At Picci Ooru (@picciooru), we curate alive experiences with the help of artists. In due course of making magic happen, it has become evidently clearer that the problem for many artists isn’t opportunity — it’s the lack of workflow and collaboration between artists, audiences, venues, and brands.

Living in Auroville for the past few months, we have been exploring with artists to understand their struggles and challenges. That’s when we realized opportunities exist, but the structure and flow doesn’t. Ofcourse, artists are growing individually on Instagram and YouTube, releasing great content, but what’s missing is connection and coordination. That’s the problem we are actively solving through our Picci Ooru ecosystem — a bridge for creation, curation, and collaboration.

During our R&D phase, while speaking with a few artists, we heard that the Auroville Theatre Group (@theaurovilletheatregroup) was working on a production called Call Me Devika. A few days later, we recieved a message in the Inside/Outside Workshop group from Jill Navarre (@jillnavarre) from the Auroville Theatre Group — she was looking for a stage manager for that play.

When Raghuram, our founder read the play’s description, he immediately decided — I have to be part of this!

“This play is the first in a longer series exploring the inner lives and legacies of forgotten women — artists, rebels, mystics, and political figures who shaped history in invisible ways. Devika Rani was not just the ‘First Lady of Indian Cinema.’ She was a visionary — a woman of immense talent and steely resolve who co-founded Bombay Talkies with Himanshu Rai in the 1930s, ran it single-handedly after his death, and nurtured stars like Ashok Kumar and Dilip Kumar…”

Reading that, Raghuram instantly messaged Jill saying he wanted to collaborate as a stage manager. The next day, she called him directly for rehearsals. Here is a step by step recounting of an incredibly learning-affirmative experience as narrated by Raghuram. Sip a warm cup of coffee and walk through the memory lane with him.

Day 1 at @cripa_auroville (CRIPA)

Rehearsals began at @cripa_auroville — one of the most beautiful performing arts venues I’ve ever seen.

CRIPA is designed for a wide range of performances — music concerts, dance, and drama. Its variable acoustics are incredible — with rotatable panels on the walls and ceiling that can be adjusted for diffusion, absorption, and reflection. That means you can literally tune the space to the performance.

Being there, surrounded by that kind of space and sound — it was already magic.

I got introduced to the whole team

The Team

Our team came together like a dream:

🎭 Director: @jillnavarre

✍️ Playwright & Actor (Devika Rani): Rupam Mishra (@rupammishra28)

🎨 Set Designers: @mai.teri.kuhu (Maitreyee Kuhu) & @rohitxavierrr (Rohit Xavier Shaji)

🪑 Furniture Support: @madeinauroville (Aurorachana)

🎥 Projection: Sajiv Pasala (@sajivuuuuuu)

💡 Lighting Design: Sugumar Shanmugam (@sugumar__shanmugam)

👗 Costume Designer: (@__radhag__ )

And the amazing cast:

• Rupam Mishra – Devika Rani

• Ojas Abhishek Kumar – Svetoslav Roerich

• Ian Christian – Himanshu Rai

• Eakansh Sharma – Naj-mul Hasan

• Ayaan Diwan – Dilip Kumar

• Tushar Sateeja – Ashok Kumar

• Genie (Ranjani Karthikeyan) – Makeup Artist / Personal Assistant to Devika Rani

• Priyanka Sunkesula – The Reporter

Jill Navarre and Ranjani Karthikeyan contributed financies for the play — which was an incredible gesture. It helped the actors sustain their lives in Auroville during months of rehearsals and production costs. For me personally, rather than explaining what to do as a stage manager, Jill gave me real on-ground experience, which helped me learn far more than any manual could.

The Rehearsal Process

Every day we had 3 hours of practice, plus warm-up and half an hour of feedback within that time. The warm-ups were essential — freeing the body, activating our voice, removing tension. No mics in theatre — just raw voice projection and presence!

Jill guided the actors with incredible attention — from actions to prop usage, stage presence to improvisation. She always reminded us that in theatre, no two performances are ever the same. Each day brings its own magic.

Every Friday became our Pizza Night, where we discussed weekly progress, challenges, and plans.

Costume designer Radha Ganesan (@radhag) would often travel from Chennai to join these sessions.

