16. The edition of the International Theater Festival in Keral (ITFOK) will take place from 25 to 1 February 2026. The Minister of Cultural Affairs Saji Cherian was announced during the ceremony of the Kerala Sangeeth Nataka Academy Awards.
The renowned theater director and teacher ABHILASH PILLAI was appointed Director of the ITFOK 2026 festival. This means his fourth term of office in the role after led before the festival in 2009, 2010 and 2017.
Graduate Drama School of Drama, Thrissur, persecuted postgraduate studies from the National School of Drama in Delhi and Advanced Theater studies at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (Council), London. He also attended specialized training from leading directors at the prestigious Orange Tree Theater Theater. He currently serves as the headmaster of the school of drama and fine art, Thrissur. He is also a winner of the Kerala Sangeeth Nataka Academi and several other awards.
Connection to Mr. Pillai to the festival headquarters will be joined by Haksar (a renowned director and theater activist); Ruwanthie de Chicker (Director of Sri Lankan); Sreejith Ramanan and MG Jyotish (remarkable Malaysian theater practitioners and educators).
In order to further increase the art and curatorial standards of the festival, a high -ranking advisory committee with older theater persons Ratan Thiyam, MK Raina, Anuradha Kapur and Prof. Ananthakrishnan.
The Minister of Karivellur Murali said that preparations for the issue of 2026 are already underway, followed by the vision and expertise of this newly created team.
Published – July 22, 2025 20:20 is
