“Apple, pineapple, jackfruit, guava…” A group stands in a circle, listing fruits and playing a fruit-basket game in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad. “The game is to warm up, focus and break the ice,” says Jayashree Raj, founder of Improv Commune, an improvisational theatre collective who has been in the city for nine years now. The games and improv exercises are part of a workshop-cum-production with a filmy twist, to be staged at Rangbhoomi Spaces on August 30.
While one of the city’s popular improv shows is helmed by stand-up comedian Rajashekhar Mamidana, Hyderabad’s growing tryst with improvisation — an unscripted form of live theatre — is gaining attention. Armed with a repertoire of techniques, performers respond to audience prompts — an idea, word, character, problem or situation — and build scenes on the spot. The audience gets to see its suggestions played out as actors construct stories seemingly out of nothing.
Because improv often veers towards comedy, some view it as an extension of stand-up. But the art form has far greater possibilities, with diverse forms of expression.
Challenging moments
Artistes of Vikram Bae-Taal theatre group during a session
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Comedy is a key component of improv and plays a role at Vikram Bae-Taal theatre group, co-founded by Anmona Chaliha and Atul Rastogi. In their workshops, participants jump, explore topics, engage their bodies and take risks.
Improv also builds life skills, says Anmona, a theatre artist for 18 years. “Actors need confidence and must learn to trust their bodies, the space and the stage. The art form is a great way to develop these skills. They also tend to just say funny things instead of building a scene, which makes it more like a conversation than a story.”
Anmona Chaliha
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Every moment on stage, she believes, is challenging but offers actors a chance to work on themselves. “If I ask my co-actor, ‘Why are you standing upside down?’, they are supposed to say yes as much as possible. But it also puts them on the spot — do they actually stand on their head or say something unique? That’s the fun that unfolds during a scene.”
If theatre enthusiasts turn to improv for the thrill of performing without a script, others use it as a tool for self-discovery. “Most of my batch members want to open up in their lives,” says Jayashree, adding, “life doesn’t happen as planned, and improv helps build self-confidence so that you are ready for whatever comes your way.”
Therapeutic sessions
Playing the word association game for quick thinking
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Jayashree, a software professional at Accenture and a weekend radio jockey at All India Radio, thrives on the energy of an improv stage because it offers more than performance. Since 2017, she has conducted over 25 group workshops focused on mental health and emotional healing. “Improv is not therapy, but it is therapeutic,” she says. “Introverts join to express themselves, while non-locals come in search of friends. We create a non-judgmental space where members feel safe and triggers are not touched.”
The art form also offers lessons that extend beyond the stage. For Atul, it has made him more observant in his work as a freelance writer for advertising agencies. “The characters and situations the audience gives us are either imaginative or inspired by real life. You have to observe and be a scavenger — picking up experiences from people’s lives, conversations and what you see, and recreating them on stage.”
Participants jam and learn clowning at a workshop by Improv Commune
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As the city’s appetite for improv grows, new platforms are emerging. Cue Ball, an improv club by The Pomegranate Collective, will create a stage for ‘spect-actors’ — spectators who contribute prompts. Set to launch during Dasara, the club will host monthly sessions where audiences can even come on stage to participate.
“Our team member Priyanka will head the club,” says Collective co-founder and theatre actor-director Pallavi Verma Minnaganti, who was part of the improv community in 2019. “A few of us will prepare and work on the ‘formulae’ that help us respond to the audience’s cues on stage.”
At a session by Pallavi Verma Minnaganti (seated with her back turned)
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Pallavi also plans to take the sessions to teenagers in 2027. “I believe improv is a great tool during the teenage years. This toolkit helps teenagers think on their feet, improvise, respond and navigate real-life situations, debates, presentations and even interviews. It gives them a deep feeling of belonging.”
Published – August 19, 2026 01:42 pm IST
