Mrs. Amal Allana
Mrs. Amal Allana was born in 1947 in Mumbai. She graduated from the National School of Drama in 1968, majoring in Direction and winning the Girish Ghosh and Bharat Puruskar Awards. Her further studies in Direction were in the Berliner Ensemble, the National Theatre, Weimar, and the State Theatre at Dresden, GDR. On her return to India she began her professional career and set up ‘The Workshop’, a theatre group, alongwith her husband Dr. Nissar Allana, a stage and lighting designer. Some of her productions which received critical acclaim t the time were Brecht’s The Good Woman of Setzuan, Strindberg’s Miss Julie and Wedekind’s Spring Awakening.

In 1975, Mrs.Allana was awarded the Homi Bhabha Fellowship for her research in traditional Indian and Japanese theatre,an encouragement that led her to visit Japan and study the Noh and Kabuki theatre. In 1977, she headed the Department of Indian Theatre at the Punjab University, Chandigarh. On her return to Delhi in 1978, she set up ‘Studio 1’ with her husband.

Mrs. Amal Allana

Some of their memorable productions include Aadhe Adhure, The Exception and the Rule, Hayavadana, Khamosh Adalat Jari Hai, Birjis Qadar Ka Kunba, Ashadh Ka Ek Din, Mahabhoj, King Lear, Himmat Mai and Begum Barve.

Mrs. Allana’s interest in television led to Wapsi, a Tele-play that received an award from Czechoslovakia in 1983. This was followed by two 13 part series, Raj Se Swaraj and Mullah Nasruddin, which received the NEFA award. In 1990, she received a Ford Foundation Fellowship to research the contemporary theatre movement.

Uptill now she has done over 40 productions, the most recent of which are Nagmandala, Begum Barve and char Chaughi, all under the aegis of Theatre and Television Associates. As a director Mrs.Amal Allana’s intrinsic interest lies in searching for new forms of _expression, a journey in which she draws sustenance from Indian, Asian and Western theatrical traditions.

She has received many honors including awards from Delhi Natya Sangh (1994), Sahitya Kala Parishad (1996), NEFA (1991), Czech TV (1982) and Sangeet Natak Akademi award for Direction (1998).