Allegedly

Allegedly revolves around a contested case of sexual violence — stealthing, the non-consensual removal of a condom during sex. Through the dialogue of two women, the work raises questions that remain unresolved, yet painfully familiar:
Is it rape if I don’t feel raped?
Can feeling be a fact?
Is the law the only form of justice?
What is justice?
Why did you take so long?
What do you want?

The piece does not offer answers. Instead, it exposes the uncertainty, doubt, and silence that surround sexual violence — and the ways survivors are made to carry these burdens.

In performance, Allegedly asks its audiences to answer questions with a simple yes or no, deliberately eliminating the safety of “maybe.” This places people in uncomfortable positions — some may shift uneasily in their seats, some may refuse to answer, some may be horrified by the response of the person sitting beside them. And yet, we remain together in the space, as a collective. We listen. We try to make sense.


Allegedly began as a work-in-progress with Zubaan, created to open conversations on sexual violence with students in colleges across Delhi in 2018. Performed as an interactive two-hander, it invited young audiences to engage directly with questions of consent, justice, and responsibility. Staged with actors sitting to the left and right and audiences between them, the viewing experience mimicked that of a tennis match… audiences having to look left or right to listen to see the actors and never seeing them together… but able to see each other at all times.

Allegedly - On Zoom

When the pandemic struck and theatres fell silent, Allegedly transformed into an online performance on Zoom. The form expanded into a chorus of women from across the country, speaking together around the central story. Here the rehearsal session with the chorus opened up several more layers. Through improvisations, discussions and arguments, we arrived at a diverse but somewhat together chorus, having distilled these rehearsal sessions into dialogues and scenes.
This shift — born in crisis — opened the possibility of publicly voicing the messy, contradictory thoughts and feelings we all carry when confronted with sexual violence. These conversations were galvanised by the #MeToo moment, which asked all of us to take positions. We were not always able to, because the questions were never simple — and yet the piece insisted on keeping the dialogue alive.
The online version reached wide audiences, travelled internationally, and Mallika Taneja was awarded the ZKB Patronage Prize at Zürcher Theater Spektakel (2021) for this piece.

The online version is set to revive in 2026

Upcoming

A new phase, titled Allegedly – Sar-e-aam, Sabke Saamne (Openly, Before Everyone), will be rebuilt with local communities in local languages, and in their own cities and neighbourhoods.