As a teenager with four brothers and sisters, I was always involved in various cultural activities. Till the age of 14, I nursed serious acting ambitions. My mama (uncle) headed our family drama circuit, Sepala. We used to stage informal shows before an audience comprising friends and relatives at my uncle’s Shyambazar house. There was a local school which allowed us to hold shows in its auditorium during the vacations.

In one such show, we staged a Sukumar Ray comedy, Lakshmaner Shaktishel, based on an episode from The Ramayan. I was supposed to play the role of Lakshman. My uncle, the director of the play, was to play Ram. As Lakshman, I had to become unconscious after a fight with Ravan and, in a particularly funny scene, was to be carried by attendants (actually neighbourhood boys dressed as monkey-soldiers) to Ram.The dialogue was very funny. During the rehearsal of this scene, my uncle would often ask me to leave the room, laugh to my heart’s content and then return.

Naturally, on the day of the show, I took extra precautions. I asked the attendants who were supposed to carry me to put me down in such a way that my face was away from the audience. I thought that way I would be able to giggle without it being noticed by the audience.

Unfortunately, they miscalculated. I tried my best to control my laughter. But it was not one of my lucky days. The next thing I knew, I was being scolded by my angry uncle while the curtain came down. The audience was also in splits. They had just seen the supposedly unconscious Lakshman shaking uncontrollably. That, alas, was my last appearance at our drama society show. Even today, when I look back, I feel that had my uncle included giggles in his script, all would have been well. It was a comedy show anyway and the audience did find it amusing. Who knows, my acting skills might have taken me places.