Everyone started brainstorming props and stage setups. Kuhu (@mai.teri.kuhu), as the set designer, began listing what we needed. Soon, we went to Aurorachana (@madeinauroville), an antique shop, We moved props (@theaurovilletheatregroup), Jill’s Collection, Ranjani’s collection, and the Giving Hub community, where people contribute and share freely. to find vintage furniture for the 1930s setting of Call Me Devika.

The Bharat Nivas Show

After months of hard work, the performance was set for Bharat Nivas (@bharat_nivas_auroville) International Auditorium on Nov 17–19, 2025.

As the backstage team, we coordinated logistics, set design, and prop changes. With each rehearsal, timing got sharper and transitions smoother.

Watching @sugumar__shanmugam bring the stage alive with lighting was an art form by itself. I also learned about stage directions — upstage, center stage, downstage — and how acoustics affect sound at every step.

Then came the final show day!

Makeup artists arrived, backstage crew in place, samosas and chai, posters up — the energy was unreal. The audience began arriving. It wasn’t our show anymore — it was Devika Rani’s day. Her story, her strength, her rebellion — all coming alive on stage.

The audience filled the seats, lights dimmed, and Devika Rani came alive on stage. It wasn’t just a play — it was a celebration of a forgotten woman who changed Indian cinema.

We had a full house and great applause. Over the next two days, each performance got smoother and more powerful. Jill, our captain, guided us with grace.

After every performance, we had a discussion on feedback. Auroville is a place of experimentation where actors can improvise, understand how the audience engages with the subject, and get honest feedback before showcasing it to the world. That’s where our actors improved their projection skills, made script changes if needed, and adapted to the stage as a playground for performance.

From Auroville to Bengaluru

After Diwali, we resumed rehearsals at CRIPA Auroville for the Bengaluru show. Auroville was ideal for transportation and logistics — easy to coordinate. But now it was time for the Bengaluru shows, and some actors had to step back because of personal commitments.

That’s the beauty of theatre — it’s collective work. If one person steps away, others immediately step in, knowing what needs to happen. As a Stage Manager, my role was to make things smoother — assigning tasks, streamlining workflow, and holding the team together.

With a tight budget for the Bengaluru leg, we reused the black boxes from CRIPA as stage furniture and rented only essentials. Some props came from Jill’s house, Ranjani’s collection, and the Giving Hub community — a space where people contribute and share freely. We also sourced a few stage elements from Adams Bangalore (@adamsblr) and borrowed some crucial pieces from Sugumar’s friends (@sugumar__shanmugam). Each step had its own hurdles, but theatre is built on improvisation, and we made it work.

Ian Christian helped with packing and railway logistics, and Kuhu (@mai.teri.kuhu) coordinated the transport to Bengaluru. Once there, we used Porter (@porterpartners_) for local movement — smooth and on-time.

We performed first at Ranga Shankara (@rangashankara) — an incredible experience. When there’s no prop manager or tech hand, actors themselves run backstage shifts. Everyone helps everyone. That’s theatre — a living example of creative unity.

After trimming a few long scenes for runtime, we still had wonderful audiences — around 100 online bookings and 50 walk-ins. The applause after key scenes — unforgettable.

Our final show at Jagriti Theatre (@jagrititheatre) in Whitefield was emotional — the last performance before everyone returned to their everyday lives.

Backstage Drama (aka: Controlled Chaos, Theatre Edition 😂)

Every stage we performed on had its own personality — and honestly, sometimes I felt like the stages were testing us more than we were testing them. At Bharat Nivas, backstage was so big we could practically play cricket there. Props everywhere? No stress — there was space for everything, including my confusion.

Then we reached Ranga Shankara, and the wings said,

“Welcome. Now squeeze.”

The space was tighter, the structure different, so we had to finish arranging props, lights, and stage elements three hours before the show, just so we wouldn’t end up bumping into each other like confused penguins during transitions.

And then… Jagriti Theatre (@jagrititheatre).

Ah yes — the ultra-compact, premium, pocket-sized backstage experience. Quick changes felt like doing yoga inside a suitcase. But still — one thing kept us alive: collective effort and pure teamwork. Whenever chaos hit, we handled it with teamwork, panic-whispering, and 10% professionalism… and 90% laughter. I’d always say,

“Only today macha, only today!”

