Grovel & Cricket: The word that carries the weight of history.

 

  

 Grovel & Cricket: The word that carries the weight of history.

Now that the heat on the comprehensive drubbing (2-0) that South African team gave to the over hyped Indian team in the Test series, I am tempted to write on the infamous word “Grovel” that hogged headlines and its history with a racial undercurrent. It all started with what the South African coach Conrad, said during the press conference after the end of the fourth day of the second test. He said “…. we wanted them (Indians) to really grovel”.  This word and its use in the context of the match resurrected not merely a controversial word, but a racial shadow that South Africa once fought so hard to escape, isolation / ban from international cricket.

For India—a nation that had helped South Africa return to cricketing legitimacy— “grovel” felt like an unnecessarily abrasive turn of phrase, especially coming after a First-Test defeat and a looming loss in the second. Language carries memory, and this word (grovel) of all words, could have been avoided by the South African coach. To highlight my thoughts, as a science communicator, I am reminded of the legendary scientist, James Watson, who died on 7 November, at the age of 97.

Watson’s example serves as a reminder of a paradox that repeats itself across history: brilliant minds and sporting arena are not immune to human frailties. Watson, one of the co-discoverers of the structure of DNA for which he shared the coveted Nobel Prize in Medicine and a towering figure in molecular biology, helped set in motion scientific revolutions that continue to shape medicine, genetics, and our understanding of life itself.

Watson championed the Human Genome Project and pushed for greater scientific attention to mental health - partly because of his own son’s struggle with psychiatric illness. Yet, all of this and his monumental contributions to science and humanity could not insulate him from the consequences of his own words. His repeated claims that Black people have inherently lower intelligence led to his downfall. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory—an institution he nurtured into global prominence— revoked the honours it had once bestowed. In his death, Watson did not receive the accolades which he so richly deserved.

Watson’s “fall from grace” is not an isolated tale but a reminder that racism pervades in subtle and overt ways, sometimes in the corridors of science and sometimes on the sporting field. And this brings us to the word “grovel” used by South African Coach, Shukri Conrad that has hogged media headline. This word has a history.

In 1976, during England’s tour of the West Indies, English captain Tony Greig declared that he intended to make the West Indians “grovel.” For a generation of Caribbean people whose parents and grandparents had struggled against the legacy of slavery and colonial domination, this was not just a sporting provocation. It was a racial insult. To “grovel” implied submission, abasement, a return to the humiliations of the past. The backlash was swift, and Greig himself later admitted that he had underestimated the racial implications of his words. But then the West Indies Cricket team paid back in-kind defeating Grieg’s English team 3-0 in the test series.

This word grovel was back again in news reminding its history, power, and pain in the second India-South Africa Test match, which the Indians lost comprehensively.

South Africa should have known the history and context of the word “grovel”, more viscerally than others, more so since South Africa was banished from international cricket, for over two decades due to apartheid—a system built explicitly on racial hierarchy - an undertone for the word grovel. Speaking of South Africa’s isolation from the world, I am reminded of my first passport (obtained in 1987), which clearly mentioned “this passport is valid for travel to ALL COUNTRIES EXCEPT REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA”.

It was India that extended the warmest hand of friendship and welcome to South Africa, when the time finally came for South Africa’s reintegration into the cricketing world in 1991-92. While developing a “Cricket Connects: India South Africa” exhibition, one of the most important sections of the exhibition was the reintegration of South Africa. This exhibition, which was developed to mark the India South Africa cultural relations in 2015, was curated and developed by the Nehru Science Centre, Mumbai and was presented in Johannesburg and Durban to a very appreciative crowd, I vividly remember presenting the exhibition catalogue, which accompanied the exhibition, to Sachin Tendulkar during the opening of Deconstructed Innings A tribute to Sachin Tendulkar that was presented at NGMA, Mumbai when I headed this institution.    

