Kaahini

A highly original yet thoroughly accessible insight into what it means to be young, Asian and British

Filled with the powerful and contradictory emotions of adolescence, Kaahini is brightly coloured, full of warmth and feeling, and shot through with the darker threads of frustration and anger at the inflexible and inexplicable adult world

This play, for all its seemingly unfamiliar Asian context, speaks directly to the widest possible audience - anyone with a mother, father, son, daughter, friend or lover will find much to challenge and inspire them here

” ... ‘Esha’ is a 16-year-old ‘boy’ who is obsessive about his fitness, dreaming of scoring the winning goal in the looming schools’ cup final

Esha, however, is actually a girl raised as a male by her parents. She is forced to confront her identity and sexuality when her periods start and she begins to have feelings for her best friend, Farooq

By taking on the female identity of ‘Kaahini’, she takes tentative steps toward unravelling her ‘true’ self

To do so, the characters who surround her must also face some uncomfortable truths about themselves

... a welcome addition to the choices for students of Higher Drama” ~ Mark Russell, Drama Teacher
954520645