IHC Theatre Festival announces 2026 line-up

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The India Habitat Centre Theatre Festival 2026 is set to return on September 18 with a diverse line-up of productions including “Dancing with Dad”, “Breast of Luck”, “The Tragedy of Ham Maclear”, “Cilappatikaram / The Anklet’s Verdict” and “Bhasabharatam”.

The 10-day festival, supported by the National School of Drama, will bring together critically acclaimed and contemporary theatrical productions in Hindi, English, Tamil and Punjabi, offering audiences a cross-section of India’s vibrant theatre landscape, the organisers said.

It will open with “Dancing with Dad”, written and directed by Maneesh Verma, followed by “Breast of Luck”, directed by Leena Yadav, on September 19 and “Amb Da Boota”, devised and performed by Anya Ghai, Bhavya Rampal and others, on September 20.

The festival will resume on September 22 with “The Tragedy of Ham Maclear”, written and directed by Akash Khurana, followed by “Window Tak Aashiqui”, written and directed by Manurishi Chadha, on September 23.

“Cilappatikaram / The Anklet’s Verdict”, directed by Sooraj Nambiar, will be staged on September 24. The production aims to breathe new life into the ancient Tamil epic through the meditative vocabulary of ‘Kutiyattam’, bringing together a classical literary tradition and an evocative theatrical form.

“The festival is not simply a collection of plays; it is a celebration of the breadth, vitality and continuing evolution of Indian theatre. Its enduring appeal lies in this diversity and in its ability to bring artists and audiences together in a meaningful cultural dialogue,” India Habitat Centre (IHC) director Prof KG Suresh said in a statement.

The final three evenings of the festival will feature “Har Marz Ki Dawa”, directed by Saurabh Nayyar, on September 25; “The Queen”, directed by Daniel Owen D’Souza, on September 26; and “Bhasabharatam”, directed by Piyal Bhattacharya, on September 27.

Presented by the NSD Sikkim Repertory Company, “Bhasabharatam” revisits the timeless plays of Bhasa through the vibrant oral traditions of Charan and Bhatta, offering audiences an encounter between classical Sanskrit theatre and living performance traditions.

The festival will also feature additional performances under ‘The Theatre’, including “Maaye Ni Meri Akh Lag Gaya”, “Home in a Suitcase” and “Hindi Medium Tight”.

“The curation of this year’s festival has been guided by the idea of presenting a programme that is varied, engaging and representative of the many ways in which theatre is being imagined today,” said Syed Shadab Hussain, head-programmes at IHC.

Over the years, the festival has featured eminent theatre personalities including Rajat Kapoor, Neelam Mansingh, Manav Kaul, Faezeh Jalali, Kalki Koechlin, Saurabh Shukla, Satish Kaushik, Atul Kumar and Ashwin Gidwani.

It has also showcased landmark productions, including Akvarious Productions’ 80th show “This Time”, as well as META Award-winning productions “Raghunath” and “Hunkaro”.

The festival, with tickets priced at Rs 200, Rs 350 and Rs 500, will come to a close on September 27.

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