Director Sunil Shanbag (second from right) rehearses with actors Jaimini Pathak, Mansi Multani, Sapan Saran, Ayesha Raza Mishra, Varun Kulkarni and Nachiket Devasthali. Pics/Datta Kumbhar

Under the glow of yellow lights that illuminate Studio Tamaasha, an intimate theatre space in Andheri, musician Rohit Das strums his guitar. The riffs match the pace of the foot-tapping number, Gaon chhodab nahin, jungle chhodab nahin… that actor Varun Kulkarni sings in the Nagpuri dialect of Jharkhand. Eight actors, sitting around him, sing the chorus. The folk song talks about how the adivasi way of life is undermined by the government. It was penned by lyricist Meghnath for a video directed by KP Sasi, originally inspired by a song by Bhagwan Maaji, leader of adivasi struggle against bauxite mining in Kashipur.