Indian playwright, director and filmmaker Mahesh Dattani will give an afternoon reading of two plays along with a discussion about the representation of gender hierarchies and sexualities in his work.
Dattani will read from his plays Seven Steps Around The Fire and Dance Like A Man An Friday, June 15, from 1 to 3pm, at 280A York Lanes, Keele campus. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Winner of India’s prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award in 1998 from India’s National Academy of Letters, Dattani is one of the country’s best-known playwrights.
Mahesh Dattani
He is also known for his directing work in the cinema, including films such as Mango Souffle, which won Best Motion Picture in 2003 at the Barcelona Film Festival, and Morning Raga, which took Best Artistic Contribution in 2004 at the Cairo Film Festival.
His plays are crafted gestures of dissent. His oeuvre has forged wide-ranging critiques of Indian heteronormativity, social institutions such as the family, as well as cultural rituals, including marriage, are interrogated and found wanting.
The event is hosted by the York Centre for Asian Research, York’s departments of English and Theatre, and the Sexuality Studies Program at York.