In November 1991, India hosted South Africa’s maiden historic return to international cricket. The reception in Kolkata at the inaugural one day international (ODI) match of the 3-match series, remains legendary. The packed Eden Gardens – more than 90000 spectators- roared not just for cricket match (ODI), which India won, but also for South Africa, a nation re-entering world cricket after a long spell of pariah status under apartheid. The South African team received a memorable reception including an opportunity to met Mother Teresa. Indian crowds cheered Allan Donald and Kepler Wessels as if they were their own. Their return to international cricket was celebrated by Indians as a symbol of friendship, solidarity, and an extraordinary act of goodwill by the hosts. It must be recalled that India had stood firmly against apartheid.

India further strengthened this relationship when it became the first country to tour South Africa in 1992 for a full series and Nelson Mandela personally welcomed the Indian team. Cricket became a bridge between two nations that had shared moral positions against racism and discrimination.

“Grovel” makes the present moment deeply ironic.

In the context of the second test match, South Africa coach, Shukri Conrad said that his team batted as long as they did in their second innings, because "we wanted them to really grovel”.  This phrase by Conrad, resurrected not merely a controversial word, but a racial shadow his own country had once fought so hard to escape. For India—a nation that had helped South Africa return to cricketing legitimacy—it felt like an unnecessarily abrasive turn of phrase, especially coming after a first-Test defeat and a looming loss in the second. Language carries memory, and this word, of all words, should have been avoided by a South African coach.

Racism mutates; it does not disappear

This is where the Watson story mirrors the cricket controversy. Watson was not a man unaware of the implications of his language; he was at the pinnacle of scientific achievement. Yet he repeated ideas long discredited by genetics itself. In cricket too, the people involved are no longer colonial administrators or imperial-era players. They are part of a global, multicultural, interdependent sport. But racism—even when unintended—slips through in choice of words, in unconscious bias, in language inherited without reflection.

We often imagine racism to be a loud, explicit act. More often, it is a careless phrase, a historical insult casually revived, or a stereotype uttered without thought. The Watson episode teaches us that no amount of brilliance or success inoculates a person against prejudice. And cricket teaches us that institutions with painful racial histories can sometimes forget their own lessons.

India, in the last few decades, has experienced a transformation in cricketing power, confidence, and global influence. From hosting South Africa’s re-entry into international cricket, we now dominate the commercial and sporting landscape of the game. But this does not make the country—or its players—immune to racial slights or coded insults. What the “grovel” remark underscores is that international sport is not insulated from past trauma. Words can reopen wounds. They can destabilise cricket’s attempts to transcend its colonial past. They can damage the very spirit of the game that brought nations together after decades of segregation. And yet, the appropriate response for such unpleasant situations is not anger alone. It is to remind the world of history. It is to assert that cricket today operates in a moral universe shaped by the struggle against racism, one in which every stakeholder must exercise responsibility, in the true spirit of the game, befittingly called Gentleman’s Game.

ISRO’s LVM3-M5 Successfully Positions CMS-03 Satellite in its Intended Trajectory

 

Yesterday evening, even as the temptation to watch the Women’s Cricket World Cup Final match played between the host country India and South Africa at the DY Patil Sports stadium in Mumbai, I had to make a choice between watching the cricket match and the ISRO Launch. The Indian team was put in to bat, after losing the toss, by South Africa, and they began their innings with a bang with a century opening partnership. However, notwithstanding the temptation to continue to watch Cricket, I chose to watch the live launch of the ISRO LVM3-M5.

I was one among millions of Indians, watching live, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launch its advanced communication satellite CMS-03 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. With the count of zero the Bahubali heavy lift rocket, LVM3-M5 (5th operational flight LVM3-M5) rose to the sky spewing plumes of controlled fire and smoke to the cheers of audience, including school children, who had assembled in large numbers at the launch station at Sriharikota. LVM3-M5 carried on board CMS-03 (also referred to as GSAT-7R) communication satellite, weighing 4410kg, the heaviest communication satellite from the Indian soil, which was successfully launched and placed in an intended Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO). The GSAT-7R is a multi-band communication satellite that will provide services to our Indian Navy over a wide oceanic region, including the Indian landmass.

The Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3), fondly called “Bahubali,” is India’s most powerful rocket. It stands more than 40 metres tall and weighs close to 640 tonnes at liftoff — roughly the mass of a fully loaded jumbo jet. It is noteworthy to recall that in the previous mission, LVM3 had successfully completed the prestigious Chandrayaan-3 mission, where in, India became the first country to soft land its Vikram Lander and Pragya Rower, near the lunar south pole.

I had doubts whether the launch date will be rescheduled in wake of the aftermath of Cyclone Montha, which had made landfall near Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, around October 28-29, 2025. I was therefore, not sure if the weather was suitable for the ISRO launch. But fortunately, ISRO kept their schedule and the rest is now history. ISRO Chairman, in his post successful launch address to the nation and his team, did speak about their apprehension on the aftermath of the Cyclone, which they carefully examined and decided to go ahead with the launch. The success therefore becomes that much more important that it endeared challenges to place GSAT-7R into its intended transfer orbit.

From the Indian context, historically, satellites above 4 tonnes required foreign launches; However, yesterday the LVM3-M5 demonstrated its capacity to reduce India’s dependence on external launch markets. This success will accentuate India’s sovereign capacity to develop complex communications infrastructure for civil and defence purpose. ISRO’s public mission statement and contemporaneous reporting emphasise that CMS-03 is the heaviest communication satellite yet launched to GTO from India, and that this mission strengthens both maritime and national communications. 

The LVM 3 is a three stages rocket with three types of propulsion. It is a compact demonstration of propulsion diversity: two very large solid strap-on boosters (S200), a liquid-fuelled core (L110) and a cryogenic upper stage (C25) powered by the CE-20 engine. Each stage solves a different engineering problem. The S200 strapons (first stage boosters) are massive solid motors — among the largest in the world — carrying ~200 tonnes of composite solid propellant each delivering an enormous initial thrust pulse to clear dense atmosphere and quickly gain altitude and momentum. The two S200s ignited at lift off and burnt for roughly two minutes before separation. The second stage included the L110 liquid core, which is a liquid stage built around twin Vikas engines burning storable hypergolic propellants and nitrogen tetroxide variants in various configurations. The L110 provides throttleable thrust and control during the trans-atmospheric portion of flight; its ignition is timed to complement the S200 burn so that the vehicle enjoys continuous thrust as the boosters drop away. The third stage of the rocket is the C25 cryogenic. The high-efficiency CE-20 cryogenic engine uses liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen and is optimized for high specific impulse — the most fuel-efficient chemical propulsion for vacuum operations. The C25’s long, controlled burn is used to inject heavy payloads into the high-energy transfer orbit needed for subsequent orbit-raising by the spacecraft itself. Notably, this mission included a CE-20 reignition test to refine the injection — a delicate manoeuvres that underscores both engine reliability and flight-software precision, which was highlighted by ISRO Chairman and other ISRO Centre Directors in their post launch address.

Addressing the nation ISRO Chairman reported that the GSAT 7R Satellite has been successfully inducted in the sub-GTO parking ellipse path of roughly 170 km × 29,970 km (perigee × apogee), from which the satellite will perform autonomous orbit-raising manoeuvres to reach a circular geostationary slot near ~36,000 km altitude. Over the coming days to weeks the ISRO will help the satellites on board propulsion system to execute perigee-raising and apogee-circularisation burns under the control of ISRO’s Master Control Facility (MCF) and mission operations. These phasing burns take advantage of the vehicle’s orbital mechanics: small, well-timed impulses at perigee or apogee until the orbit is circularised at the planned geostationary altitude at around 36000 Km. 