And somehow it worked — everyone stayed chill.

But the real comedy gold happened during one show. Himanshu Rai has this serious phone scene — very emotional — and right after that comes a flashback sequence. My job was to quietly place the flashback props. Simple, right? Of course, with full confidence I walked in and set up the props for…

the NEXT scene.

Not the current one. Not the flashback.

Nope. I jumped straight into the future. 🔮

The backstage team looked at me like,

“Bro… why are we in 2035?”

After the show, everyone laughed so hard they nearly dropped the costumes. And me? I stood there like a proud comedian saying,

“Ya ya, shouldn’t have happened — comedy timing only!”

Despite all this madness, Kuhu, Rohit, and Anu were superheroes. They knew exactly when to change what — props, lights, costumes — sometimes in under 10 seconds. Helping actors fix outfits, grabbing last-minute items, sprinting across backstage like it was a marathon… all done with full passion.

Learnings as an Art Experience Curator

For me, theatre is pure madness — the good kind. It’s a world where raw talent comes alive, where every character has an arc, and every performance becomes its own universe. I still remember the first time I watched a show at Ranga Shankara. I walked out thinking, “One day, I want to be an actor and show my work on a stage like this.”

And it actually happened — not as an actor, but as a stage manager. Life really works like that sometimes. If you keep moving toward what you want, you’ll reach it. No overthinking — just instincts, that’s how everything begins.

From being an audience member to becoming the stage manager for shows at Ranga Shankara, Bharat Nivas, and Jagriti Theatre — it still feels unbelievable. When I stand at the center of a stage, each one feels different — the dimensions, the seating arrangement, the way the audience looks back at you. You understand how uniquely every stage is built only when you’re actually standing there.

And when I look up, all I see are lights — the heartbeat of a performance. Lights shape the mood, the emotion, the energy of the characters. And here’s where I have to mention Sugumar — the man is pure passion. Always talking about lights, explaining brands, setups, focusing, hanging, arranging, wings, everything. “Light macha” himself. His dedication taught me how powerful lighting is in elevating a play.

Theatre gave me an experience I never expected — not acting on stage, but understanding the world behind it. And honestly, this madness is the best thing that has happened to me.

What stays with me is not just the performance, but the collective spirit — the love, the teamwork, the art of making something bigger than ourselves.

Learning from this experience, as an Art Experience Curator, I realized a theatre stage manager’s responsibilities include planning and scheduling rehearsals, managing props and sets, and acting as the main communication hub between the director, cast, and crew. During performances, they call cues for lighting and sound and oversee the show from a backstage perspective to ensure it runs smoothly and consistently.

Experience every stage how they designed to utilise the space for the various performance, here are a brief details about them in a few words :

CRIPA (Centre for Research in Performing Arts), Auroville (@cripa_auroville)

CRIPA is an interdisciplinary arts centre in Auroville’s Cultural Zone, dedicated to research, education, and experimentation in the performing arts. Its atmosphere reflects Auroville’s spirit of human unity and inner growth, focusing less on flawless performance and more on collective creativity. With its adjustable acoustic panels, CRIPA’s hall adapts to diverse forms from experimental physical theatre and multimedia performances to classical Indian dance and music making it a space where boundaries between performer and audience often dissolve.

Sri Aurobindo Auditorium (Bharat Nivas), Auroville (@bharat_nivas_auroville)

Located in the Pavilion of India, this is Auroville’s largest and most formal performance venue, seating around 500–750 people. It has hosted everything from Indian dance-dramas and international plays to conferences and concerts. The proscenium stage and retro acoustics make it ideal for un-amplified performances, offering a traditional yet powerful theatre experience.

Ranga Shankara, Bangalore (@rangashankara)

One of India’s most respected theatre spaces, Ranga Shankara stands as a hub for Bangalore’s vibrant theatre community. It upholds professional standards, showcasing works ranging from classical adaptations to contemporary productions in multiple languages. With its intimate design and excellent acoustics, it brings audiences close to the heart of live performance.

