Kiran Nadar Museum of Art forays into performing arts with a theatre festival

Expanding its repertoire of multi-disciplinary artistic expression, New Delhi-based Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA) is now making its foray into the performing arts with the launch of its inaugural theatre festival. Set against the historic backdrop of Sunder Nursery in the heart of the capital, the curated festival focuses on contemporary theatre’s role in addressing current societal vulnerabilities, including class, religion, location, gender and sexuality. 

“The aim is to make arts accessible. The theatre festival is the next step in strengthening KNMA’s multidisciplinary programming, building on initiatives such as Legacy Series, Centre Stage Festival and KNMA in the Park,” said Kiran Nadar. 

Bhaagi Hui Ladkiyan by Aagaaz Repertory
| Photo Credit:
Courtesy: KNMA

Bengaluru-based actor, director and filmmaker Kirtana Kumar, who is the festival’s curator, wanted to put together play that explore new material as well as encourage conversations about how people are making plays today. “The focus this time is contemporary theatre because I am interested in knowing what artistes in the subcontinent are saying in the contemporary metier — what theatrical forms and languages they are exploring and what issues excite them. How do they create, where is the money, what is their inspiration, what do they wish to express,” she said.  

The curatorial vision for the festival centres on the theme ‘The Power of Vulnerability.’ Kirtana had been writing a paper on vulnerability in the context of post-colonialism and the rehearsal room, so she thought it would be great to extend this to the theme of the festival. “To reframe vulnerability as a thing of beauty and creativity. I wanted to invite people, plays, ideas and forms that don’t always get national attention,” she said. 

Notion(s): In Between You & Me by Savita Rani is a devised solo performance
| Photo Credit:
Courtesy: KNMA

The festival will open with Beesu Kamsale, an acrobatic folk form associated with men of the Halu Kuruba community of the Malé Mahadeshwara hills, near the Mysuru regions of Chamrajnagar and Mandya. This will be followed by The Nights presented by the Katkatha Puppet Arts Trust, a puppet homage to the Syrian, Chinese and Indian versions of the Arabian Nights. Another immersive puppet experience by the group, Enchanted Walk, welcomes the audience into a wonderland full of insects. Further, adapted from the Aranyakanda of the Ramayana, Vali Vadha tells the story of the two vanaras or forest-dwelling brothers, Vali and Sugreeva. 

Then, Love and Information by Mohit Takalkar mirrors the rapid pace of channel-hopping or social media scrolling, touching on an array of themes such as memory atrophy, privacy erosion, an alienation from the self and the decay of genuine emotion. Portal Waiting by Abhi Tambe, an intimate aural-theatre experience, is a performance that is both storytelling and rock show. Wepushthesky is a solo performance by Nisha Abdulla that weaves together song, story, myth and history to talk about friendships that are lost, found and lasting. Notion(s): In Between You & Me by Savita Rani is a devised solo performance that draws on one woman’s name, rage and journey of mowing through religion, region, caste, gender and race. 

Project Darling by Bengaluru-based Dramanon
| Photo Credit:
Courtesy: KNMA

Through fantasy, song, dance and dialogue, Talki via Bengaluru brings together transwomen from various walks of life, including activists, writers, mothers and community leaders. All of them are over the age of 55 and have experienced romance, survival and the human fight for dignity. Juxtaposing documentary footage, photos and soundscapes, along with the theatricality of clown, song, dance and puppetry, Project Darling shines a light on female sexuality in the crosshairs of censorship and culture. Woven from personal experiences, Before Your Eyes is a collective expression of bodies that have endured caste and sexual violence, co-devised by members of Freeda and Maraa. Bhaagi Hui Ladkiyan by Aagaaz Repertory are retellings of daily life in Nizamuddin Basti in Delhi. Be-Loved is an anthological exploration of queer love through theatre, music, poetry and movement. 

In curating this festival, Kirtana also had her eye on the future. “How do we create a rock solid template that will be possible to replicate with other themes and other curators in the future? How do we draw the community in, and join the dots between the theme and both audience and artistes? The essence of contemporaneity lies in democratic practice that include creative ideas such as co-authorship and the value of lived experience,” she added.  

Alongside the performances, the festival also includes a workshop, a lecture demonstration and a symposium, fostering discussions among performance theorists, students and practitioners. In fact, one of the festival sessions is a workshop on transcultural curation.  

The KNMA Theatre Festival will take place at Sunder Nursery, New Delhi, from October 14 to 20.