a mixtape for maladies
Seventeen tracks on an old mixtape reveal bittersweet memories of a family’s resilience behind every song.
In a small coastal village in Sri Lanka, Sangeetha’s life is filled with music. Songs are the glue that binds her family together. And she has a crush on the guy at the general store who plays all the latest hits.
But, as the country slips into civil war, they find themselves caught on the wrong side of history. “I had only ever heard the sounds of gunshots in movies,“ she remembers. “This one was different.“
This compelling story sweeps from 1950s’ Sri Lanka to modern-day Aotearoa, where Sangeetha is now living with a son of her own, Deepan. The only remnant of Sangeetha’s past is an old mixtape filled with memories. As Deepan plays the 17 songs one by one – La Bamba, the hit single from a Tamil rom-com – the story of what happened to their family unfolds through the music until its unforgettable conclusion.
Both a love letter to his homeland and a lament, this powerful new work by Ahilan Karunaharan is the final chapter in his epic trilogy which began with TEA, continued with The Mourning After and now concludes with a mixtape for maladies.
a mixtape for maladies
by Ahilan Karunaharan
அகிலன் கருணாகரன்
ASB Waterfront Theatre, 2025
Seventeen tracks on an old mixtape reveal bittersweet memories of a family’s resilience behind every song.
In a small coastal village in Sri Lanka, Sangeetha’s life is filled with music. Songs are the glue that binds her family together. And she has a crush on the guy at the general store who plays all the latest hits. But as the country slips into civil war, they find themselves caught on the wrong side of history. “I had only ever heard the sounds of gunshots in movies,“ she remembers. “This one was different.“
This compelling story sweeps from 1950s’ Sri Lanka to modern-day Aotearoa, where Sangeetha is now living with a son of her own, Deepan. The only remnant of Sangeetha’s past is an old mixtape filled with memories. As Deepan plays the 17 songs one by one – La Bamba, the hit single from a Tamil rom-com – the story of what happened to their family unfolds through the music until its unforgettable conclusion.
Both a love letter to his homeland and a lament, this powerful new work by Ahilan Karunaharan is the final chapter in his epic trilogy which began with TEA, continued with The Mourning After and now concludes with a mixtape for maladies.
Produced by Agaram Productions & Auckland Theatre Company as a part of the Auckland Arts Festival
Written by Ahilan Karunaharan அகிலன் கருணாகரன்
Directed by Jane Yonge
Assistant director Nī Dekkers-Reihana
Production design by Filament Eleven 11
Costume by Padma Akula
Music direction by Karnan Saba
Sound design by Te Aihe Butler
Choreography by Ahalya Sathiyaselvan
Performed by Amika G.K.R, Ravikanth Gurunathan, Ahilan Karunaharan, Shaan Kesha, Tiahli Martyn, Gemma-Jayde Naidoo, Meramanji Odedra, Bala Murali Shingade
Music performed by Seyorn Arunagirinathan & Ben Fernandez
more info to come…
