Design by Tanay Salil Shah
20, Mumbai

Atoms makeup molecules. Molecules make up compounds, a community of several known and unknown elements. For example, the atoms of hydrogen and oxygen twice, form a community compound to give us our basic necessity - water. The art of theatre is like a community compound. Several hands and minds come together, balance each other, to create one spectacular compound - a play! This edition of Thespo Ink is a collection of articles by emerging artists and writers on the theme of Community and oneness. 2020 has got us yearning to be part of a creative community, to replenish the feeling of connectedness and sharing that makes us so wonderfully human.

In this issue, four voices share four different perspectives on 'Community', as they see it in the theatre. Read about Thespo Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Jana Natya Manch's fantastic journey of taking theatre to the people, through the eyes of a young person. In Lead Pencil, Atif Ally Dagman reflects on writing, directing and acting in his one-man musical Miah-Boy Diaries. In Theatre Across Borders, Aria Sharma shares what she loves about puppet theatre and talks about the selfless Bread and Puppet Theatre of Canada. Ritika Shrotri, who directed an adaptation of Ratnakar Matkari's short story Nightmare at Thespo's digital festival last year, shares how the spirit of a 'collective' rose above the 'individual' in Young Perspective. Finally, three play recommendations from playwright and poet Annie Zaidi's library.

Also part of this issue, In Memoriam cherishes the memory of the many theatre personalities who are no longer with us today. Thespo salutes them for building a theatre that young artists are proud to inherit. 

We hope you will enjoy the February 2021 edition of Thespo Ink and wish that it will inspire you to stay connected and creative. Happy reading!

Lots of love, Team Thespo