Ground-segment, tracking, and mission control

The very sight of the rocket launch is a memorable experience, no matter how many times we witness it. The launch site with rows of monitoring scientists with computers and the large screen which shows the path of the rocket in flight is made visible by ISRO’s Telemetry. The Tracking and Command network (ISTRAC) — a distributed constellation of ground stations — provides continuous tracking and telemetry of the rocket from lift-off to spacecraft separation. Stations at Sriharikota, Port Blair, Thiruvananthapuram, Mauritius, Brunei and Biak (Indonesia), and the Mission Operations Complex in Bengaluru are part of the long-standing TTC architecture that monitors the vehicle’s health and sends telecommands as required. Once the satellite separates, the Master Control Facility at Hassan (and the MCF node at Bhopal) assumes command responsibility for early orbit operations, payload health checks, solar array deployments and the initial orbit-raising burns. 

The satellite: multiband payload and operational significance

CMS-03 (GSAT-7R) is a purpose-built, multi-band communications satellite for the Indian Navy and national stakeholders. ISRO brief describes that the satellite is capable of providing UHF, S, C and Ku-band services. Those bands together support secure voice, high-data-rate video and encrypted command-and-control links between ships, aircraft, submarines (surface ships use UHF/S bands to reach submerged platforms via relays) and shore centres. The satellite’s stated operational life is roughly 15 years — a typical design life that balances fuel margin, orbital perturbation management and payload degradation. Over that window, the satellite will underpin network-centric naval operations, maritime domain awareness, and high-capacity data links for civil and strategic users across the Indian Ocean Region. 

Voices from the control room and the strategic horizon

From the Mission Control Centre, ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan hailed the “precise injection” and noted the vehicle’s performance was textbook — language that captures the twin facts of engineering exactitude and institutional confidence. ISRO mission leadership also highlighted the successful reignition of the cryogenic upper stage — a non-trivial capability that pays dividends for complex trajectories and future human missions. ISRO has explicitly linked LVM3’s maturation to the Gaganyaan human-spaceflight programme: the same family of technologies, scaled and certified for crew safety, form the engineering backbone of India’s next frontier in human spaceflight. 

What this means for the next decade and a half, technically, the mission confirms LVM3’s capacity to loft heavier payloads to GTO, easing constraints on spacecraft designers. Operationally, CMS-03 immediately augments India’s maritime communications and, over the medium term (years) enhances interoperability with other national assets. Strategically, this is an incremental but clear signal: sovereign launch capability for heavy defence and dual-use satellites reduces external dependency and accelerates India’s space-enabled resilience. 

India's forthcoming space missions encompass lunar sample return, a domestic space station architecture and crewed flights, each of which needs exacting standards of “rocket science” precision and yesterday’s success of the LVM3-M5 positioning the GSAT-7R into its intended Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) augurs well for ISRO's future mission.

May ISRO continue to make the nation proud and unite the nation as Cricket does, when we celebrate as one nation, one people, whenever we win tournaments, like the one that the Indian Women’s team which won the World Cup yesterday 

Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan and Jai Vigyan

Jai Hind

Remembering the Centenarian Prof. E.V. Chitnis, on his passing this morning – 22 October 2025.

 

This morning Suhas Naik Satam, Secretary, NCSC, posted the tragic news on the passing of Dr Chitnis in Pune, based on the information that he received from Dr Chetan Chitnis so of Dr EV Chitnis. Dr EV Chitnis suffered a cardiac arrest and was rushed to the hospital where he succumbed to the cardiac arrest early this morning – 22 October, 2025. In his passing, India has lost one of its most enduring space visionaries. Dr. Eknath Vasant Chitnis, a close confidant of Dr Sarabhai - the founding father of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) - and a Padma Bhushan awardee, lived remarkable life of 100 years (Prof Chitnis was born on 25 July 1925). In the annals of human history very few people have the honour of celebrating their own birth centenary; from amongst those there are few parallels to the veritable and a nation building life that  Dr EV Chitnis lived, during which his achievements in laying the foundation for one of the most loved scientific institutions in the country – ISRO and its precursor INCOSPAR - as founding secretary of INCOSPAR and as a scientist, are truly remarkable.

