Hyderabad’s Manam Theatre Festival: Five plays you must not miss

1. Elephant in the Room by Dur Se Brothers (Mumbai): Directed by Yuki Ellias, this multi-award-winning play is the story of Master Tusk, a young boy, who has been given a new head — an elephant's head. Confused and bewildered, he finds himself lost in the forest. Danger lurks at every turn. He encounters a motley couple — Makadi (spider) and Moork (poacher), a clumsy duo in search of a big-ticket ransom. They kidnap Master Tusk, but their scheme goes awry when a prophecy is revealed and changes everything. Amidst a cursed love affair, an encounter with an eccentric old elephant and a hunt for a missing head, Master Tusk sets off on an adventure that changes his life. But will he be able to carry his head on his shoulders? Inspired by the world of Indian mythology, Elephant in the Room, written by Sneh Sapru and based on a story by Yuki Ellias, is a quirky and poignant reinterpretation of his story, which pays homage to the beloved God, Lord Ganapati. Yuki Ellias, actor, director and business coach, has performed in the US, Canada, Australia, Italy and India. She is known for her portrayal of Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, directed by Tim Supple at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford Upon Avon and the Roundhouse London. Her theatre company, Dur Se Brothers, has produced four shows, including Elephant in the Room which has toured internationally, including a run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2017.

2. Bali by Adishakti (Puducherry): An excerpt from the Indian epic Ramayana, Adishakti’s Bali was written by Nimmy Raphel. It is a retelling of the various events that led up to the battle between Bali and Ram, and eventually, the death of Bali. The play explores the notion of right or wrong and how it may change when each and every character is given an opportunity to voice their thoughts and opinions. Here, Bali’s death is placed in the centre and a personal take is presented that will enable us to transition seamlessly-back and forth — from the epic to the everyday and vice versa. The play presents powerful moments through alternate and opposing points of views of Bali, Tara, Sugriva, Angadha, Ram and Ravan based on their own ethics and contexts. Written and directed by Nimmy Raphel, the play features Vinay Kumar, Arvind Rane, Ashiqa Salvan, Kiyomi Mehta, Sooraj S, Subodh Subrahmanya, Meedhu Miriyam. Based out of Puducherry, Adishakti Laboratory for Theatre Arts & Research is a performance company engaged in the research and reanimation of traditional and folk knowledge in theatre, dance, music, movement, and craft forms. Started in 1981 by late theatre director Veenapani Chawla, it aims at re-establishing the validity of theatre around the notion of the live presence of the performer and worked towards widening the scope of theatre. The aim is to equip the performer with tools whereby she can impact her audience through an enhanced and vibrating energy both physically and psychologically.

3. Afghanistan Is Not Funny by Henry Naylor (UK): Soon after 9/11, researching a comedy project, multi award-winning playwright Henry Naylor and photographer Sam Maynard landed in the Afghan War Zone. What followed was extraordinary: threatened by a war criminal, captured by the Mujahideen, and targeted by Al-Qaeda. Now, as the Taliban return, Naylor asks what has been lost in the ruins of Kabul. Written and directed by Naylor, the solo play is also performed by Naylor, a multi-award-winning UK playwright, who has been described as ‘one of our best new playwrights’ in The Times and The Evening Standard. He has been termed as ‘one of the finest British writers on contemporary events,’ in Theatre Extra. His plays have won, and/or been nominated for 33 international awards, including one of France’s most prestigious awards for the arts, the Globes De Cristal in 2016. He is one of the only handful of writers to have won the Fringe First three times and has won four of the top five Fringe awards at the Edinburgh Fringe, including the Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award. Three of his plays have had month-long runs off-Broadway, and in 2017 alone there were over 300 public performances of his work, over five continents. His work has been translated into eight languages.

4. The Nights by Katkatha (Delhi): Inspired by the meta-narrative of the Middle Eastern folklore collection, Arabian Nights, The Nights by Delhi-based Katkatha Puppet Arts Trust is a Single-Act play, bringing actors and puppets together. Unlike most puppet theatres, this play does not hide the puppeteer. The Nights includes three well-known stories from Arabian Nights as well as a new narrative called The Beggar and The King. Besides the four narratives, the play also tells the tale of Scheherazade, the wife of Persian emperor Shehriyar, who has to narrate a new story to him every night in order to survive. Written by Adithi Rao and Neel Chaudhari and directed by Anurupa Roy, the play features Anurupa Roy, Kriti Maria Pant, Mohammad Shameem, and Avinash Kumar. Neel Chaudhuri, who has done sound design, also lends his voice to the play. Bharavi has done light design and the puppet construction are by Mohammad Shameem, Asha, and Anurupa Roy. Katkatha is an amalgam of two Hindi words. Kat means wood and is derived from the word Kathputli (puppetry). Katha means story. Together, they become puppets and stories. Bits of fabric, styrofoam figures, papier mache sculptures, Shakespearean comedies and Indian epics, the stories from conflict zones, self-help groups run by women, from prisons and the worlds of little children are all a part of their repertoire.

5. Petromax Panchayat by Curtain Call Theatre (Hyderabad): Petromax Panchayat is set in a village where life’s complexities go beyond the picturesque fields. This story transcends conventional love tales, immersing the audience in a wide range of human emotions and the timeless struggle between right and wrong. Written by Venkat Govada and based on a story by Hindi writer Phanishwar Nath Renu, it has been directed by Surabhi Santhosh and features Surabhi Lalitha, Anusha Nuthula, Prabha Santhosh, Sai Kadhira, Vishnu Vimal, Shiva Naga Koteshwar Rao, Ajay Radha, Shanku, Mukesh Sai, M. N. S. Manoj, Vishnu Virat, and Surabhi Santhosh. Founder and Director Of Curtain Call Theatre, Surabhi Santhosh is a Nandi Award-winning theatre actor born in Surabhi Traditional Theatre Family, who carries forward the eminent legacy with much passion and vision in the current generation. With over 30 years in Surabhi Theatre Group, and 17 years in professional and contemporary theatre, she has played versatile characters in various popular plays like Charan Das Chor and Kokkorako. Besides being an actor-director, she is also an acting trainer and lighting designer.