Jagriti Theatre, Bangalore (@jagrititheatre)

Jagriti Theatre complements Ranga Shankara’s legacy with a more contemporary, flexible setup that welcomes both amateur and professional groups. Its black-box style allows diverse stage configurations, encouraging experimentation across theatre, dance, and music. Jagriti’s inclusive programming makes it a key space for accessible, modern performance culture in Bangalore.

Connecting the Stages

Together, these venues from CRIPA’s experimental openness to Ranga Shankara’s discipline and Jagriti’s modern adaptability represent an ecosystem of creative expression. Each stage contributes to the journey of artists and curators alike, nurturing collaboration, growth, and the constant evolution of performance as a shared human experience.

This experience with the Auroville Theatre Group was one of the best journeys I’ve had. And as Picci Ooru ecosystem, we’re now working to solve the biggest problems artists face — from creation to stage — offering support in sponsorships, logistics, workflow, and collaboration between venues, audiences, brands, and artists.

Wherever art is, we’ll be there — playing our part, building together. So, until next time — let’s catch up at another production, music concert, or dance performance. Whatever it may be…

This is theatre: beautiful chaos, shared madness, collective effort — and the best learning space for any actor to discover who they are and what they can bring to the world.

It was that time of the year in Auroville, March 2025, when the season of art, music, and gatherings was gently coming to a close. From November to March, the community had been alive with performances, collaborations, and creative exchange — and now, as the warm light of March settled in, the season was wrapping up.

Around this time, @river_e_darya reached out to us for a performance, on the suggestion of @chasingfolksounds, who encouraged him to connect with us at Picci Ooru. We first met River at the Auroville Bakery, where he shared his vision and performed a few of his songs for us. His work drew deep inspiration from Kabir, the Indian mystic poet and saint whose verses have guided seekers through devotion and introspection for centuries.

River had taken Kabir’s timeless poetry and transformed it into soulful contemporary songs — blending mystic philosophy with heartfelt melodies. Moved by his music, we invited him to perform, and soon he was joined by @_bhasma on percussion. Together, they created an evening that felt truly magical — River on vocals and guitar, and Bhasma weaving rhythms that carried each word into the hearts of the listeners.

The concert which was a ticketed event, and the atmosphere was electric yet intimate — the space alive with warmth, gratitude, and deep listening. Every note resonated with the spirit of Auroville, reminding everyone why this community remains a sanctuary for art, reflection, and soulful connection.

First Song – Oru Cherukili Parannu Pokunne

(Malayalam folk-inspired original by River)

oru cherukili parannu pokunne
A little bird is flying away

doore ang doore thante koodum vitt
Far away, leaving behind its own nest

ooo cherukili nin koodum vitt engotta?
Oh little bird, where are you going after leaving your nest?

koodundakkan theeram thedunnilla
Not searching for a shore to build another nest

koottinayi aarem thedunnilla
Not searching for anyone to be its companion

ee yatra aanente veed
This journey itself is my home

njan pokum patha ente kood
The path I walk is my nest

neram sandhya aayi
The time has turned to evening

sooryam manj poyit
The sun has faded away

aakasham chuvakkukayayi
The sky has turned red

cherukili parakkukayayi
And the little bird keeps flying

oru cheru kili parannu pokkunne...
A little bird is flying away...

As a curator, this song struck something deeply personal within me. I saw myself in that little bird — leaving behind the familiar and stepping into the unknown. When I first arrived in Auroville and began curating performances, I too was discovering myself through the journeys of others — through love, friendship, grief, and rediscovery.

Many of my friends have since moved on to different places — some returning to their hometowns, following their own paths and building new nests. Yet the spirit of Auroville remains within me — a quiet echo of all those shared moments, dreams, and transformations.

These lines reminded me that the journey itself is home. It’s about living without attachment or expectation — embracing both vulnerability and strength as part of the same path. In Auroville, introspection isn’t an escape; it’s a return — a return to the essence of being. This place makes you confront your emotions, your attachments, and your freedom — teaching you that both vulnerability and detachment are part of the same truth.

Second Song – Yugan Yugan Hum Yogi

(Kabir bhajan reimagined by River)

Yugan yugan hum yogi
For ages and ages, we have been yogis.

Avadhūta, yugan yugan hum yogi
O liberated one, for eternity, we are yogis.