Just months earlier, in July, 2025, on his birth centenary, the National Centre for Science Communicators (NCSC), had organized a grand centenary tribute conference to Dr Chitnis at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) in Pune, celebrating the life of this "living legend." I was privileged to be one of the members of NSCS who helped plan for this befitting conference. The event, attended by luminaries from India's space fraternity. This conference underscored the profound impact Chitnis had on the nation's scientific journey. As we mourn his passing, it is fitting to reflect on his remarkable contributions—not just to space technology, but to the transformational impact that his contributions to the Satellite Instruction Television Experiment (SITE) program had on the social fabric of rural India. Chitnis was a bridge between the vision that Dr Sarabhai had to bring the applications of space to the people of India and to its implementation in using space technology for societal upliftment.

Born on July 25, 1925, in Maharashtra, Eknath Vasant Chitnis completed his education in physics which laid the foundation for a career that would intersect with the birth of India's space program. Chitnis joined the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad - an institution founded by Dr Vikram Sarabhai - where he conducted pioneering research on cosmic rays. It was here that Dr Chitnis’s brilliance was noticed by Dr. Sarabhai. the visionary architect of India's space ambitions. Incidentally, the Nehru Science Centre in collaboration with NCSC had organised a Birth Centenary conference in memory of Dr Sarabhai at the Nehru Science Centre, in August 2020 and among the luminaries who spoke during this conference was Dr Chitnis, although his talk was in the form of a video recorded interview that he gave to my NCSC colleague Suhas Naik Satam, Secretary NCSC, in which he recollected his association with Dr Sarabhai and the team role in building ISRO and its precursor (INCOSPAR).  Dr. Sarabhai, recognizing Chitnis's sharp scientific acumen and humanistic approach, brought him into the fold of the Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR), the precursor to ISRO.

Chitnis's early role was pivotal. As the founder member secretary of INCOSPAR, he was instrumental in laying the groundwork for India's space infrastructure. One of his first major tasks was scouting locations for rocket launching stations. It was Chitnis who helped Sarabhai identify the Thumba in Kerala as the ideal site for the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS), due to its proximity to the magnetic equator—a decision that propelled India's entry into space research. This choice was not arbitrary; but path breaking, it reflected Chitnis's meticulous attention to scientific detail and his ability to foresee long-term benefits. As Kiran Karnik, former director of ISRO's Development and Educational Communication Unit (DECU), recalled during the centenary conference, Chitnis's strategic foresight was evident even in those nascent days: "He was the quiet force behind Sarabhai's bold visions, ensuring that every step was grounded in practicality."

The 1960s and 1970s were transformative for India's space program, and Chitnis was at the heart of it. Following Sarabhai's untimely death in 1971, Chitnis took on the mantle of operationalizing the Space Applications Centre (SAC) in Ahmedabad, becoming its director in 1972. Under his leadership, SAC evolved into a hub for applying space technology to real-world problems, from remote sensing to telecommunications. But it was the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) - one of the three visionary projects alongside the Aryabhata satellite and Space Launching Vehicle (SLV) - that truly defined his legacy—a project that Sarabhai had dreamed of, which Chitnis brought to fruition.

SITE, launched in 1975 in collaboration with NASA, was a path breaking initiative that used the ATS-6 satellite – sourced from NASA, USA - to beam educational and developmental programs directly to rural India. SITE, covering over 2,400 villages across six states—Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and Rajasthan— experiment ran for a full year, from August 1, 1975, to July 31, 1976. Chitnis spearheaded the selection process for these villages, ensuring they represented the most underserved regions. A UNESCO report on SITE, titled "The SITE Experience," detailed how this selection was a meticulous exercise in social engineering, prioritizing areas with high illiteracy and poverty rates to maximize impact. The report highlighted challenges like technical glitches—on average, 16% of broadcast time faced issues—but praised the project's success in delivering content on agriculture, health, family planning, and education. This was the beginning of India harvesting the benefits of space technology for the social good of its people, a vision so prophetically envisaged by ISRO founder Dr Sarabhai.

