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{{Short description|Indian actor (1923–2009)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Habib Tanvir
| image = Indian Writer Habib Tanvir.jpg
| imagesize =
| caption = Habib Tanvir at [[Prithvi Theatre]], [[Mumbai]]; November 2005
| birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1923|9|1}}
| birth_place = [[Raipur]], [[Central Provinces and Berar]], [[British India]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2009|6|8|1923|9|1}}
| death_place = [[Singrauli]], [[Madhya Pradesh]], [[India]]
| yearsactive = 1945–2009
| birth_name = Habib Ahmed Khan
| othername =
| occupation = Playwright, dramatist, poet, actor
| spouse = Moneeka Misra (2001-2005)
| children = {{ublist|Anna (b.1964<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://caravanmagazine.in/vantage/former-lover-differs-habib-tanvir-telling-their-relationship|title=A former lover differs with Habib Tanvir's telling of their relationship|last=Peck|first=Serena|website=The Caravan|language=en|access-date=2019-07-27}}</ref>)|Nageen (b. 1964)}}
| honours = Padma Shri (1983)
Padma Bhushan (2002)

| footnotes =
}}
{{Progressive Writers' Movement}}

'''Habib Tanvir''' (1 September 1923 – 8 June 2009<ref name=":0" />) was one of the most popular Indian [[Urdu]] playwrights, a theatre director, poet and actor.<ref name=":0" /> He was the writer of plays such as, ''Agra Bazar'' (1954) and ''[[Charandas Chor]]'' (1975). A pioneer in [[Urdu]] and [[Hindi theatre]], he was most known for his work with [[Chhattisgarh]]i tribals, at the Naya Theatre, a theatre company he founded in 1959 in [[Bhopal]]. He went on to include indigenous performance forms such as ''nacha'', to create not only a new theatrical language, but also milestones such as ''Charandas Chor'', ''Gaon ka Naam Sasural, Mor Naam Damad'' and ''Kamdeo ka Apna Basant Ritu ka Sapna''.<ref>[http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Habib-Tanvir-makes-his-final-exit/articleshow/4633305.cms Habib Tanvir makes his final exit] ''[[The Times of India]]'', 9 June 2009.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=zo5os6d0rvMC&dq=Habib+Tanvir&pg=PA42 Contemporary Theatre ] ''McGraw-Hill encyclopedia of world drama'', by Stanley Hochman, McGraw-Hill, inc. Published by Verlag für die Deutsche Wirtschaft AG, 1984. {{ISBN|0-07-079169-4}}. ''Page 42''.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=aQqOKWmjdQUC&dq=Habib+Tanvir&pg=PA1330 Habib Tanvir] ''The Columbia encyclopedia of modern drama'', by Gabrielle H. Cody, Evert Sprinchorn. Columbia University Press, 2007. {{ISBN|0-231-14424-5}}. ''Page 1330''</ref>

For him, true "theatre of the people" existed in the villages, which he strived to bring to the urban "educated", employing folk performers as actors alongside urban actors.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=mLQaz-12Eo8C&dq=Habib+Tanvir&pg=PA115 Habib Tanvir] ''Theatres of independence: drama, theory, and urban performance in India since 1947'', by Aparna Bhargava Dharwadker. University of Iowa Press, 2005. {{ISBN|0-87745-961-4}}. ''Page 115''.</ref> He died on 8 June 2009 at Bhopal after a three-week illness.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090615001838/http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?a=jginEzajhga&title=Noted_playwright_Habib_Tanvir_passes_away&?vsv=smm/ Noted playwright Habib Tanvir passes away at 85] [[Sify.com]], 8 June 2009.</ref><ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8088751.stm Indian playwright Tanvir is dead] [[BBC News]], 9 June 2009.</ref> Upon his death, he was the last of pioneering actor-managers in [[Indian theatre]], which included [[Sisir Bhaduri]], [[Utpal Dutt]] and [[Prithviraj Kapoor]],<ref>[http://www.tehelka.com/story_main42.asp?filename=hub200609a_farewell.asp A Farewell To The Bard Of Bhopal] [[Tehelka]], Vol 6, Issue 24, Dated 20 June 2009.</ref> and often he managed plays with a mammoth cast, such as ''Charandas Chor'' (Charandas the thief), which included an orchestra of 72 people on stage and ''Agra Bazaar'', with 52 people.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070522075908/http://www.hindu.com/mp/2007/05/05/stories/2007050501740100.htm Doyen holds forth] [[The Hindu]], 5 May 2007.</ref>

