theatrical production captivated its audiences with a beautifully captured love triangle that presents a searingly tender picture of fragile memories, wounded hearts and how easily our grasp over reality can unravel.