Beyond Walls
Venue: Presidency University
Date: 02 - 05 AUG, 2026
Venue: Presidency University, Department of Performing Arts & Rabindra Bharati University, Department of Drama Recommended age: 18 years and above Kolkata Centre for Creativity, in collaboration with the Department of Performing Arts, Presidency University, and the Department of Drama, Rabindra Bharati University, presents Beyond Walls, a four-day theatre residency dedicated to exploring the methods, practice, and philosophy of Badal Sircar’s Third Theatre.
Event Details
Beyond Walls has been programmed as a prelude to Evam Badal, the symposium commemorating the birth centenary of legendary theatre-maker Badal Sircar, an initiative of KCC and scheduled for later this year.
The residency offers students and emerging theatre practitioners a space to experiment, create, collectively work together, and learn through shared practice. Moving beyond conventional ideas of performance, participants will engage with Badal Sircar's approach to theatre through practical exercises, discussions, and process-driven exploration. It invites a new generation of theatre-makers to engage critically with Badal Sircar's practice and discover what his legacy can mean today.
Facilitated by Anjan Dutt, a former student of Badal Sircar, the residency offers a rare opportunity to engage with the ideas of one of India's most influential theatre practitioners through someone who experienced his pedagogy first-hand. Rather than recreating performances, the programme encourages participants to investigate the principles of Third Theatre and reflect on their relevance within contemporary performance practices.
As the first programme leading up to Evam Badal, the residency introduces many of the questions that the symposium will take up later this year.
Anjan Dutt is an actor, theatre director, filmmaker, singer-songwriter, and writer whose artistic career spans theatre, cinema, and music. He began his journey in theatre directing and performing European classics before studying and working under Badal Sircar during his formative years. A National Award-winning filmmaker and recipient of the Best Debut Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival for Chalchitra, Dutt has continued to shape Bengali cultural life through his work across stage, screen, and music, while remaining deeply connected to the practice of theatre.
