The formula of a genocide

Consisting of eight performance poetry segments, the play narrates the history of genocide from different places— Mayan Ixils in Guatemala, Rohingyas in Myanmar, Muslims in Bosnia, Darfur in Sudan, Yazidis in Syria, Tamils in Sri Lanka, Arabs in Palestine and Tutsis in Rwanda. But the playwright and the director claim that in all these places, the narrative remains the same. 

“Genocide is one of those narratives that repeats itself because irrespective of who commits genocide over whom, the act is formulaic. Whether it is the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide or even the ongoing Syrian genocide, it begins with ‘othering’, then spreading of hate and fear, and, finally, the disappearance of the ‘other’. 

This is why we chose to stage the play on June 12. Anne Frank’s writings are one of the only surviving records of a refugee perspective on genocide and her story’s echoes still run through all the genocides we see today. But the play will not be a retelling of Anne Frank’s Diary. 

Instead, we will take the audience through the experience of refugees from modern genocides and then connect their narratives with the Diary,” explains Samyuktha P C, the director of the play. Frankly Speaking was written by Kirthi Jayakumar after she was inspired by the stories she heard while working with genocide refugees as part of her work with the United Nations. 

“Anne Frank’s Diary is very dear to me because she wrote it at the age of 13 and I read the book for the first time at the age of 13. Ever since, I revisit the book almost every year. So, once I heard the stories from the refugees, I related them with hers. I ended up writing the play in one stretch over three hours on a night. When I discussed the idea with Samyuktha, she was also excited and we decided to stage it. This is the first staging of the play,” she added. 

The director feels that the play would be an eye-opener. “Even though we have been watching and listening to stories of genocide on a regular basis, we are not disturbed by them because we perceive it as something that happens to someone else whom we have no relationship with. 

Of course, as in all genocides, the information is also confusing because what we receive is filtered and controlled by both the government and the media. But we, who live in the city, live in a space of comfort where we are not bothered by this confusion. 

This play will literally put the audience in the middle of these narratives, as the actors present it standing around the audience, and force them to pay attention and react,” she adds. The writer, along with Aparnaa Nagesh and Keerthi Pandian will present the play on stage. Frankly Speaking will be staged at Goethe-Institut on June 12 at 7.30 pm.