Āve na jāye miṭe na kabahuṃ
We neither come nor go; we are never destroyed.

Shabd anāhat bhogī
We dwell in the eternal, unstruck sound — the divine vibration.

Avadhūta, yugan yugan hum yogi
O liberated one, for ages and ages, we are yogis.

Sab ṭhaur jamāt hamārī
Everywhere is our community, our gathering.

Sab hi ṭhaur par melā
In every place, there is our celebration.

Hum sab māy, sab hain hum māy
We are in all, and all are in us.

Hum hai bahūrī akelā
Yet we remain alone, within ourselves.

Avadhūta, yugan yugan hum yogi
O liberated one, for ages and ages, we are yogis.

Hum hī siddhi samādhi hum hī
We are meditation, and the one meditating.

Hum maunī hum bole
We are silence, and we are speech.

Rūp sarūp arūp dikhā ke
Taking form, beyond form, and formlessness —

Hum hī hum mein hum to khele
We play within our own being.

Avadhūta, yugan yugan hum yogi
O liberated one, for ages and ages, we are yogis.

Kahe Kabīra suno bhāī sādhō
Kabir says, listen, O seeker —

Nāhīn na koi ichchhā
There is no desire left within.

Apnī maṛhī mein āp main ḍolūn
Within my own small hut, I move in my own self.

Khelūn sahaj svaichchhā
I play in the freedom of natural, effortless being.

Avadhūta, yugan yugan hum yogi
O liberated one, for ages and ages, we are yogis.

This song mirrors the ethos of Auroville — freedom from conformity, judgment, and limitation. It speaks to the essence of living naturally, in effortless being. Auroville embodies this spirit — a place where one can dream without boundaries, explore without fear, and live in harmony with one’s truest self.

Kabir’s words remind us that the journey inward is also the journey outward — that silence, joy, and creation are all expressions of the same source. In that sense, this song perfectly resonates with Auroville’s collective spirit — where individuality and unity coexist in a shared dream of freedom and awakening.

River’s Words After the Performance

“Yeah, yeah, right, actually, I also wanted to tell you that, you know, the way you manage the event and bring artists together and curate it — it’s really nice. You can actually plan something like this around India — from Himachal to Delhi, Pushkar, Bangalore, Mangalore, Goa… it would be amazing if you could find artists, make a space for them, and curate events like this. It’ll be lovely — I was thinking of telling you that.”

“I will cradle your scars and love this wanderer”, was the mood of the evening as we welcomed each of us to experience a quiet, intimate and cosy evening with singer-songwriter Aanchal Bordoloi (@aanchalbordoloi) who had released her new single, Little Child.

Replete with live acoustic music and stories, on Saturday, 2nd of August 2025 from 6pm to 8pm, at ARTBRUTE (@art.brute ), A love letter to our Little Child, is something, somewhere, someplace, we wished for our audience, to escape, reside, reflect towards, through a storytelling-led melodious rendezvous by the very talented singer-songwriter Aanchal, as people of all age groups came together in the magical sanctuary of ArtBrute. in the late evening hours as the sun set, and lines between art, music, storytelling and internal reflection blurred, in Kuyilapalayam, Auroville.

Friends showed up to support, and why not. Art and community requires each of us to whistle, hum and gleefully hug the nerves out. Letters were passed around, colorful papers, and sketch pens to doodle, draw and mostly illustrate the quirky memories Aanchal brought up, one song after another.

@art.brute ‘s warm environment filled with books, plants, ceramics, wooden artworks, and many inspiring posters in between which, were seats, floor cushions, chairs, sofas and anything beautiful you could huddle together in, brought to the performance an experience which felt both communal and personal, as children with parents, partners with friends, mothers with gal pals settled.

For anyone hungry, our friends brought local sweets delivered all the way from another state via bus, along with finger foods. What a love language to share food as a memory! But it was primarily and most importantly the night celebrating Aanchal whose song Little Child captures something which quivers with vulnerability and hope, joy and anguish, of having arrived, through adolescence and adulthood finally back into childhood. Siddarth Nayanar’s accompanying music brought this melody into something which roots, somewhere, someplace we wish for everyone to escape, reside, reflect towards.

