THE LOST BREATH

Kesha Raithatha

A woman in a dark blue and black dress kneels barefoot on dry, rocky ground, holding a poised classical dance position with one arm curved above her head and the other bent near her knee. Behind her stretches a wide landscape of green hills and trees, under a dramatic sky. A gnarled, leafless tree adds striking contrast in the background.
Photo by Pepe Gavilondo

About THE LOST BREATH

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A new dance work by classical Indian and contemporary movement artist Kesha Raithatha.

Blending ancestral memory with present-day experience, Kesha weaves together the voices of South Asian women in Leicester, collected through intimate workshops and interviews. Drawing on prayer, animist journeys, and meditative practices, the piece transforms forgotten histories into a celebration of resilience and visibility. This is dance as ritual, as reclamation – a performance that reaches beyond the stage into film, community, and collective remembering. Powerful, poetic, and deeply human.

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About Kesha Raithatha

Kesha Raithatha is a fierce and boundary-pushing dancer and choreographer whose work merges the precision of Kathak with the fluidity of contemporary movement. Her choreographic voice is rich, textured, and unapologetically experimental — reimagining what contemporary South Asian dance can be today. With deep roots between the UK and India, and as a Work Place artist at The Place, an Associate Director with Aakash Odedra Company, Kesha moves between worlds — both culturally and creatively. She’s driven by a passion to spark global artistic dialogue and create bold, socially relevant work that dives into the unspoken and the taboo. Kesha’s performances invite audiences into surreal, otherworldly spaces — where movement becomes memory, ritual, and radical transformation.

https://kesha.dance/choreography

Cast & Creatives

Lead Artist, Choreographer and Performer: Kesha Raithatha

Lighting Designer: Zoé Ritchie

Stage Designer: Emanuele Salamanca

Costume Designer: Giulia Scrimieri

Costume Maker: Paulina Knol

Composer: Pepe Gavilondo

Understudy: Meera Patel

Dramaturgy: Eva Martinez

Producer: Treacle Holasz

Assistant Producer: Zöe Grain

Jaikur: an invocation from THE LOST BREATH by Kesha Raithatha

Women featured in the short film: Beena Mistry, Bhakti Mehta, Bharti Mistry, Bharti Sachania, Bharti Sejpal, Chetna Mistry, Hansa Dhanak, Jayvanta Masani, Manjula Patel, Mina Gadhia, Nalini Lad, Nalini Chawda, Nirmala Bhojani, Niru Lad, Pratibha Gadhia, Priti Raithatha, Ramila Mistry, Sangita Dattani, Sangita Rajgor, Saroj Patel, Shashi Patel, Urmila Mistry and Usha Bhatt.

Concept, Direction and Choreography: Kesha Raithatha

Cinematography: Bipin Anand

Editing: Subhash Viman Gorania

Photography and On-Set Support: Pepe Gavilondo

Community Producer and Coordinator: Priti Raithatha

Special Thanks to: Priti Raithatha (Ma), Mina Gadhia, Nalini (Nicki) Chawda and Nirmala Bhojani.

Credits

Commissioned by The Place and The Curve and supporting using public funding by Arts Council England.

  • A group of six South Asian women in red and orange saris sit in a field of tall grass at golden hour, lit by the soft glow of the setting sun. They smile and interact warmly with one another, framed by silhouetted trees and a wide, open sky filled with clouds. The image feels intimate, joyful, and grounded in community.
  • A female dancer in a flowing dark dress stands inside the hollow trunk of a large, weathered tree in a lush forest. With one arm reaching gracefully upward and the other extended sideways, she appears mid-movement, poised and serene, surrounded by dense greenery and tall ferns. The scene evokes a sense of spiritual connection with nature.