Theatre is first love of down-to-earth Anis Azmi

Theatre is first love of down-to-earth Anis Azmi
Priyanka Gupta
New Delhi, December 25Azam Garh, a small district in Uttar Pradesh, has attained a unique distinction of producing a number of intellectuals and writers. Anis Azmi, the recipient of the Award 2002 for his contribution to Hindi and Urdu literature, also hails from there. A well-known personality in the world of theatres, Anis belongs to a highly educated family which moved to Delhi. Anis was then five years old only. A resident of Okhla, he is a down-to-earth person devoting most of his time to his first love, theatre. Anis was always interested in literature but his association with dramatics was the result of his efforts to end discrimination which he claims he faced when he was in school.
It was while in Zakir Hussain College he came in contact with Safdar Hashmi and this changed his life. A graduate in honours in Hindi, Anis joined the Jagriti Theatre Group to give expression to his thoughts and also to spread the message of peace and communal amity through street plays. “No child should face discrimination as this permanently influences the psyche,” he told the ‘NCR Tribune’ recently.
“My first play was ‘Paisa Bolta Hai’ in college. After that, I joined service but theatre came as a passion in between. And though it was difficult to cope with both the things still I burnt the midnight oil, rehearsing at nights also,” he said adding that “Juloos was the play I did in 1977, the first street play in Delhi by Prayog that ran for more than hundred shows.”
Anis’ prowess as an actor impressed eminent directors and he was offered roles in plays like Mother, Spartacus, Shabaash Anarkli, Tipu Sultan, Pari Kokh, Zimma, Veergati and in TV serials like Zameen, Kaag Bhagora Pashloon Ki Wapsi and many more.
He has contributed more than 20 plays to the Delhi Urdu Academy. “I have earned lots of friends in my life. The only thing that gives me pleasure is that I’m getting this award at a very young age in comparison to other recipients of this award. Many of my plays have also been directed by prominent film-makers like M K Raina, Neena Gupta and Sandeep Mukherjee,” he claimed. Anis has contributed more than 100 stimulating articles to esteemed journals as well.
He met Shahla, his wife in one of his plays Shabash Anarkali in Mumbai and made her his anarkali. He gives credit for his success to his wife saying that “I do not devote much time at home but her understanding gives me support. She never complains.” Anis has also won many awards that includes award for translating Juloos by UP Urdu Academy and for translating Spartacus from West Bengal Urdu Academy and many others. Nowadays, he has been assigned to translate the entire work of Agha Hashra Kashmiri into Devanagri script by the National School for Drama. Sitaron se age jahan aur bhi hai, this could well be the title of Anis’ life story.