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A dance-drama-drag show

Written, designed, and performed by Ahon Gooptu

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with Jaisheej Paul as DJ Darling

Makeup - Abhilasha Das

Costume & scenic design - Ahon Gooptu

Development - Ninad Samaddar

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Journeying across cultures, homes, and nightclubs, Zizou finds belonging in various places through Zenia Fauxbia Darling—his drag persona— with a little help from some queens he’s grown up admiring in Bollywood films. Be it watching Madhuri Dixit for the first time or learning to dance with Saroj Khan on TV, Zizou pieces together moments, memories, and jhatkas that feel familiar and comforting to find Zenia anew in every home.

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Item premiered at The Urban Theatre Project, Kolkata in December 2024.

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Following further development, a new iteration of Item performed in April 2025 at Anuchintan Art Centre​​ and​ The Creative Arts Academy.​

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Photo credit: Abhilasha Das and Nayantara Mazumder

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