During his lifetime he won several national and international awards, including the [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]] in 1969, [[Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship]] in 1979, [[Padma Shri]]<ref name=":0" /> in 1983, [[Kalidas Samman]] 1990, [[List of Sangeet Natak Akademi fellows|Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]] in 1996, and the [[Padma Bhushan]] in 2002.<ref name="Padma Awards">{{cite web |url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |title=Padma Awards |publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India |date=2015 |access-date=July 21, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015193758/http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf |archive-date=15 October 2015 }}</ref> He had also been nominated to become a member of the Upper House of Indian Parliament, the [[Rajya Sabha]] (1972–1978). His play ''[[Charandas Chor]]'' won him the [[Edinburgh Fringe|Fringe Firsts Award]] at Edinburgh International Drama Festival in 1982,<ref>[http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/features/naya_theatre.asp Naya Theatre and Habib Tanvir]</ref> and in 2007, it was included in the [[Hindustan Times]]' list of 'India's 60 Best works since Independence which said: "an innovative dramaturgy equally impelled by Brecht and folk idioms, Habib Tanvir seduces across language barriers in this his all-time biggest hit about a Robin Hood-style thief."<ref>[http://www.hindustantimes.com/Mobile/Pages/StoryPage.aspx?ID=79c80f94-30eb-440b-bbea-04abbf526509&BC=Business-Corporate India's 60 best since Independence.He is dead]{{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} 14 August 2007.</ref>

==Biography==

===Early life===
He was born in [[Raipur]], Chhattisgarh<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=स्पर्श भाग 2|publisher=NCERT|isbn=81-7450-647-0|location=New Delhi|pages=127|language=hi|chapter=कारतूस|chapter-url=http://ncertbooks.prashanthellina.com/class_10.Hindi.Sparsh/ch-17.pdf}}{{Dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> (erstwhile Madhya Pradesh) to Hafiz Ahmed Khan, who hailed from [[Peshawar]].He passed his matriculation from Laurie Municipal High School, [[Raipur]],<ref name=":0" /> and later completed his B.A. from Morris College, [[Nagpur]] in 1944. Thereafter he studied M.A. for a year at [[Aligarh Muslim University]] .
Early in life, he started writing poetry using his pen name ''Takhallus''. Soon after, he assumed his name, Habib Tanvir.

===Career===
[[File:Khalid Abidi,Prof. Desnavi,Playwright Habib Tanvir.jpg|thumbnail|Khalid Abidi, Prof. Desnavi Playwright Habib Tanvir.]]
In 1945, he moved to Bombay, and joined [[All India Radio]] (AIR) Bombay as a producer. While in Bombay, he wrote songs for Urdu and Hindi films and even acted in a few of them. He also joined the [[Progressive Writers' Association]] (PWA) and became an integral part of [[Indian People's Theatre Association]] (IPTA) as an actor. Later, when most of the prominent IPTA members were imprisoned for opposing the British rule, he was asked to take over the organisation.

In 1954, he moved to New Delhi, and worked with Qudsia Zaidi's Hindustani Theatre, and also worked with Children's theatre, where he authored many plays. Later in the same year, he produced his first significant play ''Agra Bazar'' based on the works and times of the plebeian 18th-century Urdu poet, [[Nazir Akbarabadi]], an older poet in the generation of [[Mirza Ghalib]]. For this play he brought together local residents and folk artistes from [[Okhla]] village in Delhi and students of [[Jamia Millia Islamia]] creating a palette never seen before in Indian theatre. Additionally, the play was not staged in a confined space, rather a bazaar, a marketplace.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Beyond The Fourth Wall |url=http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250267 |author=Shama Zaidi |author-link=Shama Zaidi |date=22 June 2009|magazine=[[Outlook (Indian magazine)|Outlook]] }}</ref> After this, he continued to work with non-trained actors and folk artistes like the folk artists of Chhattisgarh.

===Stay in Europe===
In 1955, when he was in his 30s, Habib moved to England. There, he trained in Acting at [[Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts]] (RADA) <ref name=":0" />(1955) and in Direction at [[Bristol Old Vic Theatre School]] (1956). For the next two years, he travelled through Europe, watching various theatre activities. One of the highlights of this period, was his eight-month stay in [[Berlin]] in 1956, during which he got to see several plays of [[Bertolt Brecht]], produced by [[Berliner Ensemble]], just a few months after Brecht's death.<ref>[http://www.samarmagazine.org/archive/article.php?id=56 Habib Tanvir:samar, 2001] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070730170634/http://www.samarmagazine.org/archive/article.php?id=56 |date=30 July 2007 }}</ref> This proved to have a lasting influence on him, as in the coming years, he started using local idioms in his plays, to express trans-cultural tales and ideologies. This, over the years, gave rise to a "theatre of roots", which was marked by an utter simplicity in style, presentation and technique, yet remaining eloquent and powerfully experiential.

