How race and creed colour our friendships

"THIS Chord" could very well also sound like "discord", in notorious "local" pronunciation, and this play on the word is indicative of how Haresh Sharma's nuanced drama can be read on several levels.

That his 1991 play, This Chord and Others, still strikes a chord in today's stage is telling. The agelessness of the play comes from the universality of the subject of friendship, and then there's the intimate and honest picture of local race relations, cultural and generational differences that still define us, by and large, today.

This Chord tells a simple story, really, of three young men - Sukdev, Gerald and Thomas - who are colleagues with an easy-going camaraderie. Until the prospect of a job promotion shakes their bond that has thus far been predicated on their equal social standing.