LITTLE STINT | Maati Katha

Immerse yourself in the rich, diverse and fragile ecosystem of the Sunderbans with this exceptional piece of object and material theatre. Maati Katha, as the name says, takes on the tradition of telling stories of the earth, using objects made from the earth. In the Sunderbans, by whose art, lifestyle, philosophies and peoples this play is inspired, life is a delicate balance; between human and human, human and animal, land and water, calm and storm. As folklore goes, Bonbibi, the lady of the forest and guardian spirit of the world’s largest mangrove ecosystem, promised cohabitation for all life. But only as long as they played by the rules. When Bonbibi turned her back on the Sunderbans, devastation followed. In this piece performers Mohammad Shameem & Choiti Ghosh weave multiple narratives cutting across class, caste, religion and gender.

For an urban audience in the nation’s capital these narratives tell a reflective tale. They lead us to the question, “what have we done with the earth?”. As the impact of human-induced climate change is felt by peoples across the Global South, tales from the Sunderbans allow us the space to question who belongs to whom and where we will go when we force our guardian spirits to turn their backs on us. Maati Katha is a piece for our times with relevance across age and class, dark and light, material and spiritual.

Duration: 65 Mins
Language: Hindi (with a Bangla Song)
Age: 12 years and above

Regular Tickets at INR 700

Your support goes a long way in enabling artistic endeavours. 100% of the proceeds are directed to the artist. We’re grateful for your commitment.

Credits:

Co-Directed & performed by: Mohd. Shameem & Choiti Ghosh
Playwright: Manjima Chatterjee
Hindi Translation: Kapil Pandey
Lights & Production Management: Abhisar Bose
Music: Mihir Basu
Content Guidance: Poulomi Das
Research Support: Sharvari Sastry, Ashish Ghosh, Ruma Ghosh
Manmathanagar Dolls Created by: Dinesh Mondol, Subol Mondol, Naresh Das, Ronojeet Sarkar
Additional Dolls procured from: Artists Dibakar Pal, Shubhojit Pal, Howrah & Artists Lakshminarayan Chowdhury & Koyel Chowdhury, Bansberia.
Produced by Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society & Pickle Factory Dance Foundation, Kolkata.