Varoon P Anand

Varoon P. Anand is the Artistic Director of Kaivalya Plays and a facilitator specializing in applied improvisation. His multi-disciplinary training includes improv training from Danielle Scott, Shawn Kinley, Elana Fishbein and Lacy Alana; clowning from Ashwath Bhatt, Gardzienice physical theatre techniques under Anna Helena McLean, mentorship in Classical Theatre by Ignacio García, and Forum theatre training from React UK. Additionally, Varoon teaches Stella Adler's Method acting, Rudolf Laban's Eight Efforts, and Rasa Theory from Natyashastra, among others. Varoon began his career in 2006 at the renowned Theatre Guild of Ancón in Panama. He has won Best Actor at the Short+Sweet Festival, as well as Best Director and Best Writer at the 48 Hour Film Festival Delhi. He has received over 20 commissions from the Embassy of Spain, Argentina, Ecuador, the Danish Cultural Institute, the Instituto Cervantes and Goethe Insitut to create work for Indian audiences. In 2018, he received the Refunction grant from Goethe-Institut to create Unravel, an improvised mental health piece performed in India and UK. In 2019, he was the first Indian to showcase at the Almagro Classical Theatre Festival in Spain with Marta la piadosa, and received the Gender Bender grant for Aguebao exploring gender and data. Additionally, Varoon has received grants the Connections Through Culture India Wales (2021), IFA Research on performer safety (2022), Moleskine Creativity Pioneers Fund and EU Mediafutures Artists for Media grant for Mining Hate (2023), among others. He continues to explore new ways to present and teach the techniques of improv, along with his other specialties.​