Between Consent and Control

During a scene in the play Urmila, the audience spontaneously leans forward and starts clapping spontaneously.

- MALLIK THATIPALLI

During a scene in the play Urmila, the audience spontaneously leans forward and starts clapping spontaneously. The titular character is saying, "It's not like I wanted to live my life" when she thinks of her husband Lakshmana, who abandoned her for 14 years and left her to sleep for the entire time. Urmila resolutely calls out his refusal to give her a choice. The audience's applause acknowledges not only the intensity of her emotion but also the universal struggle for autonomy and self-determination of women the role embodies.

The play is directed and written by Nimmy Raphel who plays the lead, and presented by the Adishakti Theatre group; it was performed during the Manan Theater Festival in Hyderabad. It offers a poignant, layered exploration of gender dynamics and personal agency, with