National Theatre appoints Anupama Chandrasekhar as first international writer-in-residence

The National Theatre has appointed its first international writer-in-residence, who will take up a 12-month post at the organisation.

Anupama Chandrasekhar, who hails from Chennai in India, will be the next playwright to take part in the NT’s writer-in-residence scheme and the first to be from outside the UK.

The NT is also partnering with television production company Lookout Point for this year’s scheme, with Chandrasekhar taking up a post at Lookout Point following her time at the NT.

She joins the theatre this month for a year to work in its new work department, which is led by head of new work Emily McLaughlin, after which she will work with Lookout Point to develop script ideas for television.

Chandrasekhar said she was “thrilled and overwhelmed” to be taking up the residency at the NT.

She added: “This is an unprecedented opportunity for me to learn, share, explore and grow. I’m sure the distance from my homeland will offer me new lenses with which to view my culture and history and the NT’s support system will give me the freedom and focus to write the kind of plays I want to write.”

Prior to the NT, Chandrasekhar has had work staged at venues in India, Europe and North America, including Free Outgoing and Disconnect, both of which ran at the Royal Court in London.

McLaughlin said: “This post is a brilliant opportunity for a writer to use the broad resources that the National Theatre has to offer and we are thrilled that Anupama will be our first international writer-in-residence.”

She succeeds Suhayla El-Bushra in the position.