BENGALURU: All of 15, actor-turned-social activist Prathyaksha is on a mission to spread awareness on the need for
toilets in villages. At a time when her friends are busy watching television or indulging in other leisurely pursuits, Prathyaksha is spending her summer vacations performing
street plays to drive home the message.
It was at the age of 6 that Prathyaksha accidentally got into the theatre industry and hasn’t looked back. “I was on the way to Mandya when I received a call from a famous theatre director. She offered me a role in her play Gandhi Bandha. I wasn’t sure about my acting skills but the experience gave me the confidence to continue in the field,” she said.
Prathyaksha also got a chance to act in the Kannada movie Sandaas, which is yet to be released. It focuses on the Swachh Bharat Mission. “During the shooting, I was staying at a village in Koppal and used to rest in the homes of villagers. On one such day when I wanted to use the toilet, I realised they didn’t have one,” she said.
Women in the village asked her to defecate in the open like they do. That got her thinking and she decided to create awareness on the importance of having toilets in villages. “I came up with the idea of street plays and my family members supported me by writing scripts,” Prathyaksha said.
The teenager has enacted more than 100 street plays in villages of Koppal, Ganapura in Chikkamagaluru and Harohalli in Ramanagara among others.
Recalling an anecdote, she said: “I was explaining to the audience why it isn’t right to defecate in the open. Suddenly a young girl stood up and questioned me, ‘we live in the fields with no homes, what do we do?’ Her question stumped me and gave me something to ponder about,” she said.
Prathyaksha’s father BG Ramkrishna said he was more than delighted to support her. “I am proud to have a daughter who is taking up social issues,” he said.
