Pune: When playwright and director Maneesh Verma first watched an Israeli play about a father raising his autistic son as a student at the National School of Drama in 2001, the story stayed with him. More than two decades later, that memory has evolved into Dancing With Dad. This English theatre production explores autism through the lens of family, love and independence, while centring dignity and lived experience.The play will be staged in Pune on Aug 1 at Shreeram Lagoo Rang Avkash in Hirabaug Chowk.“Even in the early 2000s, conversations around autism and mental health were nowhere near as common as they are today, even though people have always lived with these conditions. As a student, I wanted to perform that play, but I did not feel ready. I continued my journey as a writer and director and kept consuming content about autism,” said Verma.He watched films and shows including Rain Man, Love on the Spectrum and Atypical, but said the most meaningful influence came from engaging directly with autistic individuals.“I started writing the story only after spending time understanding lived experiences. Aditya, a friend of a friend and an autistic person who is around the same age as the play’s protagonist, became an important part of the creative process. We had even considered casting him, but the logistics did not work out. He was consulted on the script, shared feedback, and influenced both the writing and the performance,” said Verma.At the centre of the play is Noor, an autistic young man navigating adulthood alongside his father, a contemporary dancer. As Noor strives for greater independence, his father confronts a question that haunts many caregivers: Who will look after my son in the future? Told from Noor’s perspective, the production combines theatre, dance, live music and projections to tell a coming-of-age story that continues even after his father’s death, as Noor learns to navigate life independently.Verma said authenticity was central to the writing, while ensuring the script did not become unnecessarily sombre.“One quality that deeply moved me is the honesty many autistic people bring to their social interactions. As neurotypical people, we constantly adjust our behaviour depending on who we are speaking to or where we are. Many autistic people do not operate through those same social filters. There is simplicity and directness in the way they express emotions that I find incredibly beautiful,” he said.As the father of a 17-year-old girl, Verma said parenthood also shaped the emotional core of the production.“I respond very deeply to stories about children and parents. The play is not about making people feel sorry for anyone. It has comedy, music, dance and warmth alongside its emotional moments because that is what life is like for everyone,” he added.The play premiered in April at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre before being staged at Prithvi Theatre in Mumbai. Verma said audience responses have reaffirmed the need for such stories.“Audiences have cried, but not because they feel pity. They are moved by Noor’s journey towards independence and by the bond between a single parent and child. Many parents of autistic children have thanked us for giving voice to experiences they rarely see represented on stage. Theatre has often explored mental health, but autism and conditions such as cerebral palsy have been portrayed far less frequently because there is always the risk of reducing them to caricatures, albeit unintentionally. Conversations around these conditions are becoming more open, and I hope the play contributes to that,” said Verma.
