I, JOSEF at NIV Art Festival

Experience the labyrinthine world of Franz Kafka

I, JOSEF

An immersive multimedia experience based on Franz Kafka’s Der Prozess / The Trial 

Presented by Kaivalya Plays and Goethe-Institut New Delhi in collaboration with the NIV Art Centre

at the NIV Art Festival 2025

🗓️ Dates: Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd February 2025

📮 Timeslots: 12pm, 3pm, 4:30pm and 6pm both days

⏰ Duration: 45 minutes

🗣️ Languages: English and German

🎟️ Tickets: Priced at INR 349/-, available on the link bit.ly/ijosefniv

📍Location: Studio 1, NIV Art Center Delhi (Located at 210 near IGNOU CHOWK, Block A1 Neb Sarai, New Delhi 110068 – Map Link)

About the Experience

I, JOSEF is an immersive ‘headphone theatre’ multimedia experience based on an original adaptation of Franz Kafka’s ‘The Trial’. It places the audience directly in the experience of Josef K, an ordinary bank clerk arrested and put on trial for a crime he doesn’t understand or know. Through vivid soundscapes—footsteps, whispers, eerie silences, city noises, and sudden shouts—the audience steps into K’s unsettling world. With 3D binaural sound and immersive projections, one experiences Kafka’s labyrinthine world from a first-person perspective, making them feel as if they are inside Josef K’s mind, grappling with the confusion and chaos of his unresolved fate. 

Presented by Kaivalya Plays in collaboration with the Goethe Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan New Delhi to celebrate #100YearsKafka.

About NIV Art Center

NIV Art Centre, located on the southern edge of New Delhi near the picturesque Aravalli hills, is a creative hub dedicated to advancing plastic arts and new media arts while fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and cultural exchange. Providing facilities like artist studios, galleries, theatres, and residencies, it serves as a platform for emerging and established artists to create, exhibit, and engage with audiences. NIV focuses on bridging gaps between creators, distributors, and consumers, supporting artists from underserved regions, and promoting contemporary art practices through a blend of traditional studio disciplines and modern global influences. With a commitment to nurturing creativity and building a legacy for the future, NIV creates opportunities for artistic growth and broader public engagement with art.

About Kaivalya Plays

Kaivalya Plays is a performing arts and production company led by Varoon P. Anand as its Artistic Director and Gaurav Singh Nijjer as its General Manager. Since 2012, they have built transcultural associations across India and the world. Their artistic work includes original, devised theatre performances that are multilingual, interactive, and hybrid, use technology and media on stage, and are built using techniques of improvisational, documentary, and physical theatre. Through a focus on education, training and community, their work spans diverse offerings of programs across artistic development, language learning, mental health, gender, accessibility, and transcultural collaboration. They have received multiple artistic commissions and grants through their collaborations with Instituto Cervantes Nueva Delhi, Goethe Institut Delhi, MediaFutures and other cultural partners. Their recent artistic work includes I, Josef (2024), The Pillowman (2024) ABSURDO (2023), Mining Hate (2023), Funes The Memorious (2021), Lifeline 99 99 (2021), Unravel (2019), amongst others. Most recently, they were awarded the Creativity Pioneers Fund 2023 by the Moleskine Foundation. Read more about their work on www.kaivalyaplays.org

About Goethe-Institut New Delhi

The Goethe-Institut is the cultural institute of the Federal Republic of Germany with a global reach. They promote knowledge of the German language abroad and foster international cultural cooperation. They convey a comprehensive picture of Germany by providing information on Germany's cultural, social and political life. The Goethe-Institut in New Delhi like all the other institutes in India, is known as Max Mueller Bhavan – in honour of Max Müller (1823-1900), a scholar of comparative religion and co-founder of modern Indian studies. The institute offers language courses, organises cultural events and has a modern and well-equipped library. 

Read more about their work: goethe.de/india