MISSION
SAWITRI Theatre Group (SAWITRI) serves to educate, entertain, and heal through theatre arts that are South Asian in character, origin, or topic and foreground women as well as the new generation, focusing on issues of social or political importance. SAWITRI works to create a gathering place for artists and audiences in Mississauga with year-round affordable programming in theatre-a space for multidisciplinary, cross-cultural, and cross-sectoral artistic experiences, explorations, and experimentation, fostering an exchange of ideas and experiences.

VISION
SAWITRI Theatre Group is a preeminent producer and presenter of South Asian Theatre Arts.

MANDATE
Mississauga-based SAWITRI Theatre serves South Asian artists and audiences in Mississauga, and those from Brampton, Milton, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo, etc. Fifty-seven percent of Mississauga’s population comprises visible minorities of which South Asians are the highest, with the largest number coming from India. SAWITRI produces in some of the major languages of India, including English. By producing plays in South Asian languages, we occupy space in a predominantly English-speaking country and subvert the settler-colonial logic, in turn decolonizing theatre-making, providing opportunities to new generations, newcomers, and emerging artists from South Asia. Women-centric stories bring artists and audiences from different backgrounds and different geographical origins together. This is an important consideration because though the specificity of how patriarchy works in different cultural contexts may differ, the all-pervasiveness of patriarchy remains constant, irrespective of the country one comes from. We are not risk-averse and work with many new-generation artists along with established artists. The sharing of experiences and perspectives sustains the generational continuum. Participating as artists or audiences, newcomers to Canada feel less isolated once they experience SAWITRI’s works. Periodic stakeholder and community consultations inform our strategic planning process, help us stay relevant and plan for success.

HISTORY
SAWITRI Theatre Group (STG) is an award-winning, Mississauga-based organization that was founded in 2003. SAWITRI is an acronym that stands for South Asian Women’s Inter-cultural Theatre & Research Initiative. When Jasmine Sawant first conceived the idea of a South Asian women-centric theatre company in Mississauga, there were only two other South Asian theatre companies in Toronto and none in Mississauga. 

SAWITRI creates meaningful theatre productions that are essentially South Asian and have a universal resonance. SAWITRI has produced over 75 works of theatre, of which 19 are full-length productions in English, Marathi, Gujarati and Hindi, working with over 300 artists.

Each year, SAWITRI presents the Shorts Theatre Festival (SSTF), the Mississauga Multilingual Fringe Festival (MMFF), the FolkFest and at least two full-length productions in Hindi, Gujarati, English or Marathi. SAWITRI offers several professional development opportunities through workshops, as well as hands on learning through productions, big and small.

SAWITRI works with established, mid career and emerging professionals, as well as community artists and those who have a dream and work with us to realize it.