The Thumb

A familiar myth enters unfamiliar territory.


The Thumb revisits the world of Ekalavya and Dronacharya as a contemporary inquiry into authority, knowledge, choice and the many ways power shapes freedom.


The play fractures the moment of Dronacharya asking for Ekalavya's thumb into parallel realities, initiating an investigation by Ekalavya's community—The Collective. At the heart of this encounter is a charged exchange between Drona and the Collective, where listening becomes an act of resistance and respect, even between adversaries.


A dynamic performance language derived from Ottamthullal, the non-linear narrative structure of Kutiyattam's Nirvahanam and the movement vocabulary of Kalakshetra Manipur.


A soundscape that brings Kerala's traditional percussion instrument, the Edakka and Bengal's folk string instrument, the Dotara, to a musical crossroads, making The Thumb a result of collaborations from across the country.