To celebrate, it’s 20th year, The CREATE Foundation & Bajaj Group present Rise Up for Equality – A Special Women’s Festival to make Maharashtra the safest state for women & children globally…
In collaboration with the Royal Opera House, India’s only surviving opera house.

Experience the power of theatre as two captivating plays, “Bitter Chocolate” and “Untitled”, come alive on stage.. starring the internationally acclaimed, Lushin Dubey…

BITTER CHOCOLATE
This is a highly-acclaimed and poignant solo piece, portraying child sexual abuse in India, enacted by Lushin Dubey and scripted & directed by Arvind Gaur. It is based on Pinki Virani’s best-seller of the same title.
Lushin presents different facets of child abuse through a series of cameos in which she depicts over ten characters including victim, perpetrator, parent, lawyer, activist, psychiatrist and police; and she takes us through the gamut of violations that confront our children every day. Her performance keeps the audience spellbound throughout the play.
BITTER CHOCOLATE has done over 75 shows across India and abroad.

UNTITLED
This solo piece is enacted by Lushin Dubey and scripted for stage & directed by Arvind Gaur & music by Dr. Sangeeta Gaur. It is inspired by the eminent Vijay Dan Detha’s “Nyari Nyari Maryada” and Nobel-Laureate Dari Fo’s “Medea”. UNTITLED has done over 300 performances to much acclaim, across India and abroad ,UK, USA,).
The focus is on a Rajasthani queen who refuses to be an ornamental puppet in her palace. She renegotiates her boundaries, breaking free of the shackles of centuries-old traditions, and endows herself with an independent and emancipated identity.
Lushin portrays 12 characters: for the most part, the men are hand-held puppets in her hands , while the women are embodied in her own person. The play alternates between Hindi (80%) and English (20%), emphasizing how time has stood still for women between the ancient Greece of Dario Fo and 20th-century Rajasthan of Dan Detha, until the women themselves decide to take their destiny into their own hands.

Through theatre, we ignite conversations, inspire change, and empower our community.

Join us on this transformative journey of empowerment and change
Bitter Chocolate on Thursday, 24th August – 7:30pm
Untitled on Friday, 25th August – 7:30pm
At the Royal Opera House

Together, let’s make Maharashtra the safest state for women & children, globally.