This play has been produced by students and graduate of Rose Bruford working with a local South Asian women’s group called Mahila Sangha (South-East London Bangladeshi Women’s Group) who meet regularly in Eltham, and Mukul Ahmed; a director from TARA ARTS.
The script has been written by Rae Leaver (Directing L3) Design by Claudia Hayley (Directing L3) Costume design and production by Shabeena Butt (Costume Production graduate) Lighting Designer and Production Manager is Lee Jones (Stage Management graduate) Press Officer is Alia Wilson (European Theatre Arts L3) Project Development by Shubhra Rao (Organising Live Arts graduate)
The play is written as a contemporary interaction with the life and works of Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (1880-1932), a prolific writer and determined human rights activist in Victorian Colonial India.
Imagine an unconventional “Ladyland”: ruled by women, a place of peace and enlightenment; using green energy and harnessing water supplies in the public good, where men have gone into voluntary seclusion. This is the world of Rokeya.
Based on the sci-fi satire Sultana’s Dream written by Rokeya, and her life and writings, the play will take you on a journey through 3 young British individuals and their path of discovery into Rokeya’s life and the stories of women’s tribulations in the early 1900s in colonial Victorian Bengal – delving into cultural choices, social pressures and overcoming extraordinary obstacles. Rokeya was brought up in strict purdah, education was forbidden. Yet she crossed all barriers. A forward thinking visionary she even spoke of a sustainable environment and solar energy a hundred years ago.
The play celebrates this great woman’s fight, and the rewards reaped from her struggle in empowering women and promoting education in South Asia. It explores the situation of young Asian women today, and the very real dilemmas they have to face, just as Rokeya did 100 years ago.