Pussy Riot stir up a little anarchy in Cape Town

You need to be ready to fight and go to prison to be an activist in Russia, say members of the anti-Kremlin punk band, who've been working on an artistic collaboration in SA

09 December 2018 - 00:00 By CLAIRE KEETON

When Pussy Riot performers Veronika Nikulshina, Olya Kurachyova and Olga Pakhtusova step out their front door in Russia, they don't know if they will be thrown in jail, or worse.
Nikulshina says: "You wake up and don't know where you will spend the night. The police station?"
They look like any Gen Z artists - tattoos on delicate wrists, blue fingernails, dressed mostly in black, though Nikulshina's wearing pink mules with white socks and Kurachyova has pink-washed locks - but these Pussy Riot members have an edge.
They are brave and sharp, their performances are mixed with razor-like humour.
To join the Russian anti-Kremlin punk group, whose number varies but is usually less than 12, you don't need a Grammy award-winning voice. After all it's mostly screaming.
What's essential, says Kurachyova: "You need to be ready to fight and go to prison."..

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