THE LOST BREATH x Jaikur

Kesha Raithatha

About THE LOST BREATH x Jaikur

A new live dance work and short film 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 performance transforms these forgotten histories into a celebration of resilience and visibility.

These real-life conversations have been amalgamated into a short film called Jaikur, which will be shown as part of the performance. Jaikur channels stories of ancestral femininity, inviting present-day women to feel seen, heard, and deeply witnessed.

This is dance as ritual, as reclamation – a performance that reaches beyond the stage and screen, into community and collective remembering. Powerful, poetic, and deeply human.

This performance is BSL Interpreted and the short film features captions. The performance will be followed by a BSL Interpreted Post Show Talk hosted by Eva Martinez, Associate Programmer for Dance at Lowry.

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

The Lost Breath

Lead Artist, Choreographer and Performer: Kesha Raithatha

Lighting Designer and Production Manager: Zoé Ritchie

Stage Designer: Emanuele Salamanca

Costume Designer: Giulia Scrimieri

Costume Maker: Paulina Knol

Composer: Pepe Gavilondo

Understudy and rehearsal direction: 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.


Guest Speakers (Post Show Talk): Mina Gadhia and Priti Raithatha

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.