Spoken Word

Spoken word always fascinated me. The very first piece that stayed with me was 'Noise' by Kalki Keochlin (@kalkikanmani) . Ever since, I kept oscillating between whether I should give it a go or not. I only saw myself as a writer, and not a performer. My first ever spoken word performance was for Last Page Collective (@lastpagecollective) , a poem I had written in 8th grade, I think. I knew my words were powerful but my performance fell flat. (Not that much has changed, but I am willing to learn.) These are dire times, and everything around seems to be amiss. I have been thinking a lot about whether or not I should be putting anything out. Helplessness. Angst. Anger. Fear. Gratefulness. Hope. And an array of repeated emotions! But, HOPE, that's what I want to hold on to. With that in mind, I want to continue doing and putting my work out in the world, simply because it allows me to keep sane. This piece was originally written as an audio audition for Kommune India (@kommuneity), but, I didn't make it. However, I did send this piece as an audition piece for Thespo (@thespoindia) and was selected for Cosmocabaret, a cross cultural performance collective. This piece was performed at Dialogues Cafe (@dialogues.space) for an Open Mic event by Piece of Paper Productions (@pieceofpaperproductions ) If this Pandemic has taught me anything, it is that, I can be fairly comfortable and even enjoy being on the other side of the camera. (I see what all you actors mean!) Exploring different art forms, and sides to myself, has been exhilarating.

#spokenword #truestory #likefatherlikedaughter #onemorebeer

I applied on a whim (seems like I do a lot of these things this way) to @thespoindia when they announced a cohort between two countries. Through the pandemic, I spent a lot of time with my parents, I saw them in a different light. The time and age I was in, was a happy accelerator to this piece. Cynical, Honest and Unsettling is what I would use to describe this piece, 10 months later. COSMOCABARET was the culmination of a 5 week-long collaborative creation process that brought together 12 emerging artists from across the world. A digital international performance that explores themes of love and the lack of it amidst isolation and loneliness. @tsholovisions mentored us through the process and gave us the confidence we needed. Shout out to the fellow artists for all the good vibes. Special Mentions : @thespoindia & @paprikafestival @socialdistancingfestival were happy hosts. @kaushikeegupta was on tech, and incredibly patient. @tushie_nushie thank you for bringing us all together. @kannan.krishnaswamy.75 @justbhuman70 thank you for giving your space & wifi :) My muse - My parents, and my forever supporters (@anmol_venkatesh @smruts_jay )