Gaatha – Mumbai International Storytelling Festival 2024 begins

Festival Chair, Amrita Somaiya said, “Storytelling is a lost art, especially for today’s youth. The idea behind Gaatha at is to introduce them to this rich experience of cultural exchange as stories are told in various forms such as oral stories, music, dance, art among all. This art, which is considered ancient, is rather very relevant in today’s corporate world too. After all, it is this knack of storytelling that allows one to have effective interpersonal communication.

Venkatraman said, “The way to keep this ancient art alive is to involve the youth. Apart from performances by an impressive line-up of storytellers coming from different parts of the world, this three-day celebration of storytelling at the SUV, also entails a host of creatively designed events and workshops around the art of storytelling for students to participate.”

This is the first time Gaatha has a segment titled – Queer Kahaniya (stories) which will focus on stories about the LGBTQ community. “This will include participation of performance coach Feroza Engineer and LGBTQ activist Ankit Bhuptani. They will speak about their experiences of coming out of the closet and other stories that will make the society more inclusive,” said Venkatraman.

Hoping for an informal approach to connect with youth, the festival also offers impromptu events such as ‘Kathakshari’ where participants have to tell a story that starts with the last word of the previous story. All of this is improvised, according to organisers, making the festival much more vibrant.