Connections 2025: Mia and the Fish

Performed by Abbey Grange Academy (Leeds)

A modern retelling of the ancient Indian myth Manu and the Fish.  Mia is a young refugee girl who along with her sister is washed up onto the shores of the UK.

Against the backdrop of a freak winter heatwave, as the climate emergency becomes critical, one day Mia happens upon and nurtures a talking fish, that she names, Samaki.

As well as becoming Mia’s friend and confidante, Samaki quickly grows and becomes a giant fish, larger than any marine animal the world has ever known and the key to her and her friends’ survival in the face of the imminent extinction of humanity.

Satinder Chohan is a writer from Southall, West London, whose stories largely focus on hidden global majority worlds and characters.

A former recipient of the Adopt A Playwright Award, her plays include Zameen, Made in India and Lotus Beauty. Audio dramas include an adaptation of Pam Gems’ Camille (BBC Radio 3) and Southall Uprising (BBC Radio 4). Satinder has also worked with and written extensively for young people. Plays include an adaptation of Gulliver’s Travels (Bolton Octagon, with co-writer Mike Kenny), Crossing the Line (Hampstead Theatre’s Heat & Light), Half of Me (Lyric Hammersmith, various ‘Made in India’ venues), Potato Moon (Tamasha/Migration Museum) and an audio adaptation of The Girl of Ink and Stars (Spark Arts for Children).

She is currently developing various theatre, film and fiction projects.