===Return to India===
A deeply inspired Habib returned to India in 1958 and took to directing full-time. He produced ''Mitti ki Gaadi'' a post-London play, based on [[Śudraka|Shudraka]]'s Sanskrit work, [[Mrichakatika]]. It became his first important production in [[Chhattisgarhi]]. This was the result of the work he had been doing since his return – working with six folk actors from Chhattisgarh. He went on to found "Naya Theatre", a theatre company in 1959.

In his exploratory phase, i.e. 1970–73, he broke free from one more theatre restriction – he no longer made the folk artistes, who had been performing in all his plays, speak Hindi. Instead, the artistes switched to Chhattisgarhi, a local language they were more accustomed to. Later, he even started experimenting with "[[Pandavani]]", a folk singing style from the region and temple rituals. This made his plays stand out amidst the gamut of plays which still employed traditional theatre techniques like blocking movements or fixing lights on paper. Spontaneity and improvisation became the hallmark of his new theatre style, where the folk artistes were allowed greater freedom of expression.

His next venture with Chhattisgarhi ''Nach'' style, saw another breakthrough in 1972, with a staging of the play titled ''Gaon Ka Naam Sasural, Mor Naam Damaad''. This was based on a comic folk tale, where an old man falls in love with a young woman, who eventually elopes with another young man.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20050407220639/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mag/2005/01/02/stories/2005010200570500.htm The Hindu, 2 January 2005]</ref>

By the time he produced his seminal play, ''[[Charandas Chor]]'' in 1975, the technique became popular. This play immediately established a whole new idiom in modern India theatre; whose highlight was ''Nach'' – a chorus that provided commentary through song. He also brought in [[Govind Ram Nirmalkar]], a noted Nacha artist who would later go on to win [[Padma Shri]] and [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]]s, to play the lead role.<ref name="Govind Ram Nirmalkar — Sangeet Natak Akademi profile">{{cite web|url=http://sangeetnatak.gov.in/sna-awards-2012/Citation/034-GobindRamNirmalkar.htm |title=Govind Ram Nirmalkar — Sangeet Natak Akademi profile |publisher=Sangeet Natak Akademi |date=2016 |access-date=February 12, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305191608/http://sangeetnatak.gov.in/sna-awards-2012/Citation/034-GobindRamNirmalkar.htm |archive-date=5 March 2016 }}</ref> Later, he collaborated with [[Shyam Benegal]], when he adapted the play to a feature-length film, by the same name, starring Smita Patil and Lalu Ram. He was awarded the prestigious [[Jawarharlal Nehru Fellowship]] in 1979 for research on ''Relevance of Tribal Performing Arts and their Adaptability to A changing Environment''.<ref>{{cite web| title = Official list of Jawaharlal Nehru Fellows (1969-present)|work = [[Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund]] | url = http://www.jnmf.in/flist.html }}</ref> In 1980, he directed the play ''Moti Ram ka Satyagraha'' for Janam ([[Jan Natya Manch]]) on the request of [[Safdar Hashmi]].

During his career, Habib has acted in over nine feature films, including [[Richard Attenborough]]'s film, ''[[Gandhi (film)|Gandhi]]'' (1982), ''Black and White'' and in a yet-to-be-released film on the Bhopal gas tragedy.

His first brush with controversy came about in the 1990s, with his production of a traditional Chhattisgarhi play about religious hypocrisy, ''Ponga Pandit''. The play was based on a folk tale and had been created by Chhattisgarhi theatre artists in the 1930s. Though he had been producing it since the sixties, in the changed social climate after the [[Babri Masjid]] demolition, the play caused quite an uproar amongst Hindu fundamentalists, especially the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), whose supporters disrupted many of its shows, and even emptied the auditoriums, yet he continued to show it all over.<ref>[http://www.countercurrents.org/comm-hariharan031103.htm Ponga Pandit controversy]</ref>

His Chhattisgarhi folk troupe, surprised again, with his rendition of [[Asghar Wajahat]]'s ''Jisne Lahore Nahin Dekhya'' in 1992. Then in 1993 came ''Kamdeo Ka Apna Basant Ritu Ka Sapna'', Tanvir's Hindi adaptation of Shakespeare's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream''.<ref>[http://sia.stanford.edu/india/tanvir.doc Traveling Shakespeares in India] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070626114155/http://sia.stanford.edu/india/tanvir.doc |date=26 June 2007 }}</ref> In 1995, he was invited to the United States by the Chicago Actors Ensemble, where he wrote his only English language play, ''The Broken Bridge''. In 2002, he directed ''Zahareeli Hawa'', a translation of ''[[Bhopal (play)|Bhopal]]'' by the Canadian-Indian playwright Rahul Varma, based on the [[Bhopal disaster|Bhopal Gas Tragedy]]. During his illustrious career he brought works from all genres to stage, from ancient Sanskrit works by Shudraka, Bhasa, Vishakhadatta and Bhavabhuti; to European classics by Shakespeare, Molière and Goldoni; modern masters Brecht, Garcia, Lorca, Gorky, and Oscar Wilde; Tagore, Asghar Wajahat, Shankar Shesh, Safdar Hashmi, Rahul Varma, stories by Premchand, Stefan Zweig and Vijaydan Detha, apart from an array of Chhattisgarhi folk tales.

==Legacy==
In 2010, at the 12th [[Bharat Rang Mahotsav]], the annual theatre festival of [[National School of Drama]], Delhi, a tribute exhibition dedicated to life, works and theatre of Habib Tanvir and [[B.V. Karanth]] was displayed.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/theatre/article87544.ece|title=Saluting stalwarts|date=21 January 2010 |newspaper=The Hindu|access-date=2 April 2010}}</ref> The 13th [[Bharat Rang Mahotsav]] opened with an Assamese adaptation of his classic play ''[[Charandas Chor]]'', directed by Anup Hazarika, a NSD graduate.<ref>{{cite news |title=Chor dons a new colour |url=http://www.thehindu.com/arts/theatre/article1089827.ece |newspaper=The Hindu |date=13 January 2011 }}</ref>

== Awards ==
He was the recipient of

# [[Sangeet Natak Akademi Award|Sangeet Natak Akademy Award]](1969),
# [[Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship]](1979),
# [[List of Padma Shri award recipients (1980–1989)|Padma Shri]] (1983),
# [[List of Padma Bhushan award recipients (1960–1969)|Padma Bhushan]](2002),

among other national and international awards during his lifetime.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hawk|first=Indian|title=Habib tanvir-mpositive.com|date=10 June 2020 |url=https://www.mpositive.in/tag/habib-tanvir-padma-shri-1983/}}</ref>

==Plays==
* ''Agra Bazar'' (1954)<ref name=":0" />
* ''Shatranj Ke Mohrey'' (1954)
* ''Lala Shoharat Rai'' (1954)
* ''Mitti Ki Gaadi'' (1958)
* ''Gaon Ke Naon Sasural, Mor Naon Damand'' (1973)
* ''Charandas Chor'' (1975)<ref name=":0" />
* ''Uttar Ram Charitra'' (1977)
* ''Bahadur Kalarin'' (1978)
* ''Ponga Pandit'' (1960s)<ref>[http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/nilanjana-s-roy-habib-tanvirs-%3Ci%3Eaadmi-nama%3Ci%3E/360436/ Habib Tanvir's Aadmi Nama] [[Business Standard]], 9 June 2009.</ref>
* ''Ek Aurat Hypathia Bhi Thee'' (1980s)
* ''Jis Lahore Nai Dekhya'' (1990)
* ''Kamdeo ka Apna Basant Ritu ka Sapna'' (1993)
* ''The Broken Bridge'' (1995)
* ''Zahreeli Hawa'' (2002)
* ''Raj Rakt'' (2006)
* ''Kartoos'' (?)<ref name=":0" />
* ''Dekh Rahe Hai Nyan''<ref name=":0" />
* ''Hirma Ki Amar Kahani''<ref name=":0" />
* He also came up with his own versions of ''Basant Retu ka Sapna'', ''Shajapur ki Shanti Bai'', ''Mitti ki Gari'' and ''Mudrarakhsas''.<ref name=":0" />

