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Manish

@manishruparel_

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Over the last two years of moving back to Bombay, of sowing seeds in different soils and of slowly forming connections with people who continue to expand my horizons, I’ve started to journey into yet another unknown.

I once did the night sea journey and found a sense of self towards the end of it. With that, I ventured into further unknowns to find a sense of a collective. As some of these seeds start sprouting, I am moved to create a space where these connections can be held and honoured. A space that can hold the absurd, playful, embodied, multidisciplinary and transpersonal work we like to do.

If you’ve been moved by anything I’ve done before, if you’ve felt curious about it, or just simply knew me at some point in time — come walk with me, as we leave the depth of the ocean to fly into the unknown skies together.

#flyingfish #midjourney #embodiedart #clowning #butoh #play by @manishruparel_

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9 months ago

What is offensive and what’s not and to who and where and why and when and what?

We’re coming together to explore this and many more questions at the first International Clown Cult retreat in the strange and stupid lands and seas of India (Winner of Clown Olympics, 2026)

16th to 25th November, 2026.

Slide into our DMs and sign up now, no walk-ins allowed. by @manishruparel_

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a month ago

The music of TENFA came from the community it's about.

Composer Satish Negi talks about composing for a film for the first time, alongside lyricists Rajesh and Manju. by @manishruparel_

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3 months ago

A very late but very important documentation of two wonderful days spent playing and researching the red nose with some of the loveliest people around ♥️

Thank you to @kharcomedyclub and @abishmathew for organising this and to @jitennnnn for these beautiful pictures!

May we keep researching and listening to the movements of humour and joy 🎈 by @manishruparel_

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4 months ago

It is a privilege to experience expressions and shows like this🌟🎭 ❤️
Thank you @anamirtha.theatre @sariegotheatre
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Shot and edited by @snapkeryashhh
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#khayaal #khayaalkalapremiyonka #theatre #drama #art by @manishruparel_

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7 months ago

Behind the masks and movements: hear from @anamirtha.theatre herself as she reflects on the transformative journey our fourth-batch students have been on.
In this intimate conversation captured during their Lecoq Technique and Body Movements classes, she opens up about the power of neutral mask work, the healing that happens in group building, the magic of devising together, and how music and breath bring images to life in the body.
A huge thank you to Ana Mirtha for guiding our students with such depth, generosity, and insight—watching their physical awareness and creative confidence grow has been truly inspiring.
On behalf of Tagore National School of Drama and RNTU.
Video by @mastbansal_unofficial
#PhysicalTheatre #LecoqTechnique #Devising #NeutralMask #EnsembleBuilding taken in Bhopal - The City of Lakes by @manishruparel_

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7 months ago

"Birds" (or The Tale of When I came Down to Earth) was born from love, from deep pain, from death and resurrection.

Birds was born from the deep need of expression, of sharing what had been invisibly-visible in me since my childhood.

Birds is for everyone, not just for me.
It's an invitation to break through the cages of the mind, the heart and the body. An invitation to self relief and liberation from all the shackles that have kept us trapped, until now. An invitation to fly as high as we can and to remember that we are all free and that we do not need permission to live our truth.

I am with you. Please come fly with me.🕊️🐦🦉🦅

Next tour of Birds in South America:
Uruguay,
Argentina,
Colombia
And much more...

🎭 This show happened thanks to a great team of human and artistic help, to whom I'm infinitely grateful.

The space that hosted Birds was the wonderful theatre:
🎭🏡@khayaal_kalapremiyonka in Bhopal.

Thanks to: @tnsd_official ,
The amazing director of the drama department Avijit, the beautiful and generous students of Tagore National School of Drama.

🌹My wonderful Indian producer: @manishruparel_
Who made it happen.

A wonderful team of technicians and beautiful humans:
🎶@mastbansal_unofficial on sound and projection and gate opening
💡 Meet and Sudhanshu on lights @madan_ka_laal

📸 And Arian @_aryan_pant who took the pictures from this show.

You are all in my ❤️

Produced by: @sariegotheatre
🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️ taken in Bhopal - The City of Lakes by @manishruparel_

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7 months ago

The biggest joy of recent times was to dive into the world of these 11 children and be a small part of making the container that expressed their dreams. It’s been over a month since I finished the performance with them. Initially after I left, I’d get daily calls from many of them. Then weekly calls from some of them. Once one of them called me and told me stories of how kids get kidnapped in India. She expressed fear and concern initially. And then went on to tell me to be safe and not let myself get kidnapped xD. It’s been a while since they’ve called. We’ve all gotten busy with our lives. But I hope they know how much of them continues to live in me and I’m eternally grateful to have crossed paths with these innocent playful souls. I just saw a video of them doing a second show of this performance and I couldn’t be prouder!!!

