Chaman Ahuja

🪔 About

Born in 1933 in Vehoa, District Dera Ghazi Khan (now in Pakistan), Dr. Chaman Ahuja received his early education there. After migration, he matriculated in 1949 and graduated in 1953 from Sangrur, and earned his Master's degree in 1955 from Patiala. He taught English for a decade in government colleges in Punjab before joining the Department of English, Panjab University, Chandigarh, in 1966, where he served until 1996 and was its Chairman from 1986-1987. Dr. Ahuja is a well-known theatre critic and writer, having contributed hundreds of articles to journals and national dailies, particularly as a Drama Critic for The Tribune from 1977-1990. He was the Principal Investigator for a UGC project, "Theatre India Today: Towards a New Dramaturgy," interviewing approximately 500 theatre professionals across India. His publications include "Tragedy, Modern Temper and O'Neill" (1984), "All Life Long, The Same Questions, The Same Answers: Reinterpreting Samuel Beckett" (1996), "The Mystique of Tragedy: Exploring East and West" (1997), "Contemporary Theatre of India: An Overview" (2012), and "Theatre Thinking in India" (2012). He also published Urdu poetry volumes, "Chamanzaar" (2015) and "Bargad Nama" (2016). He was a Scholar-in-Residence at the American Studies Research Centre (1990), a Senior Fellow with the Department of Culture, Government of India (2000-2002), and visited the UK on a Charles Wallace India Trust grant (1996). Awards & Honours: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for Overall Contribution/Scholarship to Performing Arts (2015), Senior Fellowship from the Department of Culture, Government of India, Scholar-in-Residence at American Studies Research Centre (1990), IUC Associateship from the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Simla (1991), Charles Wallace India Trust Grant (1996).