20 Facts About Ebrahim Alkazi

Ebrahim Alkazi was an Indian theatre director and drama teacher.

Ebrahim Alkazi remained the Director of National School of Drama, New Delhi Ebrahim Alkazi was a noted art connoisseur, collector and gallery owner, and founded the Art Heritage Gallery in Delhi with his wife, Roshen Alkazi.

Ebrahim Alkazi has directed over 50 plays, including famous productions of: Girish Karnad's Tughlaq, Mohan Rakesh's Ashadh Ka Ek Din, Dharamvir Bharati's Andha Yug and numerous Shakespeare and Greek plays.

Ebrahim Alkazi hailed from an Arab family with a keen interest in arts.

In 1947, the rest of his family migrated to Pakistan while Ebrahim Alkazi stayed back in India.

Ebrahim Alkazi's works were exhibited at the Asian Institute, London, the Jehangir Art Gallery, Bombay and at the Sridharini Gallery, New Delhi.

In 1954, after breaking from the Theatre Group, Ebrahim Alkazi formed the Theatre Unit in Bombay along with his wife, Roshen Ebrahim Alkazi and Nissim Ezekiel.

Ebrahim Alkazi established the School of Dramatic Arts on 4th July, 1956 and became the principal of Bombay's Natya Academy.

In 1962, Ebrahim Alkazi embarked upon his journey to develop a pedagogic discourse for theatre in form of the National School of Drama.

Ebrahim Alkazi designed a course, which not only focused on actor-training and direction, but on the learning of all aspects of stage-craft.

Ebrahim Alkazi's students include many well-known film and theatre actors and directors including Vijaya Mehta, Om Shivpuri, Harpal Tiwana and Neena Tiwana, Om Puri, and Naseeruddin Shah, Manohar Singh, Uttara Baokar, Jyoti Subhash, Suhas Joshi, B Jayashree, Jayadev and Rohini Hattangadi, Kumara Varma, S Ramanujam.

Ebrahim Alkazi pioneered the construction of new theatre spaces on and near the school campus, and most memorably placed his productions of Tughlaq and Andha Yug in spectacular historical monuments around Delhi.

Ebrahim Alkazi founded Art Heritage Gallery in Delhi with his wife, Roshan Alkazi.

Ebrahim Alkazi won many of India's most prestigious awards, creating an awareness of theater's sensibility and successfully mixed modern expression with Indian tradition.

Ebrahim Alkazi was the first recipient of Roopwedh Pratishtan's the Tanvir Award for lifetime contribution to the theatre.

Ebrahim Alkazi has received awards including the Padma Shri, the Padma Bhushan, and India's second highest civilian award the Padma Vibhushan in 2010.

Ebrahim Alkazi has been awarded twice by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama.

Ebrahim Alkazi received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in Direction in 1962, and later the Akademi's highest award the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship for lifetime contribution to theatre.

Ebrahim Alkazi designed costumes for all his plays, and wrote two books on history of Indian garments.

Ebrahim Alkazi established the Art Heritage Gallery at Triveni Kala Sangam, Delhi in 1977, which she ran for over 40 years.