INTRODUCTORY LINES:

Good afternoon respected teachers and my dear friends. Today, we are here to present a short play based on
the novel Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard written by Kiran Desai.
It is the story of a young man, Sampath Chawla, who feels suffocated in ordinary life. Tired of his job, his
family’s expectations, and the noise of society, he runs away and climbs a guava tree. To everyone’s surprise,
people start believing he is a holy man with special powers.
What follows is both funny and thoughtful—a tale of how society creates saints out of ordinary men. Let us
now take you to the world of Shahkot, a fictional town of Punjab, where this unusual story begins.
Before we begin, it is my honour to present before you the characters who will bring this story to life.
MUSKAN as Mr. Chawla
DEEPTI as Kulfi
MOHITA as Amma ji
ARADHIKA as Pinky
RIYA as Sampath
NOHITA as Spy
and I CHANCHAL as your narrator
Our story begins at the house of Mr. Chawla. His wife, Kulfi, is expecting her baby any time soon. But instead of
resting, she is throwing her strange tantrums—demanding unusual foods that no one can find.
SCENE 1 – MR. CHAWLA’S HOUSE
Kulfi: Oh God! I want to eat something really good today.
Amma ji: Have some food, dear.
Kulfi: No, Amma ji. I want something exotic… delicious… this monsoon is making me restless.
Amma ji: You should eat something for now. Remember, you need more nutrition for your child.
Kulfi: But I don’t feel like eating this plain food. I want something natural, something rare.
Amma ji: Fine, I’ll talk to your husband when he comes home today.
Mr. Chawla: (entering, wiping sweat) Hey dear, I’m home! How are you? It’s burning hot outside… this drought
must end soon.
Kulfi: Welcome home, dear. Sit down and take some rest.
Mr. Chawla: (surprised) What’s this? Why are there pictures all over the wall?
Kulfi: (smiling shyly) I was craving all these dishes… so I drew them instead of eating.
Narrator: Kulfi’s strange cravings and endless restlessness finally reach their end. As the skies break open with
rain, a cry is heard—the cry of a newborn. On this stormy night, Sampath Chawla is born, bringing both relief
and hope to his family.

SCENE 2:20 years later ------

Narrator: Twenty years have gone by in Shahkot. The little baby is now Sampath Chawla—grown, but still lost
in daydreams. He works in the local post office, but instead of doing his job, he spends his time secretly
opening and reading other people’s letters. Always curious, always restless.
Sampath: I’m so bored! I don’t want to sit in this dull office. These walls suffocate me. I want to live free—
under trees, with the sky above.
(throws papers) Stupid people writing stupid letters! Well, at least this nonsense isn’t boring. Anyway, I must
rush—my boss’s daughter’s wedding awaits.
Narrator: The day of his boss’s daughter’s wedding arrived. Instead of behaving with respect, Sampath found
the bottles of liquor. One drink led to another, and soon he was drunk — stumbling, singing, and making a fool
of himself before everyone. And soon after he is fired from his job.
Mr. Chawla: (furious) You fool! Fired again? You never studied properly, you never worked properly. You’re
good for nothing! Don’t cry—go find another job tomorrow!
Pinky: Papa, sometimes we forget that everyone has a different dream. Maybe Bhaiya just wants something
we don’t understand yet
(telling Sampath) It’s okay, brother. Don’t worry, everything will be fine.
Sampath: (frustrated) I don’t know what I’m doing anymore. This house feels like a prison. I don’t want to stay
here. I want to be free!
Pinky: (holding his hand) I’m with you, always.
Kulfi: Don’t worry, son. I understand you. Even I feel the same way sometimes.
Pinky: Have you eaten? Here—have this guava.
Sampath: (brightening) Thank you, sister… thank you, Mumma.
Pinky: See, brother? Even a small fruit can give joy. Sometimes life’s sweetness is hidden in simple things.
Narrator: After eating the guava he gets refreshed but feel still humiliated and restless. Sampath wanders
away from home. Soon, he reaches a quiet guava orchard. Drawn by its stillness, he climbs a guava tree, and
refuses to come down, as if escaping the world below—and there, his strange new journey begins.
Mr. Chawla: (calling out) Sampath! Come down, son. You don’t need to do this. I forgive you!
Kulfi: Yes, my child. Come down.
Sampath: No! Here, among the trees, I feel peace… freedom… joy.
Mr. Chawla: (angrily) Stupid fellow! You’ll never understand life.
Kulfi: (firmly) Let him be. If he’s happy here, let him stay. In fact, I’ll enjoy being here too. Amma ji, you cook
for the others—I'll only cook for my Sampath.
Amma ji: Alright dear… (looking at Pinky) Come, Pinky, you’ll help me.
Pinky: Sure, Amma ji.

SCENE 3 – The Chaos in the Orchard

Narrator: Perched on the guava tree, Sampath begins to observe people who gather below. Working earlier in
the post office, he had read many private letters. Now, when curious villagers ask questions, he repeats details
he already knows from those letters. To them, it feels like divine knowledge, and slowly they believe he is no
ordinary man but a saint. Crowds begin to gather, bringing offerings, seeking blessings — and Sampath, by
accident, becomes the ‘Holy Man of Shahkot’.
Spy: (aside) I know he isn’t a saint. I’ll catch him red-handed. But how? Maybe his mother feeds him
something suspicious. I must investigate.
(whispers to Kulfi) Excuse me, Ma’am… what are you cooking?
Kulfi. Meal for my son...
Spy: what is in it?
Kulfi: Pure love and pure ingredients.
Spy: can I have some?
Kulfi: No it is only for my son
Spy: (to audience) I am sure it is full of drugs...
Narrator: As days passed, Sampath’s fame grew. People came from far and wide to hear the saint on the guava
tree. But Mr. Chawla, ever practical, saw not holiness but business. He began charging people money — selling
tickets to hear Sampath speak, arranging queues, and turning devotion into profit.
Mr. Chawla: (angry, desperate) Tickets! Buy tickets if you want the saint’s words!
Sampath: (clutching branches, exhausted) This is not peace. This is prison. I wanted freedom, not fame. If only
I could escape… become a guava, simple and free.
Narrator: The orchard soon turns into chaos. Monkeys swing from branch to branch, snatching food from the
devotees. What began as a place of worship now looks like a fair gone wild — laughter, fear, and noise all
tangled together. Amidst this madness, Sampath sits still, higher up on his tree, watching it all unfold.
And suddenly – he transforms becoming a huge Guava.
Kulfi: (in shock, yet calm) My son… even as a fruit, you’ve found your peace.
Mr. Chawla: (helpless) First he defied me, now even nature has taken him away.
Narrator: The monkeys carry the guava-Sampath away. The spy stumbles—and falls into Kulfi’s cooking pot.
And so, Sampath’s restless search for freedom reached its strange conclusion. He turned into a guava—simple,
silent, yet finally at peace. Sampath’s story reminds us that running away from life cannot give us peace. True
wisdom is not in escaping the world, but, in facing it with courage. This is not just the tale of one man, but a
reminder that sometimes, freedom lies beyond the ordinary paths of life.
With this, we bring our play to an end. Thank you.