Rewiring queer motherhood: Why this new play moves past the sacrificial mother figure

The play premieres in Mumbai on June 16 at AntiSocial, Lower Parel, as part of the “Play Dates” series curated by Akvarious, before heading to Pune for the historic first edition of the queer theatre festival, Satrang Mahotsav

For years, the Indian queer narrative has been trapped in a loop of its own making. We have become accustomed to the spotlight falling on a singular hyper-masculine axis, with gay male love frequently taking the lead role.

Writer and director Vikram Phukan has rewritten the script. His new production, Some Mothers, Other Mothers, is a revolution. Presented by Theatre Jil Jil Ramamani, the play is a kaleidoscope of performances that move past the archetypal, sacrificial mother figure.

Instead, it offers a raw, no-nonsense look at care, kinship, and the unconventional bonds that sustain queer lives.

The play premieres in Mumbai on June 16 at AntiSocial, Lower Parel, as part of the "Play Dates" series curated by Akvarious, before heading to Pune for the historic first edition of the queer theatre festival, Satrang Mahotsav, on June 17.

Vikram Phukan

The cast includes Gaurika Bhatt, Manav Chaudhuri, Padma Damodaran, Rushab Kamdar, and Shreya Sandilya.

Phukan, known for his promenade-style theatre like Postcards from Goa and Postcards from Colaba, found himself resisting the transition to an indoor stage until he looked at the stories gathering dust in his own repertory.

"I realised that sometimes there are stories that can work in a different setting," Phukan tells us. "When I was looking through some of the stories that we have in that so-called repertory of works, there were some that were focused on motherhood."

He then assembled a powerhouse of perspectives. From a young man raised by two mothers to a trans initiation ceremony where a new amma is found through ritual. By stitching together verse, prose, and testimonials, Phukan has moved beyond a simple anthology.

"It has a life of its own; the play now has an integrity of its own," he reflects. "In a different context, something else might emerge that we might not be looking at when we think of queer stories."

The production also masterfully weaves in the weight of history. It touches on the legacy of Lucy D'Souza, whose fierce battle for her son, Dominic D'Souza - Goa's patient zero during the HIV crisis - helped set the stage for queer rights litigation in India.

Phukan is precise about why she belongs here. "The reason that they are part of our play is because of the role Lucy D'Souza's litigation had in also bringing Anand Grover into the fold because he became a pillar of the queer movement."

By foregrounding these women, Phukan is challenging us to stop relegating them to the ally category. "I think it's about seeing it through this lens because we sometimes call these mothers simply allies, right?" he says. "And sometimes people who are what you might call peripheral to a kind of existence are actually not peripheral at all. They are central figures."

Some Mothers, Other Mothers isn't interested in being sentimental. It is interested in the grit of real life. Phukan invites you to pull up a chair, leave your preconceptions at the door, and meet the mothers who have been holding the fort all along.