==Filmography==

* ''[[Rahi (film)|Rahi]]'' (1952) - Ramu
* ''Foot Path'' (1953)
* ''[[Charandas Chor]]'' (1975) (lyrics and script)
* ''Staying On'' (1980) (TV) - Dr. Mitra
* ''[[Gandhi (film)|Gandhi]]'' (1982) - Indian barrister
* ''Man-Eaters of Kumaon'' (1986) (TV) - Bahadur
* ''[[Yeh Woh Manzil To Nahin]]'' (1987) - Akhtar Baig
* ''[[Hero Hiralal]]'' (1988)
* ''[[Prahaar: The Final Attack]]'' (1991) - Joe D'Souza, father of Peter D'Souza
* ''The Burning Season'' (1993) - Raja Sahib
* ''Sardar'' (1993)
* ''[[Mangal Pandey: The Rising]]'' (2005) - Bahadur Shah Zafar
* ''[[Black & White (2008 Hindi film)|Black & White]]'' (2008)<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090615021209/http://movies.nytimes.com/person/1222891/Habib-Tanveer Habib Tanveer] ''[[The New York Times]]''.</ref> - Quazi Saab (final film role)

==Bibliography==
* Rang Habib – Critical Appreciation of Habib Tanveer's Works, Written by Shri B. R. Bhargava, Published by National School of Drama, 2006{{ISBN|81-8197-012-8}}
* ''Charandas Chor''. Tr. by Anjum Katyal. Seagull Books, 1996. {{ISBN|81-7046-108-1}}
* Use of Music and Dance in Contemporary Dramatic Performances
* The Buddhist Theatre of Tibet
* The Living Tale of Hirma: Hirma Ki Amar Kahani. ''Calcutta, Seagull Books, 2005''. {{ISBN|81-7046-277-0}}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=-acDoLv-sigC&dq=Habib+Tanvir&pg=RA1-PA63 Janam comes of Age by Habib Tanvir, 1988] ''Theatre of the streets: the Jana Natya Manch experience'', by Arjun Ghosh, Jana Naṭya Mancha, edited by Sudhanva Deshpande. Published by Jana Natya Manch, 2007
* Gaon ke Naon Theatre, Mor Naon Habib (documentary film), dirs. Sanjay Maharishi and Sudhanva Deshpande, 2005
* One Day in the Life of Ponga Pandit (documentary film), dirs. Sanjay Maharishi and Sudhanva Deshpande, 2005
* Tanvir ka safarnama (documentary film), dir. Ranjan Kamath. 2008

==Further reading==
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=BoB6jbZqbhgC&dq=Habib+Tanvir&pg=PA221 On the Theatre of Habib Tanvir] ''The Dramatic touch of difference: theatre, own and foreign'', by Erika Fischer-Lichte, Josephine Riley, Michael Gissenwehrer. Published by Gunter Narr Verlag, 1990 {{ISBN|3-8233-4023-9}}''Page 221-233''

==Notable Disciple==
* [[Omkar Das Manikpuri]]

==See also==
* [[Theatre in India]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070730170634/http://www.samarmagazine.org/archive/article.php?id=56 Habib Tanvir: Making of a Legend, Samar, 2001]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090704213146/http://harmonyindia.org/hportal/VirtualPageView.jsp?page_id=2474 Super trouper : Habib Tanvir]
* {{iMDb name|0849872}}
* [http://www.anindianmuslim.com/2009/06/remembering-habib-tanvir-agra-bazar-and.html Remembering Habib Tanvir and his play Agra Bazar]
* [http://www.teesriduniya.com/tanvir.html]{{dead link|date=October 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Rahul Varma's Tribute to Habib Tanvir
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080615135901/http://teesriduniya.com/productions.html] Rahul Varma's newest play mentored by Habib Tanvir
* [http://www.saadigitalarchive.org/search/habib%20tanvir Habib Tanvir materials in the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA)]

{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Art}}
{{PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 2000–09}}
{{SangeetNatakAkademiFellowship}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanvir, Habib}}
[[Category:1923 births]]
[[Category:2009 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian male dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Indian theatre directors]]
[[Category:Indian male film actors]]
[[Category:Indian male stage actors]]
[[Category:Male actors from Chhattisgarh]]
[[Category:People from Raipur, Chhattisgarh]]
[[Category:Aligarh Muslim University alumni]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]]
[[Category:Alumni of Bristol Old Vic Theatre School]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship]]
[[Category:Nominated members of the Rajya Sabha]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts]]
[[Category:Hindi theatre]]
[[Category:Hindi dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:Male actors in Hindi cinema]]
[[Category:Jawaharlal Nehru Fellows]]
[[Category:Dramatists and playwrights from Chhattisgarh]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male actors]]
[[Category:Poets from Chhattisgarh]]
[[Category:Film directors from Chhattisgarh]]

Habib Tanvir - Revision history

EthanMarko2 at 15:39, 24 March 2026