Women’s Day may come around every year. But, if you ask us, women should be celebrated every single day!
On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Sunaparanta Goa Centre for the Arts in Altinho, Panjim, will be hosting a special reading of ‘The Spotlight Monologues’ on March 8, 2024. The event will begin at 7 pm.
Written by Eve Ensler and directed by Ratnabali Bhattacharjee, the monologues offer poignant retellings of stories of violence as experienced by survivors from across the globe.
Women face indescribable brutality which robs them not just of basic human dignity, but often of life itself. Eve Ensler travelled the world and was told soul-cracking and heinous stories of atrocities faced by women and transwomen.
In the telling of a few of these stories, she hopes that we can shake up our collective conscience and work towards changing the mindset that normalises violence against women.
THE CAST INCLUDES
Antara Bhide is a writer, performer, and a Queer individual, trying to build safe and inclusive structures. She completed Masters in Theatre from Academy of Theatre Arts, University of Mumbai (2016-2018) and worked in National School of Drama’s Theatre in Education Company, New Delhi (2018-2020).
Currently an Assistant Professor of Dramatic Literature at Kala Academy Goa’s College of Theatre Arts, she is also pursuing doctoral research on the intersection of Theatre in Education and Theatre of the Oppressed.
Arundhati Chattopadhyaya is trained in the classical Indian and dance style, Bharatanatyam, and has been merging movement and theatre productions for several years. She does creative and site-specific performances in Sunaparanta, MoCA, NGOs and for other awareness projects.
For the past 15 years, she has led the InStages theatre programme at Sunaparanta, focusing on instilling early awareness through the powerful medium of theater, allowing creative ideas and thoughts to resonate with the audience.
Fiza Bajewale is currently studying in 6th standard and has a strong personality that commands a room.
She joined the charity in 1st standard and comes to the centre as much as she can, depending on extra classes. In her spare time, she enjoys badminton, riding bicycle and jokingly eating her friend’s food in school.
Kalki Koechlin is a French Indian actor and writer living in Goa. She has a BA in Drama and Theatre from Goldsmiths University, London and made her screen debut as Chanda in Dev.D and went on to win a Filmfare award for her role.
She is also the recipient of the Indian National Award and Best Actress Award at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival for the internationally applauded film Margarita with a Straw.
She has also acted in two of Bollywood’s highest grossing films in their year, Yeh Jeewani Hai Dewaani and Zingadi Na Milegi Dobara.
Apart from this, she hosts a podcast with the BBC called ‘My Indian Life’ and is part of several series streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Netflix.
Kimmy Katkar Sheorey, a renowned Indian actress from the 80s, gracefully transitioned from the glitz of the film industry to a tranquil life in Goa a decade ago. Beyond her cinematic journey, she has become an avid gardener, a skilled mixed media artist, and a professional baker.
Proudly embracing her role as a grandmother, Kimi finds joy in the simplicity of life in Goa, where she passionately pursues her artistic endeavours.
Rajyashree Dutt is an award-winning Indian actress. She spent many years in Kolkata and Bangalore where she was involved in English language theatre, with many performances locally and across the country. She now lives in Goa where she teaches the art and craft of theatre.
Sandy SalAura is Goa’s popular Drag Queen. She is an actor, model, dancer, and soon-to-be pop artist. She is trained in dance styles such as contemporary, ballet, jazz, ballroom, kathak and Hip-hop.
As Sandy, he has done several dance tours across the world with celebrity choreographer Tobi. SalAura has been performing the art of drag for the last 4 years and has really made her mark as one of the top drag artists of Goa.
The event is an initiative to support Goa Outreach, a charity that strives to create a safe learning environment for underprivileged children. Open to all, seating will be based on first-come-first-serve basis.