FYI speaks to three theatre groups who might be based in smaller towns but have made a big enough impression for Prithvi Theatre Festival to dedicate an entire season to their endeavour

Adishakti
Based in: Puducherry
USP: The all-in-one group is into theatre, music, dance and shadow puppetry, etc Plays to watch out for: The Hare and The Tortoise (November 17, Prithvi Theatre), Ganapati (November 18, Prithvi Theatre), Impressions of Bhima (November 19, Prithvi Theatre), Rhinoceros (November 20, Prithvi Theatre)

The full name of this group is Adishakti Laboratory for Theatre Art Research. Just like in a laboratory buzzing with scientists working on breakthrough research, the group is perpetually on the look out for new art forms and experimenting with hybrid performing arts.

The group draws from its surroundings; especially the multi-layered history and people from various ethnicities that let the group have a larger worldview.

The managing trustee of the group, Veenapani Chawla, believes her group is different from others in the country because its members are not restricted to any one kind of artistic activity.


Each member is capable of taking on the task of an actor, dancer, musician or a puppeteer. Re-interpreting texts and accepted notions is one common trait of their plays, evident in The Hare and The Tortoise, Ganapati and Impressions of Bhima.

Their latest work, Rhinoceros, is an absurdist play written by Eugu00e8ne Ionesco. Apart from theatre, the Adishakti campus is also famous for the medicinal herb gardens, planted in consultations with medicinal practitioners from alternative streams of treatment.