Sitting in a Hauz Khas apartment, around a dozen youngsters are rehearsing for their next play Muaveze (meaning `Compensation'), scheduled to hit stage next month. The venue is yet to be decided.

A flawed dialogue by an actor draw banters from others. The jeers evoke intervention by the director duo of Azam and Akbar Quadri, the twins who run the theatre group, Antraal.

These students and professionals manage to meet only on Sundays. That's why their group is also called the Sunday Theatre Group.
Sharing a bond Each Sunday is like a sojourn when they talk, crack jokes and do some masti. After the rehearsals, some of them could be seen hanging around the Hauz Khas market or at the neighbourhood chaiwallah.
They also hang out at each others' houses. This Eid, all gorged on korma at Azam's house near Jamia Nagar.

Rahul Agrawal, a group member, resides in faraway Ghaziabad but travels to Hauz Khas to enjoy the Sunday evenings. "When you are hooked to theatre, you somehow find the time and means to enjoy it," he says.

In their free time, this gang of actors plays indoor games to strengthen their acting skills. "An actor ought to be a good observer.
We improve our skills while playing these tailor-made games," says Vishal Sharma, another member.

They are also joined by expat choreographer Asha Ponikiewska who makes them dance and do some stretching to improve their body movements.

But masti will evade them a few weeks from now when rehearsals will be on in full swing a few days prior to the performance. "We do rehearsals as late as 11 pm to gear up for the big day," says Sharma.
Different roles The amateur group is diverse and its members have different lives during weekdays. Nishant Pandey is an engineering student while Poonam Yadav teaches at a junior school.
"Though most of us want to be actors or directors in the long run, quitting our jobs or professions at this stage is risky. I've been a passionate actor for more than two years now, but I sell soft toys to make a living," says Sharma.

Even the Quadri brothers have to count upon "wellpaying" avenues to support their theatrical pursuits.
They write scripts for telefilms, direct music videos, shoot documentaries and take on cinematography assignments to earn money.

"Theatre doesn't pay but we are so passionate that we spend whatever we earn from other sources on these productions," says Azam, who is currently shooting for a documentary on Tibet.

Treesha Datta, a mass communications student, wants to be a director. She plays key characters and sometimes even gets to direct the street plays.
All for a cause Most of Antraal's productions move around social causes like climate change or red-tapism and this is why they sometimes get funding from NGOs.

Another favourite subject is Hindu-Muslim harmony.
"We highlight such symbols of unity like the story of a mosque protected by Hindus or a temple which was constructed on the orders of a Mughal king," says Akbar.

"If we go out of town, we try returning before Sunday so as not to miss the rehearsals," says Agrawal, adding, "They have become more important than anything else."