ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the subject matter of the dramatic presentations in an effort to: understand the motivation for the performances, uncover memories or feelings associated with the theatre and highlight the way the design features of the theatrical interior correspond to its oppressive and hierarchical surroundings. Budhan Theatre's Choli Ke Pichchey Kya Hai can thus be described as activist theatre/performance as a process to make the 'ordinary' not just conspicuous but extraordinary. It transcends the 'authority' of the written text to encompass 'lived experience' of a kind the audience can relate to. On 6 January 2009, at Nizam College, Hyderabad, Budhan Theatre performed their Hindi play Choli Ke Pichchey Kya Hai which was inspired by Mahasweta Devi's outstanding short-story 'Stanadayini'. The performance by the Tejgarh tribals, led by Dakxin Bajrange Chhara, exemplifies this complex process of moving from the primary realisation to the secondary stage of expressivity that lends transformative energy to their performance.