Filled with melodies of lingering emotions, it was abound with interactive stories, letter-writing, and memorable ramblings with and by Aanchal Bordoloi who also has a background in mental health studies, and has dabbled with the concept of inner child healing - talking to the bits and pieces of ourselves that are still hurting and stuck in the past. ❤️‍🩹

The song Little Child is also a conversation that attempts to look at problems in the present (including intrapersonal conflicts) - especially in terms of human relationships and help smoothen them out by having a conversation with the wounded parts within us, “I will cradle your scars, and love this wanderer.” 💫

We thank ArtBrute, Aanchal Bordoloi and UndoBar for making this magic possible. Photography credits to @mogi_photography . Here’s to many more of these magical moments.

This experience offered a unique, immersive experience that blended traditional Indian sitar music with modern electronic soundscapes and mantra, creating a meditative yet energizing atmosphere.

It successfully brought together a diverse audience, expanded their musical horizons, showcasing the power of cross-genre experimentation & we couldn’t have asked for a better artist.

The event, Sitarsonic, was envisioned as a bridge between the traditional and the contemporary—a live performance that fused the ancient sound of the sitar with electronica, mantra, and psytrance. The intention was to create an authentic, immersive experience in Auroville that resonated with the community’s ethos of self-exploration and inner journeying.

Our founder, Raghuram had long dreamed of bringing such an experience to Auroville. One day, during a solo trip to Bengaluru, as he was going through Instagram, he came across Paco Rodriguez performing a mesmerizing set on the sitar, seamlessly blending electronic beats and sacred chants. His music felt like the perfect match for Auroville’s rooted yet experimental spirit. Inspired, he immediately reached out to him to bring this unique performance to our community.

As the performance unfolded in an open forest area, the atmosphere was electric and liberating. The trees became silent witnesses to an ecstatic dance floor, where the audience lost themselves in the hypnotic layers of live sitar and electronic rhythms. It was incredibly moving to see people from diverse backgrounds come together—dancing, meditating, or simply absorbing the soundscapes in stillness.

For us as curators, witnessing the power of this music to dissolve boundaries and ignite raw, authentic expression was a profound affirmation of why we do what we do through Picci Ooru. The experience reminded us that when intention aligns with the right artist and setting, live performances can truly transform both space and spirit.

Chasing Folk Sounds : Stories & Music with Martand Badoni was curated and organised by Picci Ooru on January 25th 2025.

The audience was deeply immersed, enjoying the authenticity of the music and stories, resonating with the experiences Martand Badoni shared, which reflected moments from their own lives. It was an amazing evening and we felt proud to have curated an experience that created profound connections between audience and artists in the transformative space of the Auroville region.

This event was intentional: through Picci Ooru, we curate events that go beyond music, dance, or theater — we aim to create experiences that give audiences the awareness to reflect on themselves. The event became a blockbuster, with performances not just at Picci Ooru but across multiple venues in Auroville and the bioregion. Together, the artists traveled and performed for a month, carrying their stories and music to connect with fellow artists, locals, and expats alike. This experience reaffirmed for us, as a curator, the importance of bringing more authentic voices to the world through Picci Ooru.

After the Hindustani classical performance as our first event, we started thinking about what performance we could introduce next. Doom scrolling once, our founder, Raghuram came across Martand Badoni’s performance of his song “Dekh Bhai” (YouTube link). This song deeply touched his heart. After listening to the lyrics and the music he composed, he felt its vulnerability and authenticity. The way the singer speaks about the emptiness of the city—where there are no siblings, old friends, lovers, or kindred spirits—captures a profound sense of loneliness, searching, and the deep need for connection.

The lines “Look brother, your city lies empty; its two lonely eyes long for you” hooked us instantly and held our attention for the entire five minutes of the song. And the ending—“Don’t go now, oh don’t you go now, ask from me what you will”—expresses a fear of returning to loneliness and shows a complete willingness to give or do anything to keep the other person there: unconditional love, surrender, or a desperate offer to avoid being parted again.

After listening, we felt that our interpretation resonated deeply with the ethos of Auroville, making it perfect for a performance of song, storytelling, and dance here. The themes in the song felt perfectly aligned with Auroville’s spirit, where people come from all over the world seeking community, connection, and meaning:

• Literally: Someone separated from their brother or family returning home.