Thank you @sankalp.vinyasa for trusting me with this process and inviting me to do this. You’re creating such wonderful gifts for the world! Thank you @stella.milou for recommending me, I love how all of this has unfolded. Thank you @aayushikapooranaam and @ashwarya.sh.09 for being the best people to do this with. I’m missing our daily rehearsals and our constantly search for the balance between structure and playfulness while working with these kids. Thank you @sanjana_foundation tor the inspiring work you do. Thank you @omkhamino and @marcmccay for the love and friendship you offered in this process. @vinyasa.earth is such a special place, I’m hoping these kids unite all of us again!

Let’s do Project Kalakar in Mumbai! taken in Vinyasa Earth by @manishruparel_

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7 months ago

This is an appreciation post for what my days in Bangalore were like.

I performed Bardo in Bangalore last weekend. It was the first time I took my work to another city. It was all kinds of wonderful. Thank you to everyone who came to watch this. Thank you for engaging in the post-show conversation with me. I’m enjoying performing this piece so much, and it’s revealing something new to me, about me, about us, everytime it meets a different audience. Thank you to @vishesh.kalimero for your music the first time I did it. Your presence lives on in this piece. Thank you to @dance_be_life for guiding me to be able to create this. Thank you to @jacobcollier !!!

Thank you to everyone who joined for Being AweFull as well. I’m so grateful for the enthusiasm and openness you all showed up with. Inspired as well. It’s such a privilege to take red noses to a new place and spend so many hours researching with a group of people. When the red nose meets a seeker, something breaks open in the universe and I feel so honoured to get the best seat to witness it.

The biggest thank you goes to @diyanise and @parth_2048 for hosting me with your big fat warm hearts and making me feel so cared for and loved while I attempted to do something new. I hope every artist experiences hosts like you. You guys have created a really special place with @offstageblr and I really can’t wait to come back there.

Being AweFull and Bardo are both turning out to be works that keep giving. I hope to continue sharing these with you all.

I perform Bardo again on Saturday 7th March in Mumbai. For the first time in my home ground. This time with some really talented friends who will share their life dance as well. Come! Ticket link in bio.

And a very special thank you to @a.sherrif for documenting Bardo so generously in that super narrow and crowded space!

Thank you, Bangalore! taken in OffStage Grounds For Practice by @manishruparel_

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8 months ago

Excited to announce that we’re coming together to share Ankoku: an evening of Butoh performances.

The evening will consist of four performances:

“Kuona” by Alarik
Cradled head, cursed mind.

“Fragments of Becoming” by Phalguni Rao
How far can we come from those who came before us?

“As the Mountains Weep” by Tanvi Hegade
A funeral for all the griefs that couldn’t be.

“Bardo” by Manish Ruparel
A love story that attempts to find its conclusion in the afterlife.

Madhav Agarwal will be accompanying us in these sharings with his brilliant live music.

A big thank you to @butoh_himalaya @dance_be_life @raiscarton for guiding these pieces into creation.

Come join us as we share our new performances for the first time in Mumbai! Ticket links in our bios.

Date: 7th March
Time: 8pm
Venue: Chimbai Village Theatre, Bandra (W)

#butoh #mumbai #theatre #dance by @manishruparel_

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8 months ago

Bardo is a story about attachment. And devotion. And me being very bad at both. In Bardo, I meet the ghost that refuses to ghost me.

Part ritual.
Part hallucination.
Part extremely committed awkward intimacy.

And somewhere within this bad love story in the afterlife waiting room, I realise that letting go is rarely elegant.

Come witness this rehearsal of letting go.

Date: 22nd February 2026
Time: 4:40pm
Venue: Offstage - Grounds for Practice, Wilson Garden

Booking link in bio.

It might be funny.
It might be sacred.
It might be the same thing. taken in Bangalore, India by @manishruparel_

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8 months ago

Being AweFull comes to Bangalore! ♥️

“The old world is dying,
and the new world struggles to be born:
now is the time of monsters.”
-Antonio Gramsci

Just as Gramsci saw monsters emerging in times of upheaval, clowns are figures that thrive in moments of absurdity. In a world where chaos reigns supreme and helplessness thrives, clowns represent both an escape and a critique of reality. They remind us that the world is already ridiculous, so why not laugh at it?

Modern stress is different from what our bodies have evolved to handle. We react to situations of being stuck in traffic or watching news on our phones with the same response of being hunted by a predator. These absurd situations call for us to put on our red noses and find answers in our bodies.

Being AweFull is a two day introductory workshop exploring the clown’s red nose state. It aims to explore the awe-full, the awful, and everything else in between. We will go on a collective two-day journey to find our inner clowns, meet our awful selves and give them the chance to see the world filled with awe.

The workshop is open to performers, artists, writers, activists, dreamers, seekers and anyone else who seeks new ways of engaging with the world around us.

Date: 20th and 21st February, 2026
Time: 9:30am to 3:30pm
Venue: Offstage - Grounds for Practice, Wilson Garden

Early bird price until 15th February! Registration link in bio.

“The clown’s job is to reveal the ridiculousness of life, but to do it with love.”
-David Shiner

#clowning #bangalore #rednose #awe taken in OffStage Grounds For Practice by @manishruparel_

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8 months ago