KARACHI: The Arts Council of Pakistan’s annual Awami Theatre Festival began on Friday with a play titled Khwahish written and directed by Shakil Shah. Prior to the formal opening of the event, a large number of media persons went to the red carpet to get comments of the festival organisers and images of some of the participating artists. It was nice to notice that, because the red carpet is usually associated with the big events featuring stars from the world of glitz and glamour. Those who attended the inaugural segment of the festival included, among others, seasoned actors Shehzad Raza, Nazar Hussain, Adam Rathore, Rauf Lala, Noman Khan and Wajih Warsi. Khwahish (desire) has the elderly married couple (played by Shakil Shah and Shanzey) at its centre. They represent an ordinary middle-class household. The wife is always cribbing about one thing or another. For example, she laments not having enough wealth, a fact that gets aggravates when the family suffers from issues such as shortage of gas supply. She also complains about his married son not having children, forcing her daughter-in-law to request her husband to remarry; but he doesn’t. Shah is aware of the situation, so he treats her wife in an empathetic way and at the same time tries to politely tell her about the realities of life. Then there’s the character of her brother (Zakir Mastana), an effeminate man who wants to get hitched to Shah’s sister. Things turn around in the play when the wife meets an old, God-fearing man who teaches her about the limitations of human desires and the importance of surrendering to the will of God. Khwahish is a typically massy theatrical production with one-dimensional, loud characters, humorous one-liners and a strong social message. There were many people present on Friday in the council’s Auditorium No 2 to watch the drama. They enjoyed it very much. The highlight of the show was the performance of Shanzey. She is a nice actress who delivers her lines, even on a platform where actors are required to speak loudly, with a great deal of understanding and clear diction.