NORA RICHARD (GRANDMOTHER OF PUNJABI THEATRE 🎭)

Birth and early life 🧬

1. Was born Norah Mary hutman

2. Born on 29 October 1876 in Mullaghglass , county armagh ireland

3.Early life was influenced due to irish cultural nationalism , revial of gaelic culture

4.People later compared her with lady gregory

5.She studied from Oxford belgium sydney and many European institutions. She did not do any ba and ma instead due to her background during that time women especially her type of social background do artistic and literary education often happened through private study , cultural society, theatre group.

6. Any honorable doctorate was given to her also by punjabi university patiala also later in her life .

Before coming to India

1. Before going to India she practiced theatre as stage name Norah boyle

2.She is already trained theatre before coming to India

3. She did not arrive as a ruler ,a missionary and imperial beruecats but as a artist

Marriage and death of husband

1. She married Philip Ernest Richards which was English professor in dayal college lahore

2. As a lahore was the intellectual capital of punjab , centre for literature, journalism and reveloution.

3. In Lahore she discovered punjabi folklore, culture , theatre and traditions.

4. She wanted students to write theatre play in punjab.

5. Earlier punjabi theatre was done on English play , parsi melodrama and superficial entertainment

6. Due to her encouragement students started writing theatre play in punjabi which was first done in modern way by her student I.S nanda in 1913-1914 on dulhan play under her guidance

7. Due to her efforts dramatist like balwant gargi and Harcharan singh the tradition further as they were her students.

8. Norah believes theatre should educate society ,reform injustice, uplift villages , awaken moral consciousness in people .

9. One of his students play tell about child marriage this play name is suhaag .

10. She was highly influenced by abbey theatre which was started by lady gregory as a co -founder

11. After death of her husband she settled london temporary but love for punjab pull her back to punjab .

Settling in andretta

1. Andretta was remote forested , quite artistically untouched area due to her love for mountain, village simplicity, ecological life and folk culture she chooses to settle there .

2. She purchased 15 acre land and named it Woodland estate where she built a mud house instead of concrete inspired from destruction of kangra due to earthquake and also inspiring from kangri culture and named it chameli niwas

3 . Her daily routine is described by b.c sangal . He described her digging soil herself , gardening, wearing khadi and typing late at night by kerosene lamp .

4. She organised week long theatre festival at andretta . She thinks or believed culture belongs to local people.

5 . Prithviraj kapoor (famous actor , father of raj kapoor )often visit her in Andretta

6. Due to her work in creating andretta artistic ecosystem sobha singh settled near andretta .

7. She strongly supported - women dignity, women performers , female education which is seen in her and her students theatre play.

Last time and death

Here final year were difficult. She worried deeply about preservation of manuscript, future of woodland estate and survival of andretta artistic spirit . Eventually she entrusted much of her legacy to punjab University.

In 1970 Punjab University Patiala given her honourary doctorate due to her contribution.

She died in 3 march 1971 in andretta and given us a message after death which is written in her gravestone says

"Rest Weary Heart — Thy Work Is Done.”

Which means your heart can now rest because your life mission is complete ✅.

From her life we can understand

Culture has no boundaries.