Hu - Voicing Our Selves : A Workshop in Delhi

[Arka Mukhopadhyay]

Hu - Voicing our Selves

 

 

"...where ritual and artistic creation were seamless. Where poetry was song, song was incantation, movement was dance." - J. Grotowski. 

 

A Workshop facilitated by Arka Mukhopadhyay and Saqlain Nizami, with Sibtain Nizami and Jamal Nizami.

 

Dates : August 3rd to 7th

 

Venue : Karuna Wellness Centre, A 105, Defence Colony, New Delhi

 

"Hu" means 'to be'. But to be what? This workshop is an attempt to ask that question by engaging with our many bodies - physical, social, erotic, ecological, theatrical and spiritual. 

 

The workshop is built around the fundamentals of breath, sound and rhythm. It also makes use of text, theatrical expression, performance, self-work, ritual and group discussions. Some aspects of the workshop utilize structured learning and precise, do-able acts, while other aspects are intentionally unstructured. Greater awareness of one's breath, voice, and body may and should result from the workshop, but the purpose of the workshop is not to teach communication or presentation skills in their functional sense, nor to train participants to be theatrical performers. Work on breath, voice and body are used as take-off points for engagements with the Self. 

 

At the heart of the workshop lies an immersion in Sufi Qawwali, as practised and transmitted by the hereditary Qawwals of the Hazrat Nizamuddin Dargah in Delhi. This immersion in Qawwali, and physical movements associated with it, along with a walk-through of the historical Nizamuddin area and a sharing of the many stories that are a part of that places's fabric, are intended to take us to a heightened state of awareness, where we might engage with notions of tradition, change, Self and identity in their personal, spiritual, ecological and socio-political dimensions, to essentially be able to ask the question, 'who owns my body?'. In response to this question, though not in an attempt to find an answer, we will travel through the territories of freedom, choice, responsibility, tolerance and diversity, through movement, meditation, breath, sound, body-work, theatre and cultural exchanges.

 

Fees : The costs of the workshop come up to Rs. 4,000/- per head. Participants are welcome to pay any amount, according to their ability. Financial inability will not be a constraint towards participation.

 

For registrations, please mail arka.muk...@gmail.com, by the 27th of July, briefly mentioning your background, and why you'd like to join the workshop. In case you are unable to pay the full amount, please also mention this and briefly explain the reason. 

 

About the facilitators : Arka Mukhopadhyay is a performer and writer. Saqlain Nizami, Sibtain Nizami and Jamaal Nizami are hereditary Qawwals belonging to the Hzt. Nizamuddin Dargah.

 

 

 

Warmth and peace,
Arka

--
Stat rosa pristina nomine,
nomina nuda tenemus