Sunshine Boys
Tuesday, April 14, 2009

APB's maiden production is an adaptation of Neil Simon's "Sunshine Boys". The original script set in New York City in the sixties is adapted by corporate lawyer Percival Billimoria to contemporary India and featured a scene in a Mumbai chawl.

The adaptation of "Sunshine Boys" ran to a full house at the India Habitat Centre and received a standing ovation.

The play was also directed by Percival Billimoria who also played the pivotal role of "Fali Daruvala" a bitter old man who sought to revive his career as a comedian after he was deserted by his partner 11 years ago. The other pivotal role was that of his former partner, Gurvinder Galgotia which was played by Dr. Sanjeev Johri, a physiotherapist while renowned author Omair Ahmad played the role of Bahram, Fali's nephew. Designer Chandni Mehra featured in a double role as the nurse.

"We should all learn to laugh… at others as well as ourselves" Percival Billimoria said after the show. Having just completed a performance which had the audience rolling in laughter, Percival said that what was most satisfying is when people were surprised to learn that this was the first time he was doing theatre after dabbling in it during his college days. "That's what APB is all about" he said. "We don't want established actors since the idea is to discover new talent which is not otherwise on display simply because there are a lot of talented people out there who have full time jobs and can't imagine themselves doing this."

The Amateurs Performers Bureau ("APB") is established with the objective of providing a platform to professionals and people who have full-time jobs to display their talent in performing arts.

APB never depends on corporate sponsorships or government grants. The idea is to produce commercially successful ventures so that future productions become self-sustaining.