WHOSE SARI NOW?
BY RASA PRODUCTIONS, UNITED KINGDOM
DATE & TIME:
29-30 August 2026 SAT & SUN, 3PM & 730PM
VENUE:
The Theatre Lab @ Agam
TICKETS : $40 Std & $28 Student/Senior Citizens
DURATION : 1 Hr 30min (No interval)
LANGUAGE : English
SURTITLES : NA
RATING ADVISE : 12 and above
ADVISORIES : NA
SYNOPSIS
A dynamic one-woman play that traces the cultural life of the sari through a rich tapestry of characters and stories spanning generations and geographies. Through monologue, mime, dance and even spoken word, Moorthy portrays a diverse cast — from an elderly woman sorting her treasured saris to a transgender man, a low-caste weaver who can never wear the cloth she crafts, and others whose lives are shaped by tradition, identity and belonging. Each story uses the sari as both garment and metaphor to explore history, memory and the evolving place of this iconic dress in South Asian and diasporic life.
PRODUCTION CREDITS
Presented by: Rasa Productions, UK
Commissioned by: Agam Theatre Lab
Playwright: Rani Moorthy
Director: Kimberley Sykes
Stage Manager: Phillip Hussey
Set Design: Ana Inez JP
Lighting Designer: Pablo Fernandez Baz
Video/Image Designer Shanaz Gulzar
Sound Designer Magizhan Santhors
Singers: Renu Arora and Sujeeth G
Partnerships & Outreach: Sankari Elavalahan
Publicity Design: Indian Events SG
Photography: Brandon
Videography and Marketing Materials: Seyyon Media
Cast Rani Moorthy
ARTISTE INFORMATION
Rasa Productions, United Kingdom
Rasa Productions is a Manchester-based UK theatre company led by Artistic Director Rani Moorthy, a Malaysian-born Sri Lankan Tamil playwright and actor with deep roots in South Asian theatre practice and diaspora storytelling. Founded in the late 1990s, Rasa’s work is characterised by its blending of theatrical traditions, humour and cultural insight, often weaving personal and community narratives that resonate across diverse audiences.
Rasa has developed theatre that bridges traditional dramaturgy with diasporic perspectives, engaging audiences in conversations about heritage, belonging, and contemporary identity. Her expertise in crafting layered performances that draw from Tamil cultural aesthetics and migrant narratives would bring rich artistic depth to the festival. As a potential partner, Rasa Productions offers culturally nuanced storytelling, and a history of engaging diverse communities, making it a compelling collaborator for festival programming that seeks to connect global Tamil and South Asian theatre traditions with contemporary audiences.
Rani Moorthy
Rani is a Sri Lankan Tamil theatre practitioner, who grew up in Malaysia and Singapore before settling in the United Kingdom. Rani has appeared in Coronation Street, A&E, Cold Feet, Moving On, Prisoner’s Wives and plays Mrs.Bilal in the BBC1 sit-com Citizen Khan. Film work includes Twenty8K, Throw of a Dice and All in Good Time by Ayub Khan Din based on his Olivier winning play Rafta Rafta.
Rani has written for BBC1’s Doctors and is a regular contributor and presenter on BBC1’s The Heaven and Earth Show and BBC Radio 2’s Pause for Thought. Adapted her own play Curry Tales for Radio 4. She has written the Woman’s Hour drama Whose Sari Now for BBC Radio 4. Rani was specially commissioned by Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company to write text for the contemporary dance work Just Add Water? (Royal Opera House 2009 and on tour in 2010).
As a filmmaker, Rani’s short film incense funded by the Film Council “New Cinema” fund, has been shown in major national short film festivals and in Berlin, Cannes and New York.