The Women’s Night School is the first-of-its-kind initiative in Bervai village, Rajasthan. A year-long project, its focus goes beyond numeracy and literacy, to understanding and engaging with the rapidly changing world around Bervai. This largely women-led school, a combined project of the Kalbeliya Community of Bhervai, Rajasthan; Manthan Santha and CSII, caters to 50 women and girls (both married and unmarried) from the Kalbeliya community. The teachers, also from the community, are selected by the Village Education Committee (a women-led body, whose president and vice president are Kalbeliya women). The design of the curriculum is decided by the learners, facilitated via Theatre of the Oppressed techniques.
The Women’s Night School teaches through fun learning activities and games that oftentimes goes beyond the four walls of the class rooms. The locally available resources, knowledge pool and art forms constitute the pillars of the teaching-learning practices here. Exposure visits to village and government institutions are an essential part of the learning process. A Women’s Parliament is held to understand the various components of the democratic election process.
The Women’s Night School engages with families of the learners to identify allies for the learners. These allies ensure the learners attend school regularly, and form a support system for them. The school also provides a nano grant of ₹20,000 to groups of 8 women, who wish to start an enterprise of their own.

Our workshops and training initiatives are open to groups or individuals who wish to understand Theatre of the Oppressed and/or explore any theme, socio-political or otherwise, using the format. We also train aspiring Theatre of the Oppressed trainers and organisations that wish to include the format in their work.