Pahinjo Kirdaar

The troupe of Pahinjo Kirdaar brings together highly accomplished Mumbai theatre professionals, each with a substantial and distinctive body of work as an actor, director, writer, musician or educator. Through an extended rehearsal process and eight public performances to date, they have grown into a closely attuned ensemble within this evolving production. Each has contributed not only to individual characterisation but also to the rhythm, movement, music and emotional texture of the whole, developing a shared understanding of the histories they carry onstage and a deep investment in the material.

Deesh Mariwala has worked in theatre for over four decades as an actor, writer, director and teacher. He has been part of more than 150 productions across the world – primarily in India and the UK – performing a wide range of theatrical traditions, from intimate devised work to classical drama. A lifelong devotee of Shakespeare and of performing in verse, his practice is rooted in physical performance and ensemble work, with a strong emphasis on the expressive possibilities of the actor’s body. Alongside performing, he has trained generations of young theatre practitioners. His wit, versatility and unmistakable stage presence have made him one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary Indian theatre.

Monica Mahendru is a theatre-trained actor whose work spans stage, screen and devised performance. She discovered theatre at the age of thirty and has described the stage as her true home ever since. Trained through Prayas Theatre in Aotearoa New Zealand, she has performed at the Auckland Arts Festival, Singapore Fringe Festival and Serendipity Arts Festival, and was a finalist at the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards. Her screen work includes feature films, television and digital productions including Accused (2026), Guilty Minds (2022), Better Life Foundation (2016) and Dear Friend (2022). Her theatre practice is distinguished by its emotional honesty, curiosity and collaborative spirit.

Varun Vazir is an actor, theatre practitioner and speech-and-drama facilitator. He has appeared in numerous stage productions, television and OTT series, and feature films, including Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway, as well as more than fifty television commercials. Equally passionate about performance and education, he works extensively with children and young people, helping them develop confidence through theatre. Before becoming a full-time actor, he also worked in journalism and advertising, experiences that continue to inform his approach to storytelling.

Barkha Fatnani is a theatre director, actor, musician, dancer and arts educator whose practice brings together performance, music and storytelling. A long-standing member of Gillo Repertory Theatre, she has performed, directed and created work for audiences across India and internationally, including artist residencies and theatre festivals in South Korea, Italy and Germany. She has written and directed several solo performances for young audiences and is deeply committed to theatre as a space for learning and connection. A gifted multi-instrumentalist, Barkha has created the live musical score for Pahinjo Kirdaar, where her evocative soundscape and inventive use of music and sound effects are integral to the storytelling.

Nikhil Katara is a Mumbai-based theatre director, writer and educator whose work is rooted in storytelling and the belief that theatre can open conversations across generations and communities. As Artistic Director of Readings in the Shed, he has created original productions and adapted historical material for the stage, combining research with an accessible, deeply human theatrical language.

His theatre credits include The Bose Legacy, presented at Indian Consulates in Moscow, London and Hong Kong, as well as The Stalemate and productions for INT Aditya Birla Academy. His work also extends to film, where he co-directed and acted in Between You & Me and directed the award-winning climate film Home is Here. He teaches Theatre & Stagecraft at Wilson College, Mumbai, and has also written extensively on culture and society.

In Pahinjo Kirdaar, Nikhil transforms fifteen years of oral history interviews into a series of compelling theatrical encounters, inviting audiences to experience history not as distant events, but through the lives of the people who lived it.

Saaz Aggarwal is a writer, oral historian, artist and independent researcher whose current work is devoted to documenting and bringing wider recognition to Sindhi history, identity and culture. Over fifteen years, she has recorded hundreds of oral-history interviews with Sindhis in India and across the world, creating the body of research from which Pahinjo Kirdaar emerged. Her books and public-history projects draw upon personal testimony, family archives and historical research to recover experiences often absent from mainstream accounts.