When an Indian businessman rang Aidey Pugh out of the blue and offered to fly him and his fellow thespians out to Calcutta, the actor thought someone was having him on.
But fast forward two months and the drama company, Murder One, is today set to jet off to Mumbai to stage what they believe to be the first ever murder mystery dinner ever hosted in India. Director, producer, and writer of Coffin On The Catwalk Aidey, and his eight fellow actors, will be performing the show at a launch event for the makers of Royal Salute whisky.
The 36-year-old of Hollingworth Close, Skipton, said the furthest he had ever been from home before was Spain. He added: "I am very excited about going to India, but not quite as excited as the other actors because I've been sorting out the practicalities like getting the visas and making blood."
Aidey set up the WhoDunnit murder mystery company Murder One in the early 1990s. It has staged events across the country for more than a decade, in hotels, on cruises and on trains, and performed for businesses, including Airtours, BT, Currys, IBM, KPMG, and NTL.
But Aidey said the call from Lalit Kewalramani, a senior manager for the Indian events management company ShowHouse, on January 2, had left him stunned. He said: "I thought it was a hoax and it was one of the other actors winding me up, because they offered to fly us all out to Calcutta.
"But the senior manager came out to see the show, and my feet haven't touched the ground in the last two months."
Aidey's fiance Theresa King, works as a barristers clerk in Bradford. He said: "I tried to get her to go with us and play a dead body but she refused."
The troupe will be performing the show, which revolves around a fictitious English fashion company called The Colour Conspiracy, in Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi over the next six days. The actors, all from Yorkshire, will be in character throughout the event and mingle with the guests.
He added: "We are hoping to take the country by storm because there has never been anything like this there before."
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