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Waleed Akhtar’s portrayal of friendships and relationships intertwined with the pressure of societal norms as always been interesting. For example, ‘The P Word’ follows two gay Pakistani men as they deal with casual hook-ups while dealing with UK’s hostile environment. Following up with this is Akhtar’s ‘The Real Ones’, looking into the platonic relationship between a gay man and his close ‘girl’friend, spanning over several years, whilst navigating their own issues.
Akhtar’s writing is always beautifully crafted beautifully in its realism, full of wit and dialogue that pushes the plot forward with a naturalistic approach to discussing its slow-burning and ever-present themes. Akhtar’s writing ensures this has plenty of depth to it, with multiple layers unravelling to reveal more about both Zaid and Neelam’s past and how it shapes who they are.
The relationships that Neelam and Zaid are in respectively, are secondary as Akhtar ensures to focus on Neelam and Zaid’s platonic relationship. The romantic interests are aware that they can be easily disappear, the interacts between them are fresh that keeps the story moving forward. The use of underlying narrative with the themes gives the dialogue more of an impact by exploring how the main characters deal with their hidden secrets. Be it sexuality or religion, the story looks into the complexities as both characters battle their own desires with who their family perceive as the perfect partner to them.
Nathanial Curtis and Mariam Haque portray Zaid and Neelam with raw passion. As Zaid, Curtis is great at masking his own insecurities as he comes to terms with his identity and how this might be perceived. Mariam Haque’s characterisation of Neelam is gripping from start to finish, with a seemingly brash character trying to balance the needs of others while discovering what she wants to.
‘The Real Ones’ is playing at The Bush Theatre until 26th October 2024. Get your tickets here: https://www.bushtheatre.co.uk/event/the-real-ones/
WRITTEN BY: Nura Arooj
