Jump, a black comedy featuring Dilnaz Irani and Sanjay Sonu, explores the complexities of the suicidal mind

September is observed as the Suicide Prevention Month and to mark it, Elsewhere staged Jump, a black comedy, at Tagore Theatre on Friday. The play was an attempt to understand the intricacies and complexities of the suicidal mind.

Written and directed by Maneesh Verma, and produced by Collective Madness Studios, the play was an unusual love story that signified the power of a true and simple human connection. The play was set in Mumbai.

On a gloomy night, atop a Mumbai high-rise, a professionally successful woman stood on the verge of suicide. Just in time, a taxi driver intervened. This serendipitous encounter ignited a humorous, poignant, and profoundly transformative conversation.

Maneesh, a graduate from the NSD, said the production emerged from a life-altering experience where, as a mountaineer, he survived a catastrophic avalanche in October 2022, which claimed 29 lives. This encounter with mortality and the fact that, in a post-pandemic world, loneliness has emerged as a global health concern, inspired him to explore contemporary issues of suicide, depression, and mental health, especially in an urban landscape.

Jump, a two-actor play performed in Hindi and English, featured Dilnaz Irani and Sanjay Sonu. Dilnaz has a diverse career spanning over 20 years in film, theatre, and television, and she has participated in over 55 theatre productions across multiple languages. Also, from NSD, Sanjay is a prominent film and theatre actor.