Roshne Balasubramanian By Express News Service CHENNAI: Earlier in June, fans and co-artistes of theatre personality ‘Crazy’ Mohan bid a tearful farewell to the the king of one-liners, who passed away due to cardiac arrest. Even three months later, tributes for the ace scriptwriter haven’t stopped pouring in. Mirrorz, a two-year-old semi-performing theatre company led by its founder Navaneeth Krishnan will be staging its seventh production as a tribute to the late thespian. Fittingly titled Crazy Cinemas, the play will give the audience a taste of Tamil cinema as we know it. The play will feature iconic characters penned by ‘Crazy’ Mohan The play will be peppered with subtle film politics and slick humour, and will also feature actors donning the names of iconic characters penned by ‘Crazy’ Mohan. From Michael, Madhan, Kameshwaran and Raju — characters from the 1990 film Michael Madana Kama Rajan — to Vendhantham and Mythili from Panchathanthiram, the play will be a cross-over of sorts that will tickle the funny bones of the audience. Ask Navaneeth, the director and scriptwriter of the play, if the artistes will also reprise the roles of said characters and he says, “These are iconic characters. We have taken inspiration only from the attributes of these characters and weaved them with our own. Every character in this play is a homage to Mohan Sir. The way he has sketched and wrote the characters, and the way they were executed is brilliant. We are shouldering a huge responsibility here.” A “hardcore fan” of the comic genius, Navaneeth painfully recalls how the news of Mohan’s demise was a rude shock. “We couldn’t believe that he was gone. I grew up watching his movies. He was the one who influenced me to step into the theatre industry. We wanted to stage a show, a compilation of our admiration towards him,” he shares. The play will be a borderline satirical take on the journey of a “London-return” director who wants to make it big in the Tamil film circuit and revolutionise it. With clashing sensibilities, slip-ups, and commercial film making versus art film making drama unfolding in the background — does the director achieve his dreams? The answer to the question forms the premise of the play. “The protagonist wants to make films of substance. But the people he meets on his journey derail his expectations. Expectations versus reality becomes the sub-plot,” he says. The quintessential cinema-fare chocolate boy, mustache-twirling villain, the helpless heroine, the heroine’s mother who accompanies her to the shoot and every other film staple will be portrayed. The team comprising Premikaa Pitcheshwar, Anirudh, Ramalingam, Akshaya Manogaran, Dinesh (co-writer), Deepan, Raghav, Pragathi, Nikki, Yegnaraman, Ashwanth, Akilesh (lights), assisted by Avinash have been rehearsing for the last 55-odd days. “We also have a lot of newcomers and artistes from different walks of life this time,” he says. The 90-minute play, after marking its debut in Chennai will also be taken to other cities including Tiruchy and Coimbatore. Crazy Cinemas will be staged today, 4 pm and 7 pm at Alliance Francaise of Madras. Tickets are priced from `200 onwards. For details, visit: www.bookmyshow.com or contact: 9042718674

Stay updated with all the Chennai Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.