Pahinjo Kirdaar
Seven stories, one people – carrying Sindh within
(A Theatrical Play)
Deesh Mariwala, Monica Mahendru, Varun Vazir, Barkha Fatnani
Written and Directed by Nikhil Katara
Pahinjo Kirdaar (Our Identity)
Written and directed by Nikhil Katara and produced by Sindhi Saaz Foundation, Pahinjo Kirdaar is an evolving theatre project based on oral histories of Sindhis collected over more than fifteen years by writer and oral historian Saaz Aggarwal. It transforms personal narratives into performance, using lived experience to illuminate little-known aspects of Sindhi history, culture and identity.
Deesh Mariwala
Premiered at the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival in February 2026 with five monologues, the production has grown to include six monologues and a dialogue. Together, these stories explore migration, memory, family, language, resilience and belonging while challenging the narrow stereotypes through which the Sindhi community is often viewed. The characters include freedom fighters, idealists, migrants, entrepreneurs, artists and ordinary individuals whose experiences reveal the richness and complexity of a community that lost its homeland during Partition.
Monica Mahendru
The production is performed by Mumbai theatre artists Deesh Mariwalla, Barkha Fatnani, Monica Mahendru and Varun Vazir, whose performances move effortlessly between humour and heartbreak, bringing these real-life stories vividly to life.
Although the performance is in English, each piece incorporates a few lines of Sindhi. This is a deliberate artistic choice that keeps the language present on stage while allowing audiences unfamiliar with Sindhi to understand its meaning through the dramatic context, and giving Sindhi audiences an immediate sense of recognition and connection.
Barkha Fatnani
Each performance concludes with an audience interaction that has become an integral part of the project, extending the conversation beyond the stage and allowing the work to continue evolving as it travels.
Varun Vazir