• Metaphorically: Two souls lost and found in a vast world, finally recognizing each other as home.

• Spiritually: A call to return to one’s roots, culture, faith, or sense of self.

• Universally: A message about how much we yearn for connection in an empty, lonely world.

  

We immediately contacted Martand and invited him to come and perform with Picci Ooru. Martand Badoni traveled over 2,715 km from Dehradun to Auroville through railways for the performance. After his arrival, Martand and we sat together to discuss how we could enhance the experience by involving local artists. From there, we brought in Abtin Jodeiri Karimi, a passionate percussionist, and Lui Gino Fabozzi, who plays a variety of instruments. Together, we curated the experience by jamming in the days leading up to the event.

Finally, the main day arrived: Martand performed solo for half an hour, and then Abtin and Genie joined him on stage. Even though Abtin Jodeiri Karimi and Lui Gino Fabozzi didn’t understand the language Martand was singing in, it was incredible to see them come together — Martand singing while they provided rich musical accompaniment. We truly felt that music connected them beyond language.

An evening of Indian Classical Music & Open Mic, which now in retrospect, felt like a transformative space where traditional Hindustani music transcended cultural boundaries, inviting a diverse Auroville audience from residents to visitors, and artists, to share moments of stillness, introspection, and collective joy, all made possible on November 16–17, 2024 as curated and organised by Picci Ooru(that’s us!).

Nearly 100 attendees gathered for this deeply immersive experience, where the unique blend of electric guitar, flute, and tabla created meditative, soulful music that helped both the artists and the audience connect with themselves and each other, strengthening community bonds and reaffirming Picci Ooru’s mission to curate inclusive, immersive live experiences. The success of this first event showed how profoundly Hindustani classical music resonates with the ethos of Auroville—a place known for spiritual exploration—and reinforced the potential of Picci Ooru to create transformative, community-building gatherings even from the very first effort. This was also a self-supported, donation-based event with in-kind support from friends.

Our intention was to establish Picci Ooru’s artist community in Auroville by aligning our first event with the town’s spiritual and introspective spirit. Hindustani classical music felt like the perfect starting point to offer audiences an experience that encouraged inner exploration and collective presence. I wanted the event to go beyond entertainment—to become a transformative space where people could truly feel, connect and dance.

The event featured a trio of artists—a Hindustani classical guitarist (Aniketh), a flutist (Kshitij Saxena) , and a tabla player (Manoj Deshmukh)—performing an improvised, soul-stirring set. The unique combination of electric guitar with traditional instruments created an atmosphere of deep calm and meditative energy. The event included an open mic, inviting spontaneous participation, which made the evening soulful and inclusive.

As someone who had never organised an event before—or even attended a Hindustani classical concert—we started this journey from a place of curiosity and passion. Inspired by a video of a Sr. NTR song, we decided to bring something deeply rooted in Indian culture to Auroville’s international, spiritually curious community. We found Aniketh online and were captivated by his unique style of playing Hindustani music on an electric guitar. He introduced us to an extraordinary flutist and tabla player, and when these three artists came together, they jammed with such mad love and intensity that everyone, including us, felt completely immersed in the music.

As curators, we witnessed first-hand how the music transformed the atmosphere: audiences who came expecting a casual evening found themselves immersed in a profound, meditative journey through sound. Artists felt encouraged by the intimate, attentive gathering, which allowed them to take creative risks and express nuances rarely possible in conventional venues. Conversations after the performances revealed how listeners experienced personal shifts—from feeling scattered to centered, or from closed to open—highlighting music’s power to soften barriers of language, culture, and background.

Seeing audience members dance, cry, and thank us afterward for bringing such an experience to Auroville was deeply fulfilling. By hosting this event at HostelExp, we intentionally created a cozy, inclusive environment where classical music could breathe outside of formal concert halls, aligning perfectly with our philosophy of curating spaces where art becomes a shared, transformative experience. Despite our lack of experience, the success of this event—drawing almost 100 people on our first try—proved that passion and intention can overcome inexperience.

This achievement feels like the first step in realising our dream of building a vibrant artists’ community. Cheers!

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