Relationships are usually complicated because society exerts so much pressure on us," says Makarand Deshpande

Zee Theatre recently launched Makarand Deshpande’s iconic play Sir Sir Sarla on TataSky Theatre. The teleplay which stars Makarand Deshpande, Aahana Kumra, Sanjay Dadhich and Anjum Sharma explores different dynamics of a student-teacher relationship.

Talking about the same, Makarand says “Sir Sir Sarla is about a professor and student’s relationship which is seemingly very innocent and morally right but then veers into a complex space when love enters the equation.”

The play, Makarand explains, begins at a time of youthful idealism when a student who loves literature is trying to discover a poet within but then inevitably has to learn the difference between flights of fancy and reality. Soon, the checks and balances by society also begin to exert pressure on the relationship between professor Palekar (Makarand) and student Sarla (Aahana Kumra). Complicating the situation even more is another student Phanidhar (Sanjay Dadhich) who loves Sarla.

How these three lives intersect each other over a period of time makes up for the rest of the narrative and Makarand says, “We experience so much pressure from traditions and belief systems that it stops us from speaking our heart out. Sometimes time just passes by and it is too late and a particular phase of love changes and you cannot hold on to it. Then you start wearing a mask, and behaving like someone else.

Without being yourself, life is only pain and tragedy. So, everything is about the right timing I think but society doesn’t allow you to be on your own timeline. That’s why they say if you really want to be in love, prepare yourself for war as well.”

As to how tough it is to work in the capacity of a writer, actor and director, he says, “What happens when I play the principal part is that the co-actors relate to me better and being a pivotal character, I too can help them to open up. It is difficult to act and direct but sometimes it’s the other way around as well. When I am acting, it is easy to interpret the character than if I was asking another actor to get a nuance right.”