Best Of Akshara Fest Presents MEERA And TANSEN

Akshara Theatre brings you The Best of Akshara Theatre Presents: a festival of outstanding plays performed both by the Akshara Theatre Repertory and by artists closely associated with the Akshara.

The Festival starts off with performances of Meera: Beyond Devotion and Tansen performed by the Trialogue Theatre Company.

In Meera: Beyond Devotion, a Kathak dancer, who is designing a performance on Meera's life is intrigued by her life's struggles and choices. Many questions arise in her mind during her research and she begins to realize that Meerabai was not only a devotee, but also a rebel who stood against those norms of the society that degraded women and put endless restrictions on them. By following her own spiritual path, she inspired thousands of women. But was taking the spiritual path a conscious choice made by Meera?

In 16th century Rajasthan, when women were under many restrictions, Meera would sing Krishna bhajans and dance in front of men who called her impudent, immodest and shameless. Why was it so difficult for society to accept a woman who was following her own path without harming anyone in the process? Was it because she did not fit-in the image of an "Ideal Woman"?

The performer explores these and many other questions. In the process, she starts relating to Meera's life at different levels. The questions arise from Meera's time and age but she can find the relevance of them today as well. Isn't Meera present within each one of us even today?

Veteran folk musician Susmit Sen lends his voice and music to Meera: Beyond Devotion. It is directed by Sudheer Rikhari and performed by Ridhima Bagga, Susmit Sen and Sudheer Rikhari.

Meera: Beyond Devotion will be performed at 4pm on July 23 and 7.30pm on July 24.

Tansen explores the life-journey of the legendary Tansen. What was it that made him the great "Miyan Tansen" and what was his lifelong search?

The play begins with a dilemma about "Ibadat" and "Ishq". What is worship and what is love? Is love the search for a destination or is it losing yourself in that search? Are worship and love two sides of the same coin?

Every person, especially an artist, comes to a point in his life when he wonders if he has achieved what he wanted or whether he should continue the search. And when he feels he has achieved what he wanted, can he grow still further? Can an artist feel liberated when he expects something in return from his search?

Tansen explores the dilemmas of an artist and the factors that make an artist feel liberated and also what makes him feel caught in his own emotions, expectations

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