Cast of the play ‘The Kooks’ who will be performing in Chennai from July 12 to 17.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
When the fate of the world hangs on a secret recipe, five eccentric cooks — Capsi, Souffle, Macaroni, Milo and Idli — step up to save the day.As The Little Theatre raises the curtain on the 15th edition of The Little Festival, audiences can sneak a peek into the lives of The Kooks. Carrying a philosophy of clowning at its heart, this group of bumbling, wacky cooks transforms the kitchen into a playground where absolutely anything is possible.“The Kooks is a celebration of human imagination when it is free from the limits of what we think is possible,” says Krishnakumar Balasubramanian (KK), artistic director, The Little Theatre.This year’s edition of Little Festival, from July 12 to July 17, features two productions — The Kooks: Sunny Side-Up and Giant’s Table — at the Museum Theatre in Egmore.The South Korean production, Giant’s Table, is an interactive play that uses media imaging technology to transform an ordinary table into a giant’s table. The play is suitable for audiences aged six and above.“Our focus has been to present exceptional performances from Korea across a South Indian circuit, to connect meaningfully with a large network of school children, their parents and teachers,” says Rathi Jafer, director, InKo Centre.A physical theatre play, The Kooks is a slapstick comedy featuring spectacular stunts, dance, and special effects, or, as its creator KK would put it, a “cartoon coming to life in spectacular fashion”.Built around a theme of celebrating human imagination and working together, The Kooks is a story set in a kitchen. “When we thought about what brings people together, we realised there is nothing better than food. And so we set the story in a kitchen,” says KK.The 2026 edition of The Kooks is also the directorial debut of Praveen Gunasekaran, who also plays one of the central characters in the play. Deepthie Orintelu, who plays a key role in the feature filmGatta Kusthi 2 appears as the dessert sous chef in the play. The cast also includes actors like Santhosh Kumar, Dinesh Subbiah and Loganathan J.The Little festival, started by Aysha Rau in 2010, is an international theatre festival for young audiences. “The objective is to bring top-quality productions from all over the world to our city, so children can learn about different cultures and learn to celebrate our differences through stories,” says KK. “At its core, the idea is to further cultivate a sense of empathy, peace and harmony for our society as a whole through the arts,” he adds.Following the performance in Chennai, The Kooks will be performing in Salem, Mumbai, and at a Tamil Theatre festival called Nadagamic in Singapore.“The Kooks is universal in its language. The play is designed to speak to all audiences. It will break the barriers of age, language, and ethnicity. With the show travelling to Singapore, it will adapt its minimal verbal format to Tamil and continue to enthrall and entertain the audiences with its spectacular physical humour,” says KK.The Little Festival is from July 12 to 17, at the Museum Theatre, Egmore. The Kooks will be staged on July 12 at 4pm and on July 13, 14, and 15, at 11am. Giant’s Table will be staged on July 16 and 17 at 11am. Visit @thelittletheatrechennai on Instagram for details. Published - July 09, 2026 08:30 am IST
