Sonali Bhattacharyya – författare

'The smaller you are, the quicker your heart beats. But it doesn't matter what size your heart is, we all only get an average of about two billion beats over our lifetime. It's just a pump at the end of the day, right?'Seventeen-year-old Asha is a rebel, inspired by historical revolutionaries and unafraid of pointing out the hypocrisy around her – but less sure how to actually dismantle it. Her younger sister, Bettina, wide-eyed and naive, is just trying to get through the school day without having her pocket money nicked.With essays to write, homework to do, and bus journeys home, the two sisters meet every afternoon, outside the school gates, to tackle the injustice of the world.Sonali Bhattacharyya's play Two Billion Beats is an insightful, heartfelt coming-of-age story and a blazing account of inner-city, British-Asian teenage life. It was originally presented in the Inside/Outside season, livestreamed from the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, before receiving a production there in this full-length version in 2022, directed by Nimmo Ismail.

'They're always trying to do that. Make us run off in different directions to try to catch a single hare. Because they know. If we work together we might bring down the stag.'By day, machine operator Prab struggles to survive the precarity and brutality of his factory job in West Bengal. By night, he writes stories for his baby daughter Amba.When a popular actress recruits him to write a play for her, Prab seizes the opportunity to expose the injustice of factory conditions and the rumours of child exploitation. But in his fight for change, is he ready to risk his future, his family and even his own life?Winner of Theatre Uncut's Political Playwriting Award, Sonali Bhattacharyya's Chasing Hares is a tale of resistance and dignity in the face of global exploitation. It was premiered at the Young Vic Theatre, London, in July 2022, directed by Milli Bhatia.

'You've all heard a hundred different versions of what happened. We're here to tell you how it really went down.'Teenage best friends Sabi and Ruqaya spend their time choreographing dance routines, beat-boxing and hiding from bullies.But when charismatic social media activist Xara challenges them to speak up about injustice, they find themselves under state surveillance, targeted by the anti-terrorist 'Prevent' programme. What you say, and even what you think, can be viewed very differently, depending on who you are...Sonali Bhattacharyya's play Liberation Squares is a riotous comedy about sisterhood, freedom of speech, and dissent in the face of institutionalised Islamophobia. It was commissioned and developed by Fifth Word, and first produced in 2024 by Fifth Word and Nottingham Playhouse in association with Brixton House, and directed by Milli Bhatia.

'I'll do anything for you. I can do anything for you.'Nikita and Riya are two South Asian sisters: insecure, stateless and desperate for somewhere to call 'home'.Nikita's work with young migrants requires her to keep her saviour complex in check as she negotiates the challenges and hypocrisy of the third sector. Meanwhile, Riya is offered the chance to create an advocate in the form of a homunculus (or fawn), and sees a chance to elevate herself above the cruelty meted out to others.Sonali Bhattacharyya's play King Troll (The Fawn) is a dark and dystopian exploration of migrant experiences in all their complexity – and the troll that lives within all of us, whispering 'me, not us', and definitely 'me first'. It was a finalist for the 2023 Women's Prize for Playwriting, and was first performed as a co-production between Kali Theatre and New Diorama Theatre, London, in 2024, directed by Milli Bhatia.