Drama
Hamlet in Love
(A play for our times)
This is the concluding part of the play. The first and second parts appeared earlier.
Polonius: Impractical also in an emotional sense, yet then let's have the trial now, Ophelia is coming in a minute. You speak to her. [Ophelia comes in dressed in all white, and wearing some turmeric designs on both her hands up to the elbow. Her classmates all greet her, and she greets them back. They give her space to stand in such a way that she is fronting Hamlet as well as her father.] Polonius: Ophi, my dear, since your mother's death, I brought you up from a child both as father and mother. Now this friend of yours, who I thought was a brilliant student, is vowing to marry you, to which neither me, nor my trusted friends here can agree. We believe that your friend has a bright future awaiting him, and should avoid rushing into marriage. Ophelia (in a distinct voice): I won't speak false, father. Yes, I loved him, I truly love him still. His memory will never be effaced from my heart. But Ham, I won't marry you as I don't want to destroy your career, neither am I ready to wait for you until the time you'll become eligible to start a family. [In a weeping voice] Forgive me Ham, I've hurt you much, but I won't prolong your suffering, I'm flying next week to marry Cassio in New York. Macbeth: Ophi, that's not going to happen. We've sent your pictures with Ham to Cassio through Facebook. [Polonius and other directors (all looking stunned)]. Henry: What, you sent pictures! You dared to do that. Macbeth: Why not. And Cassio called me from America, saying that he won't have anything to do with a girl who had a lover. Ophelia: O, my God, why did you do that! (Still weeping) Ham, did you ask him to do that? Hamlet: Yes, hundred times! Especially the ones that we took at the Padma Resort. [Suddenly Antony puts his fingers into his mouth and gives out two very sharp whistles at which all the friends cry out]: Hip, hip, hooray, three cheers for the pictures, hip, hip, hooray. Prospero: Peace, peace, young people. This is an office; you must keep the office decorum. Polonius: I don't see any further reason for this meeting to continue. You go home; we'll see what we can do to expose your treacherous act to Cassio. [The young students come out of the office room in a most depleted mood.] Scene FiveLocation: Boundary wall of Ophelia's house. [In a fast-riding car. Antony on the wheel, beside him is Iago. Hamlet and Macbeth in the back seat. Around midnight. Loadshedding everywhere. But a bright round moon is shining. The car is going toward Baridhara.] Macbeth: Ham, are you sure that she will come to the wall? Hamlet: As sure as my hand here. See, touch it. My hand, my lovesame, same. Macbeth: Look Ham, it's bright moonshine everywhere, we must be spotted anytime. I've asked Rose and Guild to choose a point where some mango trees give heavy shade. But I want to know, Ham, for one last time, was it then all acting by her in the Board Room? Iago (overhearing them, turns back in his seat): Don't worry, if she doesn't come to the wall, I'll topple it, enter the house and knock on her window, and ask her whether she wants a live Hamlet or a dead one. Antony (laughing): You might be caught. Iago: No, I won't. I've rubbed mustard oil all over my body, and am wearing a loose sports jersey. It'll simply drop off my body if I desire so. Macbeth: Great Iago, you're still that greatest mischief master. Iago: Well everything goes for a friend. Macbeth: Anyway, if it was all acting, then I must say she's a great performer. Hamlet: We all are, Mac. Macbeth: Yes, we all are in real life. All players, playing our allotted times. Hamlet: You remember what you told me the other day: 'Life is a tale told by an idiot, all sound and fury signifying nothing.' Macbeth: That one? Yes, but . . . Hamlet: I mean we prove we're players, particularly when facing a choice. Macbeth: How do you mean? Hamlet: The jumping over the wall. Iago (jumping up in his seat): Yeah, the jumping over the wall. I understand that. You rub mustard oil on your body, you jump the wall or you deny your lover in front of your father. . . the same thing. Hamlet: I'm thankful to you Mac for sending Cassio the pictures. Macbeth: Don't thank me now. Let's get the job done first. [Antony pulls over the car near a big house in Baridhara. The main gate of the house is locked. Two security men inside the guard room snoring in deep sleep. Some dogs barking from far off. They find Rosencrantz and Guildenstern at a distance, fixing up a ladder to the wall in a dark spot. Iago gets down from the car and with catlike alacrity climbs over the wall and drops on the other side. No sound, except for the barking, is heard. