I, Bose (2007), Review

I, Bose examines the life of Indian freedom fighter Netaji Subash Chandra Bose and the twisted political games criss-crossing countries that eventually led to his alleged death. The approach Elangovan adopted, both as a playwright and a director, was taken straight from the textbook. I, Bose was more tell than show: often, I felt like I was attending a history class as Ahamed Ali Khan (as Bose) stood before me and spouted a seemingly endless stream of names, dates and figures. There was also little that was particularly inspired about the presentation even when an ensemble cast was brought in to dramatize some of the scenes – white plastic masks, plain black t-shirts, that sort of thing. At the same time, the straightforward, no-frills storytelling managed to hold my attention because of the genuinely interesting facts of the man's life and the sincere performances by all the actors, even if they were a little raw in delivery (one suggestion: have the actors adopt a single, universal accent rather than the plethora of international accents that the cast clearly could not handle). Many may well find I, Bose tedious but I feel there is much to be said for the fire in the company's guerilla-style approach to their theatre of anger.