(in Hindi and English, with supertitles in English)
NAATAK opens its landmark 30th season with a timeless tale written specially for this occasion: an adaptation of the novel The Confession of Sultana Daku (Penguin, 2009), recounting the daring exploits of Sultana Daku – his thrilling raids, imaginative escapes, rise to notoriety, and dramatic capture by Freddy Young, the celebrated superintendent of police who, in 1924, finally put an end to Sultana’s reign of terror around Bareilly and Moradabad.
As the first in a long line of notorious dakus, Sultana Daku with his horse-riding gang has appeared in countless films, in Hollywood – The Long Duel (1967) starring Yul Brynner – and Bollywood – Sultana Daku (1973) starring Dara Singh – with his best-known avatar being Gabbar Singh in Sholay (1975).
With an enthralling new script that has never been performed before, the play will feature live music and dance, wit and humor, and energetic ‘svang’ performances that evoke 1920s India.
November 14 – November 23, 2025 | Palo Alto
चोर की दाढ़ी में तिनका
A twig in the thief’s beard
playwright: Nikolai Gogol (adaptation by Pratiksha Rao)
director: Anitha Dixit
producer: Abhijeet Vaidya
(in Hindi, with supertitles in English)
Corrupt local officials in a Gujarati town are thrown into a tizzy when word arrives that an Inspector Sahib is on his way to check on them. Adapted for the stage from Nikolai Gogol’s The Government Inspector, this hilarious satire was fist published in 1836 and has been staged all over the world for nearly two centuries, in countless adaptations and styles.
January 23 – February 15, 2026 | Campbell
Hole
A Naatak Original
playwright: Sujit Saraf
director: Poulomi Sarkar
producer: Pratiksha Rao
(in English)
A bay-area startup led by a mercurial founder launches the greatest engineering project in human history – a tunnel through the earth in which a train can transport passengers from Cupertino to Delhi in 42 minutes, bringing to life the ‘gravity train’ that was conceptualized in a 17th century letter between Robert Hooke and Isaac Newton.
Driven by the Silicon Valley ethos of ‘ask for forgiveness, not permission’ and ‘move fast and break things’, the startup casts all caution to the winds and rushes headlong into the project. Part thought experiment, part social satire and part cautionary tale, this is Naatak’s foray into science fiction!
April 3 – April 26, 2026 | Campbell
जुर्माना
A Naatak Original
playwright and director: Manish Sabu
producer: Alka Sippy
(in Hindi, with supertitles in English)
During the Swadeshi movement launched by Gandhi, the District Congress Committee in a town seals all shops suspected of selling foreign clothes. One shopkeeper – burdened by poverty, debt, and his wife’s illness – commits the crime of breaking the seal and conducting a sale, earning the wrath of the Congress Party, which levies a जुर्माना (penalty) on him. In response, his dying wife rises to defend him in spectacular fashion, shocking her husband, the Congress Party, and India itself.
Inspired by तावान, a story by Munshi Premchand, जुर्माना (Penalty) is a stirring tale that looks deep into the human soul as it grapples with a moral dilemma.
June 12 – June 28, 2026 | Palo Alto
The Play That Goes Wrong
playwrights: Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields
director: Vikas Dhurka
producer: Alka Sippy
sets manager: Asheesh Divetia
(in English)
A hilarious comedy in which, as its name suggests, everything goes wrong. Seemingly a whodunit involving a corpse, a suspect and a detective, nothing is as it seems on stage – actors cannot be trusted with their lines, the corpse cannot be trusted to play dead, the set cannot be trusted to hold up, and the production team cannot be trusted to stay off-stage. Until the play ends, and even through the curtain call, it is never clear what is ‘part of the play’ and what has gone ‘horribly wrong’ in The Play That Goes Wrong.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many plays do you stage in a season?
We stage five plays. To see past plays, click here.
How do I choose my seats for a play?
For each play in the season, we will invite you to choose your seats 6 weeks before the play opens.
For each play, Season Pass holders will enjoy an exclusive period during which they can choose seats – the play will not be advertised to the general public during this period.
How does auto-renewal work?
When buying, check the box that says “automatically renew my season pass every year” and we will take care of renewals. A few days before renewal, we will notify you – giving you the option to opt out – before charging your card to renew your passes.
Are there age restrictions for these plays?
Children under 7 will not be admitted. If a play has a higher age restriction, it will be listed along with the play.
What if I cannot make it to a particular production?
You can transfer your tickets to a particular play, or your whole pass, to a friend. Contact tickets@naatak.org.
What are VVIP, VIP, GENERAL and SAVER seating categories?
These are the seating charts for Cubberley Theater, Palo Alto, and Starbright Theater, Campbell. If we perform in other theaters, we will use equivalent charts.
