Putting art in a queer context,
Shiva has been devised as a curious fusion of four different art forms, namely
Bharatanatyam
,
Carnatic music
, theatrics and
poetry
. The four-part performance, crafted and curated by
Daya Sakrepatna
, turns the spotlight on a plethora of pertinent topics – from
alternative identities
,
relationships
,
gender
and
sexuality
to peer-pressure, bullying and mob violence.
“Concepts related to gender identity and relationships are still, at most times, viewed as Western thoughts in our country. Through this performance, we are trying to put those concepts in an Indian context. The idea is to lead the audience to a platform where they not only get an exposure to things, but are also ready for a dialogue on alternative identities. At the same time, we also want to bring in a little more fluidity and experimentation to established art forms like Bharatanatyam and Carnatic music,” says Daya, who is a Bharatanatyam dancer,
theatre
artist and playwright.
Conceptualized in January 2017,
Shiva has been developed through a series of readings and feedback loops with theatre practitioners, dancers, writers and photographers. A group of 11 actors enact 14 characters in the dance-drama. The performance is taking place today at Shoonya – Centre for Art and Somatic Practices.
Describing it as a heady confluence of dance music and realistic storytelling, Daya says, “In
Shiva, hand movements and body language are used as tools to narrate the storyline, as characters are not essayed as explicitly through dialogues as in regular plays. There is an attempt to create a resonance via unspoken words, which is expected to bridge the gap and provide the courage to speak for oneself, culminating in a shift of thought and attitude in others.”
And the story goes…Shiva traces the story of a young poet, named Shiv, and his journey of opening up to his mother about his sexuality through a series of letters and poems. Primarily, these letters and poems deal with the universal themes of conviction, fear and choice. But they are also an expression of a child’s deep longing for acceptance from a parent. These themes play out as simple and poignant stories of everyday people and their journeys around gender identity and sexuality; stories that bear Shiv to the culmination of his journey, depicting his mother’s journey of acceptance.
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