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern pass the ladder over the wall to Iago. Some anxious moments pass. Antony, Hamlet and Macbeth, waiting in desperate tension inside the car, whose engine is whining on a low sound. Hamlet rings up Ophelia from his mobile. But her mobile is off.] [Inside the wall, Iago finds nobody. He silently puts off his overall, nothing on his body except for a brief trunk. He topples over the ground, but rises up and by some quick jumps reaches down under Ophelia's room. Taking help of a nearby tree, he glides up the railing and softly taps on the window. But there's nothing stirring inside. By a superb technique he unlatches one of the panes, slides it open, but finds nobody inside. He intends to call up Hamlet but realizes that he has left the set inside the jumper. He's at a loss what to do. At that moment he sees a figure clad in dark materializing itself from the downstairs near the pump-house. He recognizes it to be Ophelia's. In a blink he hurls himself down on the ground, signals to Ophelia to keep shut. Ophelia gives a silent shriek looking at his naked body, Iago quickly wears his jumper, and they both come close to the wall. Iago helps Ophelia climb the ladder and on to the wall, passes the ladder over to the waiting Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Ophelia climbs down on the other side, and in a moment she gets into the car and is whisked off. Nobody in the house detects anything. It remains as silent as before.] Scene Six
Location: At Dhanmondi Kazi office. [At 10 o'clock in the morning. Dhanmondi Kazi Office. All Hamlet's friends are present, some curious crowd too. The Kazi and a Moulavi are present in their regular outfits. Another two persons are also present whom they cannot at once recognize. Hamlet and Ophelia are sitting in chairs side by side. The others also sit accordingly.] [The Kazi asks his assistant to bring out the marriage registration book from the file cabinet. He opens the book turns to a particular page and writes all important information on the book. Hamlet signs and Ophelia signs and the Moulavi recites a verse from the Holy Koran, and Hamlet and Ophelia now become husband and wife and shake hands with everybody. A munajat is offered. At that moment suddenly police whistle is heard, and enters the OC of Dhanmondi Police along with a warrant to arrest Hamlet on charge of elopement and seduction.] [The Kazi stands up and says to the OC]: The Kazi: Mr. OC, I'm as much a government officer as you are. I've supervised their marriage just a while ago. The girl is not under-aged. Her birth certificate is here. Just verify it. It's not a case of seduction or elopement; it's a pure and simple regular marriage, barring the permission of the guardians. The OC: Kazi Shaheb, whatever you've to say in defence, say it in the court, the complaint is lodged by the daughter's father at the Baridhara Thana, and I've been instructed by the IG office to go for immediate action. The Kazi: OC Shaheb, I'm not actually the Kazi, the Kazi is sitting over there. The Moulavi: I'm not the Moulavi either, the Moulavi is sitting over there. The OC: Who are you both then? The Kazi: I'm Henry Bolingbroke, a managing partner with Mr. Polonius of Ophelia Constructions. The Moulavi: I'm Richard Gloucester of Apparels Community, and also a director of Ophelia Constructions. OC: Ok, sirs, my honour. But what is this drama for? Henry Bolingbroke: Well, the daughter's father is on his way here, along with our other partners, Prospero and Shylock. We upstaged this show to test the strength of the love of this young couple. Richard Gloucester: Yes, we don't want to give away our friend's daughter into unreliable hands. So we wanted him to prove his heroism, and he has done it, so has our daughter here. Henry Bolingbroke: It's all settled now, but wait for the arrival of our friends. [Loud honking heard outside the Kazi office, and hastily enters Mr. Polonius from his Pajero along with Mr. Prospero and Mr. Shylock. The young people all stand up in reverence, and Mr. Polonius gestures at them to sit down.] Polonius: Henry, I hope you've explained the situation to this pair of young brats. Henry: You can actually congratulate them, because they have already become married. Shylock: May I just take a look at the papers signed? The real Kazi (now taking his seat): Please, you do. Polonius: Ophi, listen carefully, though you're now married, you'd better stay in my house until the time you both finish your education. Hamlet: That's a point sir I humbly beg you to leave to us to decide. Polonius: Then, as my gift and thine own acquisition worthily purchased take my daughter. Prospero: But if thou stop her education or make her become a mother before she completes it, we'll not help this contract grow: but barren hate, sour-eyed disdain and discord shall bestrew the union of your bed with weeds so loathly that you shall hate it both: therefore take heed, as marriage lamps shall light on you. Hamlet: As I hope, for quiet days, fair issue and long life, with such love as 'tis now, I shall never melt mine honour into lust. Polonius: Fairly spoke. Sit then and talk with her; she is thine own. Antony: Giving out sharp whistles. Three cheers for Hamlet and Ophelia . . . hip, hip, hooray! [Others repeat the 'hip hip hooray' and they go out of the Kazi office jostling and singing, and jumping and dancing. But they are called back by Shylock as cartloads of boxes of sweet arrive to celebrate the marriage.] [Another popular English song is heard, and they all eat and dance.] The end
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments