AIK Productions with Tara Arts Present Asif Khan's Debut Play COMBUSTION

Set in his home city in the month of Ramadan, Combustion is the first full-length play by Bradford-born Asif Khan, a new comic drama set in a local garage in the lead-up to a march by far-right nationalists. Following its run at Tara theatre, Combustion will transfer directly to Arcola Theatre before a UK tour.

Khan made his mark as an actor in the ensemble cast of Snookered (Tamasha/Bush) and performed in Tara Arts' recent Paradise of the Assassins as well as Love, Bombs and Apples at Arcola Theatre and its UK Tour. As a writer, Khan has recently been named in the recent BBC New Talent Hotlist 2017. He is a member of the Tamasha Playwrights Group, and has been commissioned to write a full-length play with Tamasha. Combustion was selected as one of six new plays for the Arcola Theatre's play WROUGHT#2 Festival, 2014.

In Combustion, racists plan to march through the Bradford during Ramadan, inflaming local tensions. Meanwhile Shaz, a local garage mechanic, desperately tries to keep his business running smoothly so he can marry well. In this volatile environment, Shaz's sister Samina is determined to make her voice heard.

The cast will include Mitesh Soni, known to Tara audiences for performances in Macbeth and Paradise of the Assassins, Beruce Khan who performed in Tara's co-production with the National Theatre, The Black Album, Rez Kempton, recently seen in Little Revolution at the Almeida and Shireen Farkhoy, who has appeared at the Arcola as part of the Dare to Dream short play evening. The cast is completed by Nigel Hastings, who recently won plaudits for his performance in And then come the Nightjars.

Speaking about the production, Asif Khan said "I hope it entertains and makes audiences laugh, but also breaks stereotypes and misconceptions about Muslims. I really hope that Muslim audiences can identify with the characters. I've not tried to shy away from anything. Some of it is quite hard hitting. Most importantly, it's the truth of what I feel and see. It's from the heart and that's all I can bring".

AIK Productions was created by Asif Khan in 2015 to produce new, high quality theatre specialising in stories and voices from minority backgrounds. Its first production in 2015 was Love, Bombs & Apples by award-winning playwright Hassan Abdulrazzak, It had a sold out run at the Arcola Theatre as part of the Shubbak Arab Arts Festival in 2015 and returned in 2016 for 4 weeks at the Arcola Theatre alongside a UK tour to.

Tara Arts are established as one of the UK's foremost creators of cross-cultural theatre. Their work, which consists of both new writing and reimagined classics, seeks to make imaginative connections across communities, to help foster a global sensibility from their own locality. The company was founded in 1977 by Artistic Director Jatinder Verma, along with Sunil Saggar, Ovais Kadri, Praveen Bahl & Vijay Shaunak. Tara Theatre, opened in September 2016 by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, has been awarded Project Design of the Year at the London Construction Awards 2016 and The Stage Sustainability Award for 2017.

@Tara_Arts | #Combustion | www.tara-arts.com

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