Neeraj Kabi spent two evenings in Gurugram taking a room of people through the process he uses to build his own characters — the method behind his roles in Ship of Theseus, Sacred Games and Paatal Lok.
Four hours each time, on their feet the whole way: breath, body, voice and presence, in his order. Nobody was put on the spot and nothing was performed for an audience. Everyone worked at once, together.
Each session opened in a circle, breathing, before anyone spoke. Breath tied to what you feel — the first thing an actor learns to control.
What you feel arrives in the body before you say anything. The room spent a while finding out what it had been broadcasting all along.
Voice, worked the way an actor works it: for expression, not volume.
Whether a room believes you before you have said a word. The last hour was a story each person told, when they were ready. Nobody was scored.
“Loved the entire workshop… the fact that it was interactive and immersive rather than surface level performative.”
“The nuances where Neeraj talked about human psychology and through real life stories, he gave a power tool to deal with life's circumstances.”
“Breath exercises, so many life lessons, and the explanation of the three strips of our Indian flag.”
“See the things as they are.”
From the feedback form participants filled in after each session.
One of India's finest film and theatre actors — Ship of Theseus, Sacred Games, Paatal Lok, Talvar, Detective Byomkesh Bakshy, Hichki.
He founded PRAVAH, a theatre and film space in Mumbai, and has been teaching this work since 1996. He also runs it for companies, as leadership training with Theatre Effects.
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