It all started with the play – Kingdom of cards, an act showcased in Prayas theatre in 2012, where Nona was first time introduced to the theater via a friend. In her conversation with Amit Ohdedar, president, and co-founder of Prayas theatre, she expressed her fascination of being a part of the company and her inclination towards performing on stage. She was excited to know that such a company did exist here in New Zealand. And to her luck when the next round of auditions took place, she landed herself a small role.
“My passion has always been for acting and I started as an actor with them, just absolutely could not tear myself away, I loved being a part of this group, because they are such a warm exclusive group” says Nona when asked what kept her so long in Prayas, now for over a decade.
Not only this but also Nona likes working with numbers, her job speaks for itself as she is a leader in the Operations Department at ASB Bank Ltd. She offered to help in anything the company would want her assistance in as a volunteer, as not every year you can commit to acting but she wanted to stay associated with the company. This opportunity (her current position in the organisation) as a treasurer came up later and as luck would have it, she got elected by the committee in last elections thereby landing herself in a position that would keep her close to her passion.
As a producer of the upcoming play ‘Dhaba on Devon Avenue’ Nona says it has been a remarkably interesting learning curve. She gave it go for this venture when Amit gave an overview and how will the process go about. Nona got a boost with the other creatives that are a part of Prayas group for her job as a producer of the play. She got all the knowledge, advice, expertise, and tips for all these creative individuals on how to be a producer.
Besides this Nona pointed out that since the play is being premiered in New Zealand there were a lot of advantages rather than challenges as she did not really see any of them. It was fascinating that this play had so much more relevance in New Zealand context, this is what they were very keen to put out there, as it is written by playwriter who is based in New York. The only challenge that was present was the consensus to have the play located in New Zealand which fortunately was agreed upon by both the parties.
The play is beautifully written talks Nona as she throws light on the intergenerational tensions that are explored in the play and the team is trying to represent in the same focus. “We are very very excited to produce this play since the time we read the play, it was a writing that mean to all of us.” she says.
These are migrant stories that we are all familiar with, these are the same kind of tensions that exists in any generation. It was just so relevant and that it resonated with Nona immediately. She adds that she was incredibly happy and keen to be a part of this production.
“I believe the audience will find the play interesting, moving, and good. These things need to be spoken, talked, and discussed about, and it puts in perspective what we all share as a migrant community, does not matter where you go or which country you are in but as a migrant community, if you are a part of the community what it means? How you can find your feet and branch yourself, its really is all about that.” concludes Nona Shedde in our conversation for her upcoming play at Prayas theatre company.
-Vritti Parasher
