Garam Roti

Serving fears, rants, & rotis | A solo theatre performance by Durga Venkatesan

Venue: KCC Amphitheatre

Date: 13 Sep, 2026

Durga and Lakshmi, two artists- one a human, the other a sentient stereo player set out for a performance of fears- to rant her truth and perform the dare. Durga asks herself what epitomizes “a woman”, finally landing on the idea of a ‘Garam Roti’- the humble Indian flatbread. What starts as a personal reflection on the matter, culminates into an exercise of communal listening to rants (recordings) of women from across India. The play moves through borders of fiction into the non-fiction realm with the ‘Garam Roti Library’- an audio collection of women sharing their anecdotes, thoughts on tradition, labour and revolution.

Event Details

What stories are hidden within the everyday rituals of our homes?

Kolkata Centre for Creativity presents Garam Roti, a compelling solo theatre performance written, directed, and performed by Durga Venkatesan. Through theatre, sound, personal testimony, and storytelling, the performance explores the invisible labour, expectations, and silences that shape the lives of countless women. Set within the familiar space of the kitchen, Garam Roti transforms the simple act of making a roti into a powerful metaphor for care, memory, resilience, and the unequal burdens of domestic labour.

Blending documentary-inspired storytelling with performance, the work invites audiences to look closely at everyday acts that often go unnoticed while opening conversations around gender, patriarchy, care work, and the value of domestic labour. Both intimate and political, Garam Roti creates a deeply personal yet universally resonant theatrical experience.

The evening concludes with a communal eating experience where audiences are invited to share mini rotis served with traditional accompaniments such as ghee, sugar, and pickle, extending the performance into a space of dialogue, reflection, and community.

Durga Venkatesan is a theatre actor, director, writer, and creative producer based in Mumbai. Founder of Playhouse Productions, she creates original works that combine personal storytelling with documentary theatre. Her performances have been presented at leading theatre festivals and cultural institutions across India, including the Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards, India Habitat Centre Theatre Festival, Thespo, and the 100th Marathi Natya Mahotsav. She is the recipient of the Pearl Padamsee Award for Outstanding Performer and the New Outstanding Writing Award at Thespo 2024.

Creative Team