A review on Pakistani Crime-Investigation theatre play, Court Martial (2019). This play was performed at NAPA International Theatre Festival 2019.
+ Crew
- Directed by Zia Mohiuddin
- Written by Sudesh Deepak
- Costume Designing by Syeda Maha Ali
- Lighting by Masood-u-Rehman
- Produced by NAPA
+ Note
Court Martial takes place in an Indian army court room where it emerges during the trial scene is a highly gripping drama about the circumstances that led the soldier to commit the crime. The writer brilliantly exposes the manner in which a class-ridden society hides the truth to preserve the status quo.
I have previously watched this play, performed at FTC; Karachi a couple of years back where Stage Nomad Productions were behind its effort while one of the major roles of Col. Surat Singh was played by NAPA’s one of the best young actors… Farhan Alam.
NAPA hopes that the performances were enjoyable for the audience and critics during this International Theatre Festival. The support by them is essential for the efforts to enrich the cultural ecology of the nation.
+ Full Cast
- Mazhar Suleman as Col. Surat Singh
- Ubaid Iqbal as Salakar Judge
- Ahad Taqueer as Judge #1
- Samhan Ghazi as Judge #2
- Gazain Abbas as Col. Rawat
- Zain Ul Abedin Qureshi as Maj. Ajay Puri
- Zohair Zubair as Cap. Bekash Roy
- Faizan Chawla as Cap. Dr. Gupta
- Malik Farhan Aziz as Captain B.D. Kapoor
- Abdul Hafeez as Subadar Balawan Singh
- Essa Khan as Ram Chandar
- Asfand Yar as Guard #1
- Ansar Mahar as Guard #2
+ Plot
It is about the trial of a young, upright Indian soldier who has shot dead his commanding officer.
+ High Points
i – A superb script, brings out the character’s emotional pain and merges with audience. They felt every ounce of pain as the characters did.
ii – Finally! I was able to watch a gripping directorial play by respected Zia Mohiuddin; able to bring the play closer to the script’s intense scenes.
iii – A praiseworthy performance Farhan Malik Aziz who played the role of Captain B.D. Kapoor, the antagonist of this play. For Farhan to play this part, it turned out to be a wise decision.
iv – A new comer, Zohair Zubair played the role of Cap. Bekash Roy, defending lawyer. The actor understood this role & the script’s demand well enough, before pulling it off.
v – Mazhar Suleman played the role of Col. Surat Singh, who gives a solid performance as an intelligent judge. Other Honorable Mentions: Rest of the cast.
vi – The costumes looked official and authentic to their characters.
vii – Good job behind the lighting; in timely fashion, the lights were focused and faded on the stars.
+ Low Points
i – Same issue with Zia Mohiuddin’s play… production design. Really, don’t think that this is important for any play?
+ Overall
Court Martial is a realistic thriller where its strong performances leaves behind a tremendous impact.
Rate: 4.0 out of 5 stars
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