Kujita - Sanskrit for "the cooing of a bird" - is a word that holds the tremor of beginnings, the shimmer between sound and silence. A bird's coo, a twinkle of music, the pause between notes - this show unfolds in that suspended moment where sound and movement lean toward one another.

At the heart of Kujita is a year-long collaboration between Odissi dancer Akankshya Padhi and Hindustani vocalist Yusra Naqvi. What began as an artistic exchange has grown into a repertoire shaped by the synergy of two young classical practitioners - where the voice carries the body forward, and the body, in turn, shapes the song.

Performed as a solo with live accompaniment by Naqvi, alongside Pradeepta Moharana on mardala, Shubhakant Sahoo on flute, and Arnaaz Zaman on manjeera, the piece places the dancer in close dialogue with her musicians. Music and movement are not separate layers but partners, listening and responding to one another in real time. Fluid, lyrical, and steeped in tradition, this show invites the audience to witness Odissi as a shared act of creation - where collaboration itself becomes the performance.

The Friends of Oddbird Festival 2025 is a 4-day festival of theatre, music, dance, and film. Hosted at Oddbird Theatre - an indepemdent space for performance and experimentation in Delhi - the festival brings together artists and audiences to share new ways of seeing and listening.