They had sex. She wants revenge

Director Akarsh Khurana glided his production house Akvarious from the campus to the professional circuit. Will he breeze through directing theatre veterans Shernaz Patel and father Akash Khurana in the controversial Blackbird, that premieres tonight?

"English theatre audiences are pretty flexible today. They appreciate comedies, musicals or a play that forces them to re-examine the taboos and concepts of love, abuse and closure, like this one, equally," says Akarsh Khurana about how Indian audiences will handle Scottish playwright David Harrower's 2005 Edinburgh festival hit Blackbird.

Inspired in part by the crimes of sex offender Toby Studebaker, the English play that premiers tonight depicts an emotionally charged encounter between a young woman and a jaded middle-aged executive with whom she had a relationship 20 years ago, when she was 15.

He disappears without a trace, and now, she is forcing him to revisit his past and get more than the revenge due. What both of them and the audience aren't in for, is a surprise ending.
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"Yet, Blackbird is not so much about paedophilia as about a tragic romance. The characters come with so much baggage that at the drama's core, is an unfulfilled love story," says the 29 year-old who has screen writing credits for Bollywood hits Krrish, U Me Aur Hum and unreleased Hrithik Roshan-starrer Kites, in his kitty.

u00a0Spearheading Akvarious Productions, a theatre group under which he directed Three's a Crowd, Afsaneh: Bai Se Biscope Tak, also keeps Akarsh busy. A play on his father's (noted actor Akash Khurana) zodiac sign Aquarius, and on the first names of his family's male members, the name turned out lucky for his group; they've morphed from a Thespo Fest newbie in 2000 to a dependable regular on the professional stage with projects like Afsaneh, The Shape of Things and A Special Bond.
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His father and theatre veteran Shernaz Patel were the director's first choice to bring to life this complicated relationship. "There was no question about who to cast," he says. They are acting together after 24 years, and the energy was palpable during the rehearsals. Shernaz and Akash feed off each other in the verbal volley their characters engage in.

"The most important thing on stage is to trust your co-actor," says Shernaz. This, and homework is what the young director feels Gen-Next actors should emulate from these thorough professionals. "They just don't switch off!"

On: March 14, 15 at 7 pm and 6.30 pm at Experimental Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point. Tickets: Rs 200. Call 66223724