2016 was a special year for us. We turned 18 and we got our own new space to further explore our puppetry encounters. Our space is at the Southern border of Delhi, 12 kilometers from the city centre. The population around is dense and semi urban.
2016 was a special year for us. We turned 18 and we got our own new space to further explore our puppetry encounters. Our space is at the Southern border of Delhi, 12 kilometers from the city centre. The population around is dense and semi urban.
These are the programs the space is currently supporting or planning to support
Mentorship Program -
In December 2017 we kick start our artists mentorship program with the mentoring of young directors from across India by the Director of Helios Theatre in Hamm, Germany, Barbara Kolling. Barbara will mentor 5 young Indian directors in creating 5 new performances using material only.
These are the programs the space is currently supporting or planning to support
Mentorship Program -
In December 2017 we kick start our artists mentorship program with the mentoring of young directors from across India by the Director of Helios Theatre in Hamm, Germany, Barbara Kolling. Barbara will mentor 5 young Indian directors in creating 5 new performances using material only.
For us puppets are not dolls with strings. At the centre of all the work in Katkatha is the inanimate material.
Katkatha is a traveling puppet theatre company which frequents international and Indian Puppet, Performing Arts and Theatre Festivals. These festivals have included Koushuing International Children’s Theatre Festival, Taiwan, International Puppet and Film Festival, Holon, Israel, Linz09 European Culture Capital Festival 09, Austria, International Women Directors Festival Tehran, Iran. Festival Mondial Des Marionettes-Charleville-Mezeires, France, FIDENA-Bochum, Germany. Subotica International Children’s Festival,Serbia. Guant Festival, Valls, Spain. Figurenteater Festival, Wels, Austria. Puppet Festival Straubing, Germany. Izmir International Puppet Theatre Festival, Turkey and the Rafi Peer International Performing Arts Festival, Pakistan.
Katkatha also focuses on collaborative processes and projects with other artists, communities, school teachers and children. These explorations have taken us to conflict zones like Kashmir, Manipur and Sri Lanka, to Juvenile Remand homes in Delhi, to Women’s self help group across villages in Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu and Kashmir and to schools across India.
Puppets have helped us connect to people of all walks of life to tell them stories and hear their stories. We have done shows across urban slums in India, trained community health workers, village school teachers, youth leaders to use puppets to talk about taboo issues like reproductive health and sexuality, the stigma around HIV/AIDS, gender discrimination and violence. We believe the puppet has a special license. It can say and show what the human agency cannot! Thus it starts difficult conversations and creates dialogue.
To know more about our members, click on the photos or the links below.
