Zameen

Published Friday 25 April 2008 at 13:20 by Natalie Anglesey

Translated into English Zameen means land, and that’s exactly what this piece of political theatre is all about. However, the danger, in this genre, is that often worthy is not necessarily entertaining.

Written by Satinder Kaur Chohan, Zameen explores the serious issues of environmental damage and how GM seeds and Western pesticides are affecting the lives of many families on the south Asian sub-continent. She has tried to personalise these vast global issues by honing in on one family, setting the play in the cotton fields of the Punjab where, we’re told, last year two farmers a week committed suicide because of bankruptcy.

The play began promisingly with a particularly good performance from Bhasker Patel as the farmer facing disaster, whilst Goldy Notay also makes a mark as his loyal daughter Chandni, but other performances varied in quality.

Chohan’s piece emphasises that whilst the central problems of this work may seem distant, we consumers are complicit in our choices. Performed by the Kali Theatre Company, which specialises in work written by Asian women, it’s directed by Janet Steel. But, at over two hours, it’s far too long and much of the repetition and flowery imagery could easily be cut.

Whilst wishing to encourage the work of new, young playwrights - and there is promise in this piece - perhaps a delay in heralding the world premiere at this stage in its development would have been wiser, as it’s still a work in progress.