India

BRICS Theatre Festival Opens in Delhi with 'Samudra Manthan'

By PTI

The three‑day BRICS Theatre Festival opened on Monday at the National School of Drama (NSD) in New Delhi, gathering theatre practitioners, scholars, students and cultural representatives from nine BRICS member and partner countries. Performances will come from national theatre schools and leading institutions in India, Thailand, Indonesia, Russia, Iran, Vietnam, South Africa, Kazakhstan and Ethiopia. Shows will be staged at NSD’s Abhimanch and Sammukh auditoriums, Kamani Auditorium, LTG Auditorium and Meghdoot Theatre, with tickets available through BookMyShow for ₹200 each.

The opening day featured the play "Samudra Manthan," written by Asif Ali and directed, designed and musically produced by the NSD director. It was performed at the Abhimanch Auditorium.

The festival, organised by the Ministry of Culture, aims to provide a platform for artistic and cultural exchange through theatre. Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat attended as chief guest, joined by Union Culture Secretary Vivek Aggarwal, Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs Sudhakar Dalela (India’s BRICS Sherpa for 2026), and NSD Director Chittaranjan Tripathy. Ambassadors and heads of mission from the participating countries were also present.

"We meet today at a moment of considerable consequence for the international community. At a time when nations are increasingly compelled to navigate competing interests, spaces for mutual understanding and constructive dialogue become more precious than ever before," Shekhawat said. "While diplomacy enables nations to negotiate and economic cooperation helps them prosper, culture enables societies to understand one another… Even when our histories, languages and traditions differ, it is this conviction that gives the BRICS Theatre Festival significance beyond the performing arts," he added.

Russia will be represented by two theatre groups, India will present two productions, and the other countries will showcase works that reflect their diverse languages, cultural perspectives, theatrical traditions and contemporary creative expressions. The programme includes classical, contemporary and experimental theatre. The NSD, an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Culture, serves as the nodal agency for the festival.