Neha Poddar and Shubhayan Sengupta in The Second Innings

The Indianised version of Neil Simon’s comedy Chapter Two saw a strong turnout at Kala Kunj on Sunday evening. Titled The Second Innings — Another chance at love and life, the play was presented by Theatrecian in association with t2.

Directed by Neha Poddar, who also played the female lead, the story revolved around four characters. While writer Karan (played by Shubhayan Sengupta) is trying to get over his wife Megha’s death, his brother Arjun (played by Aditya Sengupta) is trying to keep his own marriage from falling apart. Actress Anjali (played by Neha), on the other hand, has just come out of a failed marriage. That’s when Anjali’s confused but heart-warming friend Koel (played by Prerona Sanyal) coaxes her and Karan to date. The rest of the play dwells on how neither is ready for a relationship but are drawn to each other after the first telephonic conversation.

Low lighting, clever use of props and sets — designed by Neha Poddar — underlined the separate lives of the two protagonists. A sofa set in pastel shades on one side of the stage was Anjali’s living room, while a black sofa set spoke of Karan’s emotional state.

Debarati Chakraborty

Pictures by Arnab Mondal