She’s an Actress

Geeta Sardana

Whoever imagined that Geeta Sardana is a theatre actress of no mean caliber? Little known to us, she had been quietly rehearsing all these days for the lead role (female) in a play being staged by ISKCON, Juhu. And this morning, much to our surprise, she called at the Garden to extend an open invitation to all for a show at the temple auditorium at 3:00 pm tomorrow.
The name of the play has been deliberately kept secret. Nor has she revealed the character or role she would be playing. Clearly, she wants to keep it all in suspense so that everyone would throng ISKCON theatre in huge numbers out of curiosity. But being a highly imaginative group, there has been intense speculation (from the time her call came) on what the lady is up to.
Is she playing Radha from some episode of Krishna Leela? After all, it is an ISKCON play and the Radha-Krishna myth is an abiding staple for the religious organisation.

All ears on Santosh Tyagi

But given her age, can Geeta be playing a young Radha? If she is, would there be a comparably old Krishna? Is it conceivable to have a ‘superannuated’ Radha-Krishna romance? Or maybe, Geeta isn’t even playing Radha in the first place. She would appropriately fit Radha’s mother’s role. Who is Radha’s mother, does anybody know? Or is it Krishna’s mother Geeta is enacting?
Nobody had any answer to any of these questions. But with imagination running wild, the hilarity accompanying such idle speculation was a fitting wrap-up to an unusually happy, if busy week. The picnic hangover from last Saturday, mosquito menace, confusion over veg and non-veg food and so on were to also find echo in Santosh Tyagi’s jokes this morning. In fact, her narrations are increasingly assuming philosophical overtones with deep insights into human values, common fallacies, gender relations and many such existential problems.