South Asian Sisters Proudly Present Yoni Ki Baat 9: Yoni Ki LAUGHS!
Note: Online Ticket Sales are no longer available! There will be a limited number at the door one hour before each show starts. Prices are: $20 for Saturday, $15 for Sunday.
A fish-eating, intellectual Bengali "FOB" muses about South Asian stereotypes; a determined woman attempts athletic maneuvers on her new lover which turn out to be beyond her means; a psychologist blurts out an observation of her own psychological affliction; and two boobs go at it with each other. These are just some of the snarky, overzealous, awkward, raunchy, and always hilarious stories that will grace our new humor-themed installment of Yoni Ki Baat, an original, English-language South Asian Sisters production inspired by Eve Ensler's "The Vagina Monologues."
In keeping with the spirit of ending violence against women, half of the show's proceeds will be donated to Narika to provide support to survivors of domestic violence.
We'll have two shows, both located at the Women's Building in San Francisco!Saturday, March 9, 2013, 7:00 PM: Door Ticket Sales at 6 PM Sharp, $20 each!
Sunday, March 10, 2013, 5:00 PM: Door Ticket Sales at 4 PM Sharp, $15 each!
Directions - Public Transportation & Parking
The Women's Building is located on 18th street between Valencia and Guerrero in San Francisco. Please check out the Map for details
- Closest BART: 16th Street Station
- MUNI Bus lines serving this area: 14, 22, 26, 33, 49 and the J Church.
Parking
Street parking might be available - both metered and non-metered. But please plan for 20 minutes of extra travel time for this option.
Caution: Between the hours of 4pm & 6pm on weekdays, there is a tow-away zone on Eighteenth Street
(opposite the Building).
Parking is also available at two city garages, each 3 blocks away. (For rates, contact the SF Department
of Parking & Traffic.)
- Mission/Bartlett Garage: 3255 21st Street (between Valencia and Mission). Call: 415-821-6715
- 16th St/Hoff Garage: 16th & Hoff (just above 16th St Bart). Call: 415-861-4048
Yoni Ki Baat - History
Yoni ki Baat has always been about gifts. It began as a gift, it was shared as a gift, and it continues through gifts.
The first gift came from Sapna Shahani, who shared the idea for the show one afternoon at a South Asian Sisters meeting in Berkeley in 2003. The Kimaaya Theatre Company in Bangalore, India, had just organized the first-ever performance of The Vagina Monologues there, and Sapna mused, "Why don't we just create a totally South Asian version of the show?" From that instant on, we couldn't shake the idea. A bunch of Desi women standing on stage talking frankly about our bodies, our desires, and our sexual experiences? Genius! But how could we make it a reality?
Our next gift came from Eve Ensler, creator of The Vagina Monologues, the inspiration for our show. Getting permission to Desify her idea could have been tricky, but once we were able to get in touch with Eve personally, she not only gave us her permission, but sat down with us and provided us with feedback on our script (and, even more amazingly, asked for our comments on pieces she was working on for The Good Body). She continues to support our work and we are extremely grateful.
Some of the most important gifts we have received have come from our brilliant writers and performers. At first, we were hesitant - would South Asian women really feel comfortable sharing their stories about sexuality, and standing on a stage talking about them? We are thrilled that the answer was a resounding "YES!"
Over the years, we have received over one hundred submissions for our scripts. We have had over 50 beautiful and talented women perform with us. If they had not shared their gifts with us, Yoni ki Baat would not have been possible.
There have been other gifts. The universities, bars, and cafes that have donated performance and rehearsal spaces. The printing presses that have printed our fliers free of charge. The support we have received from other Desi organizations, including Narika, Maitri, and Trikone. The fact that, even in the conservative South Asian community, the word-of-mouth surrounding our show has been almost uniformly positive (Hey, it wouldn't be worth it if we couldn't create just a little bit of controversy, right?).
We were thrilled when other organizations and university groups began contacting us to find out how they could put on their own versions of YKB. Sharing our scripts became our way of passing along the gifts we have received. Through these collective efforts, we have raised over $8,500 for organizations around the country that aid survivors of domestic violence.
Each gift we have received has been a blessing, and each blessing has made us stronger. It is our hope that through this strength the YKB movement will continue to grow and to give, and to help more women stand up, speak out, and claim what is rightfully theirs - a life free from violence and full of pleasure.
-South Asian Sisters
Interested in bringing Yoni ki Baat to your community? Contact Us!