In a light 372 pages, Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner covers a lot of ground: the fall of Afghanistan, the rise of the Taliban, the father who fails his son, and the son who fails his father. At The Cuckoo Club, Bandra, a trio of father and his sons is hoping to succeed with their adaptation of The Kite Runner. Akash Khurana, who is being directed by his son Akarsh, says, "It's not about the relationship per se; it's just a great thing for an actor to be working with such an excellent director. Because I'm fussy: I have expectations and high benchmarks. That leads to my popularity as well as unpopularity. But, he fits the bill in terms of those prerequisites: sensibility, craft, handling, taking the good stuff out of me and with all the actors."

In the air-conditioned amphitheatre, the heat and dust of 1990s Kabul is being recreated with toy guns, kites and Nokia phones the size of walkie-talkies. The story, adapted by American playwright Matthew Spangler, follows Amir (Nipun Dharmadhikari), born in wealth, and Hassan (Abhishek Saha), born without, two rug rats who are chasing kites, bullies and the tail end of their childhood. Adhaar, Akarsh's brother, plays Assef, the antagonist, first in Pashtun clothing, then in Taliban fatigues. "I was told I was Assef, but now I'm playing four parts," says Adhaar. "We've done a lot of children's plays together, in which you end up playing multiple parts. So, it's now second nature to be doubling up." The Khuranas go the extra mile for each other, because the stage is their second home.