A neo-noir heroine smitten by love and left heartbroken when her relationship ends. As the heroine grapples with her loss, she resorts to a coping mechanism that’s a favourite among most of us — retail therapy.
Boxes over boxes pile in the heroine’s house, leaving no space for what’s most essential at the moment — the truth. That is the very essence of Amita Mathur’s upcoming solo production, Retail Therapy, Unboxing Truth with Krishna.
But, this is not what you might have pictured with the description we’ve given you so far. It’s a kathak narrative that slowly unboxes the various facets of retail therapy, fusing traditional elements with a contemporary issue.
“With a deep interest in literature, all my stories are usually around things that we see in today’s world and topics that bring a sense of relatability with them,” begins Amita. “For instance, my first narrative, Radha Kathan, dealt with the theme of identity crisis,” she adds.
The dancer reveals that her husband’s company, which works towards conscious and sustainable clothing, served as a starting point that triggered the thought behind her new production. To add a mythological element to the mix, the dancer also introduces Lord Krishna into her performance.
Amita stresses the fact that resorting to shopping as a distraction offers nothing but momentary satisfaction. As the heroine’s obsessive shopping habit takes over, the performance delves into its implications and goes on to highlight the importance of sustainability.
Compositions of Surdas and Bindadin Maharaj take centre stage as the artist dances through her despair while adding a modern touch to traditional Kathak nuances. The last two pieces of the act are pure-act pieces or Ghat Bhav which tie the entire musical together.
Speaking of the challenges she faced along the way; the dancer says that the creative process was heavily focused on getting down to the minute details to ensure that traditional symbolisms aligned with the overall theme of sustainability.
As six months of conceptualisation and intense rehearsals are soon going to translate into an hour-long performance on stage, Amita leaves us with a hint of suspense — will the unapologetic heroine find solace in the overflowing boxes or will the truth, buried beneath layers of retail therapy, remain forever hidden?
₹400. April 21, 6 pm onwards. At Medai - The Stage, Koramangala.
(Written by Subhashini Ramasamy)
