Day 8

9 April 2016
Saturday

Prithvi Theatre

Day 8 was another big day for Writers' Bloc 4. The day kicked off slowly but steadily with the Art Exhibit gathering ever-increasing praise. The afternoon saw a packed talk by the legendary Anmol Vellani who kept the audience entralled and informed with pop-references, examples and visual presentations. Everybody who walked away from the event seemed to mention how enlightening the two hours at Prithvi House were. Anuvabh Pal's already popular workshop called 'Writing Satire' also happened in the evening. The workshop was an instant-hit with the combination of educating and entertaining participants that Anuvabh brought with him. Nayantara Bhatkal was our Singer-Songwriter of the day, and her bewitching voice and charming self delighted one and all.
The play for the day was Shivam Sharma's Given. The play death with topics like abuse and violence and managed to leave an impact on all the viewers. In case you have missed the play, it plays again on the 14th of April at NCPA ExP. Click to book! 

UV has just moved back into town. He hasn’t seen Dhruv in 8 years, but tonight he had to bail him out of jail. And now Dhruv refuses to leave UV’s house until UV admits to what happened all those years back. What did happen? Will UV concede the truth? Or will his demons and his conscience conspire to hide the violent secrets he holds?
Given is a dark and disturbing tale of four people caught in a web of violence and living with their mistakes. Can they continue to carry on the status quo?
Playwright

Shivam Sharma

Director

Padma Damodaran

7:00 pm

9:30 pm

Rs. 300
Book tickets now!

Cast

Dhruv: Roshan Mathew

Yuvraj: Roshan Mathews

Rajesh:  Shishir Sharma

Swati: Trimala Adhikari

Music: Anjo John

Lights: Gurleen Judge

Sets: Vivek Jadhav

Production manager: Arvind Panaghanty

Special thanks to Vikrant Dhote

Playwright's Note

“I wrote a play about things you get without asking; what they become inside you when you don’t understand them, and what those new things are that you then pass on, regretfully. But it all starts with what you are given.” - Shivam Sharma

Director's Note

“Given is a play about who we are, what we inherit, and what we pass on. It is a psychological drama, a thriller of sorts. Shivam's voice is observant, sharp, yet sensitive. And - as always with him - hopeful and honest. Not easy as actors to perform, or as a director to understand, but so real and so fulfilling to dwell in, to explore and to share. - Padma Damodaran

Also in the day,

Discussion

Prithvi House

3.00 pm

Open to all.

Object and Subject: The Questions of Theatre Lighting.

This talk examines the many questions that arise when designing lights for the theatre. It will be concerned not with the technical but the conceptual aspects of theatre lighting. Looking at paintings and cinema, and exploring real and imagined examples from the theatre, the talk will identify and describe the often conflicting demands and hard choices that a lighting designer confronts. It will also discuss how lighting produces meaning and contributes to the stories that theatre productions tell.

Stories Beyond the Stage
Art Exhibition
To know more about the Artists, click here


Singer Songwriter of the day
Nayantara Bhatkal

 Amitav Ghosh’s culturally vivid novels inspired Nayantara to study English Literature and Anthropology at St. Xavier’s College but it was her experience seeing the law in action while doing social research that led her to want to understand the latter better.

 While studying law, Nayantara spent some time working on an anti-nuclear campaign called Jaitapur Speaks. It aimed to create an online platform where young people could show their solidarity with the people of Jaitapur, who are fighting against the potential environmental and socio-economic damage of the world’s largest nuclear power project. This involved running a website, creating short documentaries, organising public meetings as well as awareness drives. She was also part of the secretariat of the National People’s Tribunal on Nuclear Power Plants and Mines. 

Workshop
Starting on the day