Kumara Varma is an Indian theatre director. To date, he has directed at least thirty-six Indian and Western plays during the past five decades, including Raja Oedipus, Urubhangam, Mattavilasam, Abhijnana Shakuntalam, Ashadh Ka Ek Din, Baaki Itihas, Uddhwast Dharmashala, Six Characters in Search of an Author, Death Watch, Agg De Kaleere and Leedli Nagari ki Neeti Katha.
Biography
Kumara Varma was born in April 1945 in Mavelikkara, Kerala. After completing his BSc, he joined the National School of Drama in 1964 and left in 1967 with the prestigious Bharat Puraskar and Girish Ghosh Puraskar. During 1967–68, he worked in the Repertory Company of the NSD and directed Hori for which the set was designed by Ebrahim Alkazi. Between 1968 and 1973 Kumara Varma was actively involved in the Natakakalari movement in Kerala, organizing workshops and directing plays in collaboration with playwrights such as C. N. Srikanthan Nair, G. Sankara Pillai and Kavalam Narayana Panikkar. Some of his productions of this period include Nair's Saketam, Pillai's Bandi and Panikkar's Sakshi. Varma joined the Faculty of the Department of Indian Theatre at Panjab University in 1973 as Lecturer and later became Professor. He has also chaired the Department and has been the Dean of the Faculty of Design and Fine Arts. He was also formerly a Secretary of the Punjab University Teachers Association. Kumara Varma was awarded the Italian Government Scholarship in 1979 and studied the History of Theatre and Drama at the University of Rome. Besides having represented India in the UNESCO World Theatre Conference at Paris in 1980, he has also studied theatre in many countries.
Productions
2000
Leedli Nagari Ki Neeti Katha, a Hindi adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Visit by Kumara Varma for the Department of Indian Theatre, P. U., Chandigarh
Agg De Kaleere, a Punjabi adaptation of Garcia Lorca's Blood Wedding by Surjeet Pattar for the Department of Theatre & Television, Punjabi University, Patiala
Teen Bhautik Shastri, a Hindi translation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Physicists for the Department of Indian Theatre, P. U., Chandigarh
Ek Dalit Yuvati Ki Dukh Bhari Dastan, a Hindi adaptation of M. Mukudan's Oru Dalit Yuvatiyude Kadana Katha for the Repertory Company of the National School of Drama, New Delhi
Warren Hastings Ka Saand, a stage adaptation of Uday Prakash's Hindi short story for the Department of Indian Theatre, P.U., Chandigarh. ''
"Begum Panikkar",, a Malayalam adaptation of Satish Alekar's Marathi play "Begum Barve" for the Department of Theatre, Sri Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, Kerala.
"Andorra",, Malayalam translation of Max Frisch's play "Andorra" by S. Sunil Kumar for the School of Drama & Fine Arts, University of Clicut, Thrissur.
1990
Shehar Hamara, a Hindi adaptation of Thornton Wilder's Our Town for the Department of Indian Theatre, P. U., Chandigarh
Death Watch, by Jean Genet for Sahridaya Sangam, Chandigarh
