The courtesan's story
25 July 2013 1:18 AM IST
Even if she is a tremendously gifted artist admired for her deep talent in dance and expression, being a woman would never be easy in a man’s world. And being a woman folk dancer in a society in rapid transition would be another struggle altogether.
Naachni, a unique one actor play performed by Sindhu Mishra, and conceptualized by renowned playwright Bhanu Bharti, is such a story of a suffering woman folk dancer, patronized in a feudal society, but left to fend for herself in a world that is witnessing changes and upheavals.
For people of Delhi who nurture interest in the tragic tales of artists in an era gone by, Naachni is certain to be an experience of catharsis. The presentation, choreographed by odissi dancer Kiran Sehgal will be performed at the auditorium of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) on 30 July.
Helming the production is none other than Bhanu Bharti, whose direction of Andha Yug and Tughlaq has captured the imagination of the capital in the past couple of years.
Naachni is a story about Kisuki Bai, whose grasp of her craft propels her to the stature of a state dancer at a time when the feudal society is crumbling in India. Devoid of her patronage, she is thrown out into the world and left to struggle for a livelihood.
The narration takes the form of the protagonist speaking of her suffering of being plucked out of her home in childhood into a world sans dignity, and then back to a society which does not value her art. What lends a deeper edge to the narration is the protagonist’s conversation with an absent daughter. Sindhu Mishra, the deputy secretary of the Sahitya Kala Parishad, will don the character of Kisuki Bai.
'The play is an expression of a woman who has been deprived of her life by a society that also tacitly wants every woman to conform to its norms. It is a story of how the woman is torn apart by the travails of life in a male dominated world. Naachni is an expression of a heartless life,' says Mishra.
For Sangeet Natak Akademi Award winner playwright and theatre director Bharati, Naachni carried another parallel tale -- the loss of ground experienced by our folk artists in the face of an enormous shift in society towards more modern sources of entertainment.
'This loss of recognition and livelihood is something that our folk artists have experienced in contemporary times when technology is intruding in all spheres of human life. In ‘Naachni’ we try to trace the life of a woman folk dancer through her own eyes. It’s her narration that gives power to the one of its kind presentation,' says Bharti, who has also worked closely with Bheel tribal groups of Gujarat in his quest for art and expression.
The one actor play that has been performed several times earlier in different cities is being staged in the IGNOU auditorium on special request. So book your evening!
Naachni, a unique one actor play performed by Sindhu Mishra, and conceptualized by renowned playwright Bhanu Bharti, is such a story of a suffering woman folk dancer, patronized in a feudal society, but left to fend for herself in a world that is witnessing changes and upheavals.
For people of Delhi who nurture interest in the tragic tales of artists in an era gone by, Naachni is certain to be an experience of catharsis. The presentation, choreographed by odissi dancer Kiran Sehgal will be performed at the auditorium of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) on 30 July.
Helming the production is none other than Bhanu Bharti, whose direction of Andha Yug and Tughlaq has captured the imagination of the capital in the past couple of years.
Naachni is a story about Kisuki Bai, whose grasp of her craft propels her to the stature of a state dancer at a time when the feudal society is crumbling in India. Devoid of her patronage, she is thrown out into the world and left to struggle for a livelihood.
The narration takes the form of the protagonist speaking of her suffering of being plucked out of her home in childhood into a world sans dignity, and then back to a society which does not value her art. What lends a deeper edge to the narration is the protagonist’s conversation with an absent daughter. Sindhu Mishra, the deputy secretary of the Sahitya Kala Parishad, will don the character of Kisuki Bai.
'The play is an expression of a woman who has been deprived of her life by a society that also tacitly wants every woman to conform to its norms. It is a story of how the woman is torn apart by the travails of life in a male dominated world. Naachni is an expression of a heartless life,' says Mishra.
For Sangeet Natak Akademi Award winner playwright and theatre director Bharati, Naachni carried another parallel tale -- the loss of ground experienced by our folk artists in the face of an enormous shift in society towards more modern sources of entertainment.
'This loss of recognition and livelihood is something that our folk artists have experienced in contemporary times when technology is intruding in all spheres of human life. In ‘Naachni’ we try to trace the life of a woman folk dancer through her own eyes. It’s her narration that gives power to the one of its kind presentation,' says Bharti, who has also worked closely with Bheel tribal groups of Gujarat in his quest for art and expression.
The one actor play that has been performed several times earlier in different cities is being staged in the IGNOU auditorium on special request. So book your evening!
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