Aamir Raza Husain (born 6 January 1957) is an Indian theatre actor and director, noted for his large outdoor stage productions like ''The Fifty Day War'' (2000), based on the

Kargil War The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referr ...

and ''The Legend of Ram'' (2004), based on the epic ''

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

''. He is also the Creative Director of Stagedoor theatre company established in 1974, which has staged over 91 productions, and more than 1,100 performances. He was awarded the

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

in 2001, by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

Early life and education

Born in an

Awadh Awadh (), known in British historical texts as Avadh or Oudh, is a region in the modern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which was before independence known as the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. It is synonymous with the Kośāla region of ...

i aristocratic family of Mumtaz Husain and Kaniz Mehida in Lucknow, Husain was the only child of his parents. The family moved to SP Marg in Delhi, when he was still quite young and there he attended the Garden School. He was sent to boarding schooling,

Mayo College Mayo College (informally Mayo) is a boys-only independent boarding school in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. It was founded in 1875 by Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, who was the Viceroy of India from 1869 to 1872. This makes it one of the oldest Pub ...

, Ajmer at the age of 10 in 1968, and after he finished his schooling he went on the study history at

St. Stephen's College, Delhi St. Stephen's College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi, widely regarded as one of the oldest and most prestigious colleges for arts and sciences in India. It was established in 1881 by the Cambridge Mission to Delhi. The college ...

. He acted in various college plays working with directors like, Joy Michael,

Barry John Barry John (born 6 January 1945) is a former Welsh rugby union fly-half who played, during the amateur era of the sport, in the 1960s, and early 1970s. John began his rugby career as a schoolboy playing for his local team Cefneithin RFC befor ...

and Marcus Murch.

Career

He also appeared in the English film, ''

Kim Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese f ...

'' (1984), based on

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

's novel ''

'', which has

Peter O'Toole Peter Seamus O'Toole (; 2 August 1932 – 14 December 2013) was a British stage and film actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and began working in the theatre, gaining recognition as a Shakespearean actor at the Bristol Old Vic ...

as the lead. Over the years he has produced several plays, staged at outdoor locations, ''Sare Jahan Se Acha'', ''1947 Live'', ''Satyamev Jayate'', stage along the backdrop of

Hauz Khas Hauz Khas is a neighborhood in South Delhi, its heart being the historic Hauz Khas Complex. Well known in medieval times, the Hauz Khas village has amazing buildings built around the reservoir. There are remnants of Islamic architecture rough ...

monument in 1999. Previously in 1998, he and his troupe, along with

Delhi Tourism Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC) is an undertaking of the Government of Delhi, India, that was established in December 1975 for the purpose of promoting tourism and related services in the city of Delhi. It has an ...

organized the ''Chaudvin ka Chand'' festival on a two-km stretch between the historic

Red Fort The Red Fort or Lal Qila () is a historic fort in Old Delhi, Delhi in India that served as the main residence of the Mughal Emperors. Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1638, when he decided to shift hi ...

and

Fatehpuri Mosque The Fatehpuri Mosque is a 17th-century mosque in India located at the western end of the oldest street of Chandni Chowk, Old Delhi. It is opposite the Red Fort on the opposite end of Chandni Chowk. History Fatehpuri Masjid was built in 1650 b ...

Chandni Chowk The Chandni Chowk, also known as Moonlight Square is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, India. It is located close to the Old Delhi Railway Station. The Red Fort monument is located at the eastern end of Chandni Chowk. It was bu ...

Old Delhi Old Delhi or Purani Dilli is an area in the Central Delhi district of Delhi, India. It was founded as a walled city named Shahjahanabad in 1648, when Shah Jahan (the Mughal emperor at the time) decided to shift the Mughal capital from Agra. Th ...

. ''The Legend of Ram'' based on the epic, ''

'', was first staged in 1994 for about a month as a smaller version and later for period of four months in 2004, with 19 outdoor sets spread over 3 acres, 35 characters and a 100-member crew. The last show of the play was staged before President

APJ Abdul Kalam Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (; 15 October 193127 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu and studied phy ...

on 1 May 2004. In 2007, he acted and directed, ''One into Two'', a comedy play written by Peter Season, and which was staged in five cities across India, including Mumbai. In 2010, he revived his production, ''Move Over'', first staged at the official farewell function of President

Shankar Dayal Sharma Shankar Dayal Sharma (; 19 August 1918 – 26 December 1999) was an Indian lawyer and politician from the state of Madhya Pradesh who served as the ninth President of India, from 1992 to 1997. Born in Bhopal, Sharma studied at Agra, Allahaba ...

in 1997, under the banner of "Welcomtheatre", it stage at

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

and

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

and many other cities all over India.

Politics

Aamir Raza Husain was once a member of the

BJP The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

. He was Delhi BJP Vice President but later quit it in July 2013, after he criticized

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

Personal life

Aamir is based in Delhi. He married Viraat Talwar in 1993, an actress, after the two met in 1987, when Virat then a student at

Lady Shri Ram College for Women Lady Shri Ram College for Women (LSR) is a constituent women's college, affiliated with the University of Delhi, and has a legacy in women's education. History Established in 1956 in New Delhi by the late Lala Shri Ram in memory of his wife ...

(LSR), auditioned for his play, ''Dangerous Liaison'', it was also her first professional role. The couple have two children, Kaniz Sukaina and Ghulam Ali Abbas.

Filmography

Films

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Husain, Aamir Raza Indian male stage actors Indian theatre directors 1957 births Living people Mayo College alumni St. Stephen's College, Delhi alumni People from Delhi Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts