Emergence Festival 2026

Samadhi: The Birth of Kabandha

Fri 23 January — Tue 27 January 2026

Tickets no longer available

Wheelchair accessible

Image description: A shirtless person with brown skin, a beard, and curly hair stares into the lens, lit by a hazy halo.

Samadhi

Please note: performances scheduled to take place on Saturday 24 January have been moved to Tuesday 27 January.

Ticket Holder Info:

Printed tickets for Saturday will still be valid for the performances on Tuesday and e-tickets will be automatically re-issued. If you have not received a new e-ticket please contact RCS Box Office.

If you cannot attend on Tuesday please contact RCS box office for a full refund: boxoffice@rcs.ac.uk or call 0141 332 5057.

We apologise for any inconvenience.

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What does your dignity cost? Samadhi: Birth of Kabandha enters into the heavenly realm of Svarga to gauge whether chaos is an essential ingredient in the recipe of liberation. It challenges the suffocating silence of the “model minority”: the toxic sludge that grows into a monster. It asks if the cycle of rebirth can be shattered, if martyrdom is a form of surrender, and if order itself is the prison.

Drawn from the Ramayana epic, the story follows Vishvasu, a celestial musician granted a boon of immortality, who must disrupt the divine order and make enemies along the way for something greater. But is it worth it? Blending epic myth with modern alienation, Samadhi: Birth of Kabandha confronts conformity, complicity, and the perilous pursuit of transcendence.

Credits

Errol Rodrigues as Indra
Sanjay Lago as Matali
Hamshya Rajkumar as Leela/Roshini
Shiladitya as Vishvasu. Written, Produced and Directed by Shiladitya

Set Design and Lighting by Niki Zaupa
Sound Design by Aleksander Papierz
Costume Design by Moyna Sethy
Dramaturgical Support by Susan Worford and Shilpa T Hyland

Special Thanks to Niloo Farkhan, Rogelio Nevares, Uma Nada Raja, Bejoy Sanjeev, Josh Armstrong, MoMo

Content disclosures

Strobe, loud and sudden noises

Emergence Festival 2026

Emergence is a festival of new work from the graduating artists of the MFA Acting/Directing Classical and Contemporary Text programme.

Emergence 2026 will include a range of provocative live performances and gripping short films presented across four days in January, returning to Glasgow’s iconic Centre for Contemporary Arts and surrounding venues.

These creative projects are the result of what can happen when artists are given a small budget and autonomy to respond to the provocation: what is the future of theatre and film?