By Mikayla Rudolf
Canadian playwright Jivesh Parasram attended Dr. Bridgette Brown’s fourth-year Studies in Canadian Literature class via Zoom on March 7 to discuss his Governor General Award-nominated play Take D Milk, Nah?
Jiv spoke to students and answered questions about the creation process, content, and reception of Take D Milk, Nah?–the “first Indo-Caribbean-Hindu-Canadian identity play” to be performed, podcasted, and produced in Canada (Parasram 16).
Jiv shared that writing his play started off as a ten-minute piece that eventually grew into something bigger, as he built it over time by sharing it with diverse audiences. When asked how he was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, Jiv mentioned that trying to simulate a live show digitally proved challenging–but he did it, from home–when he recorded his one-man show for CBC’s PlayMe podcasts: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-podcasts/211/episode/15772181
Jiv noted that the Canadian theatre industry needs more representation of comedians with intersectional identities. When asked about the structure of the political, historical, and philosophical content of his play, Jiv expressed that it was a mixture of planned performance and spontaneity. Often these structures were planned because he wanted to talk about important topics–such as Indian indentureship, colonialism, imperialism, and racism–while other moments in the play flowed organically.
Finally, when asked for a piece of advice for young writers, Jiv said to embrace your doubts. “Doubt is a very important thing,” Jiv revealed. He mentioned that the writing process is filled with doubt–and this is a vital aspect of writing–because a writer needs to question everything.
Follow Jiv at:
Twitter: @jivisawesome
Rumble.org
Work Cited:
Parasram, Jivesh. Take D’ Milk, Nah? co-created with Tom Arthur Davis. Playwrights Canadian Press, 2021.
Bio: Jivesh is an award-winning multi-disciplinary artist and facilitator of Indo-Caribbean descent. His work has toured Nationally and Internationally. Jiv is the founding Artistic Producer of Pandemic Theatre, and became the Artistic Director of Rumble Theatre following three years as the Associate Artistic Producer at Theatre Passe Muraille. He was a member of the Cultural Leader Lab with the Banff Centre and Toronto Arts Council. His public service work has included collaborations with the Ad Hoc Assembly, The Canadian Commission for UNESCO, and as an advisor to the National Arts Centre. His current cultural practice centres decolonization through aesthetics.