In the early 2000s, theatremaker Mahmood Farooqui was drawn to the efforts of his uncle, the late Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, to revive the oral tradition of dastaangoi. Over the last two decades, his collective has turned the material from the scholarship, while adding new performative texts, to revive and renew the ancient tradition of dastangoi on the Indian stage. They will return to the city on February 20 to stage a series of 12 performances over four days to celebrate their 20th year.

Though its etymology traces to the Persian words dastan (story) and goi (teller), the art itself is rooted to the Indian oral storytelling form. Farooqui points out, “Whether that is pandvani, kissagoi, or burrakatha, India has a rich oral storytelling tradition. But it is manifestly clear that this is a completely new form of theatre — a theatre of words.” What sets dastangoi apart is its eschewing the musical form — a core tenet of Indian art. “In many ways, it harks back to the Natya Shastra. It defines abhinaya as ‘more than acting’. The three key tenets are hastobhinaya [expression of hands], mukhobhinaya [expressions of the face] and nayanobhinaya [expressions of the eyes]. All three are key to a good dastango,” adds Farooqui.