BENGALURU THEATRE: BETWEEN RISK AND RESTRAINT
Tahera on adaptation, access, and the limits of experimentation. Bengaluru theatre likes to call itself experimental. It is—but only up to a point. Beneath the visible energy of new work and diverse programming lies a quieter truth: the ecosystem is still negotiating risk, access, and survival.Director and theatre practitioner Tahera speaks from within that tension—working across languages, adapting global texts, and navigating a scene that is creatively bold but structurally hesitant.
“The old rules of theatre are quietly dissolving.”
What is one unwritten rule of Bengaluru theatre that is being broken right now?
The idea that theatre needs to look a certain way—one language, one format, one kind of audience—is fading.
Audiences today are far more open. They’re just as willing to watch a large proscenium production as they are to engage with something intimate or experimental.
That rigidity we once had around form is loosening.
A PRACTICE WITHOUT A SINGLE CENTRE
If someone studied your work 20 years from now, what would they say about this moment?
I’ve resisted settling into one niche. My work moves across genres, structures, languages.
But there are constants—audience engagement, and the use of music and movement as part of storytelling.
If anything defines this moment, it’s the act of bringing in stories from different parts of the world and reshaping them to speak to this city.
“We’re not choosing between the text and the audience—we’re negotiating both.”
When you adapt works like The Seagull or The Kite Runner, what shifts more—the text or the audience?
The text changes—sometimes subtly, sometimes through treatment. But the audience shifts just as much.
Reception is never fixed. It changes from place to place, and you have to respond to that.
I don’t think we’re becoming more dependent on borrowed stories. We’re becoming more open to them.
At the same time, I feel the need to create original work. That’s something I’m actively working towards.
“Bengaluru theatre is artistically brave—but structurally cautious.”
“We’re experimenting with form—but not with economics.”
THE RISK WE’RE NOT TAKING
What is Bengaluru theatre avoiding right now?
We’re experimenting with form—but not with economics.
Sustainability is still fragile. Venue costs, marketing, and funding shape what gets made and how long it survives. That’s why long-running, large-scale productions are rare.
Most groups rely on short runs, festivals, or low-cost formats just to stay afloat.
“Bengaluru theatre is artistically brave—but structurally cautious.”
THE “NEW WAVE” — AND ITS LIMITS
What defines this new wave in Bengaluru theatre? Is it actually inclusive?
Language has shifted—it’s no longer just a medium, it’s texture.
Casting has opened up in some spaces, with people across age groups and experiences being included.
Audiences have grown, and there’s more curiosity now. But let’s be clear—it’s still largely urban-facing.
That hasn’t changed as much as we think.
IS ENGLISH THEATRE A BUBBLE?
Is English theatre in Bengaluru becoming a closed circuit?
It can feel that way—socially and linguistically exclusive at times.
But it isn’t dominant enough to fully isolate itself. It exists alongside multiple other forms and languages that are just as active.
It’s influential—but not singular.
