Tales from Rajasthan

Ajeet Singh Palawat and Ipshita at a previous performance of Kankad Moti or Kinwaad

At a time when no one even talked about the female voice in Rajasthan [in the 1950s], writer Vijaydan Detha conceived women characters who were very strong," shares theatre artiste Ipshita, who is a part of Ujaagar Dramatic Association, a theatre company that was started in 2013 to explore and highlight Rajasthani texts. And this week, Ipshita along with actor Ajeet Singh Palawat, will bring to life stories of some of these strong women who Detha wrote about, along with other characters, at a session titled Kankad Moti or Kinwad.

The dramatised reading session will take place at Studio Tamaasha in Andheri. During the evening, the actors will perform two stories by Detha - Kenchuli and Mooji Soorma, Ishita tells us. "Kenchuli refers to a snake shedding skin. It is the story of Lachi who gets married to Gujar, and is persistently wooed by the thakur and a middle man called Bhoja," she informs us. Things worsen when she tries to explain her agony to her husband. "Detha uses the imagery of the snake a lot - as a symbol of confinement, female power and fertility, among other representations," she reveals.

Mooji Soorma, on the other hand, is a satire. The epitome of being a scrooge, Mooji Soorma is the tale of a businessman who escapes his funeral pyre by impressing goddess Laxmi with his miserliness. Supernatural characters, another device used by Detha a lot, which lend a folklore touch to his stories, also make an appearance in Mooji Soorma, she says.

While Detha was a noted Sahitya Akademi Award winner and his stories were adapted into films and productions, his works gained widespread popularity only after his death in 2013, Ipshita notes. Decades after he penned his stories, they continue to hold a mirror to society even today: "It's sad, however, that the social state of women in Rajasthan has still not changed much," laments Ipshita.

On November 20, 7 pm onwards
Log on to bookmyshow.com
Cost Rs 200