What made SITE revolutionary was its focus on "democratizing access to technology," as Chitnis himself often emphasized. It wasn't just about transmission; it was a well-researched social intervention. Villages received community television sets, often placed in schools or panchayat halls, turning them into hubs of learning. Farmers learned modern agricultural techniques, women gained knowledge on hygiene and nutrition, and children accessed basic education. The project's success was quantified in various studies: literacy rates improved in targeted areas, and health awareness campaigns reduced incidences of preventable diseases. UNESCO's "Planning for Satellite Broadcasting: The Indian Instructional Television Experiment" further elaborated on how SITE's software—program content—was as critical as the hardware, with Chitnis overseeing interdisciplinary teams of scientists, educators, and sociologists.

Colleagues who worked closely with Chitnis during SITE offer poignant insights into his leadership. Kiran Karnik, who joined ISRO in the 1970s and later led DECU, described Chitnis as a mentor who blended rigor with empathy. In a recent article marking the 50th anniversary of SITE, Karnik wrote, "Prof. Chitnis turned technology into a tool for real-life use, not just missions. His attention to detail in planning SITE ensured it wasn't a fleeting experiment but a blueprint for future innovations." Karnik recounted how Chitnis insisted on field visits to villages, often traveling to remote areas to understand ground realities. "He believed in humanity above all," Karnik noted in a LinkedIn post, reflecting on their shared experiences.

Pramod Kale, who succeeded Chitnis as SAC director, shared similar sentiments at the Pune conference. Kale, a key figure in India's early satellite programs, praised Chitnis's ethical guidance: "He was a leader who taught us that science must serve society. During SITE, he navigated bureaucratic hurdles and international collaborations with grace, ensuring India's voice was heard in global forums." Kale's reflections, drawn from his own memoirs and interviews, highlight Chitnis's role in fostering a collaborative culture at ISRO. In a YouTube interview on Indian space history, Kale recalled how Chitnis mentored young engineers, including himself, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches.

Y.S. Rajan, another ISRO stalwart and co-author with A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on books like "India 2020," worked alongside Chitnis during the formative years. Rajan's archives, preserved at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, include correspondence that reveals Chitnis's influence on space policy. In his writings, Rajan often credits Chitnis for integrating social sciences into space applications. "The trinity of Sarabhai, Kalam, and Chitnis shaped ISRO's ethos," Rajan wrote in an article on the program's early days, noting how Chitnis's work on SITE inspired broader applications in remote sensing and disaster management. Rajan's YouTube interview ahead of Chandrayaan-3 echoed this, praising Chitnis's humility: "He was the unsung hero who made space accessible to the common man."

The ripple effects of SITE extended far beyond its one-year duration. Its success directly influenced the expansion of Doordarshan, India's public broadcaster. In the early 1980s, leveraging lessons from SITE, Doordarshan rolled out over 190 low-power TV transmitters—one nearly every day—a record that transformed television from an urban luxury to a national staple. This paved the way for the communication revolution, with programs like "Krishi Darshan" and "Hum Log" reaching millions. Later it is this TV transmission revolution that helped the Indian Cricket and its administrators (BCCI) to dominate in the world of cricket as a key administrator in the affairs of International Cricket Council (ICC).  As Karnik pointed out, SITE demonstrated that satellite technology could bridge the urban-rural divide, inspiring Doordarshan's golden era in the 1980s. Newspaper reports from the time chronicled how SITE's infrastructure laid the groundwork for INSAT satellites, enabling direct-to-home transmissions that benefited rural populations.

Post-SITE, Chitnis led the Kheda Communications Project in Gujarat, a follow-up that used television for socio-economic change in dairy farming communities. Retiring from ISRO in 1985 after receiving the Padma Bhushan, he settled in Pune, where he taught at Pune University and continued advocating for science education. His son, Dr. Chetan Chitnis, a renowned malaria researcher and Padma Shri recipient, shared personal anecdotes at the centenary event: "My father taught us that true progress lies in inclusivity. He lived simply, valuing family and ethics above accolades."

Chitnis's legacy is etched in ISRO's DNA. As the organization achieves milestones like Chandrayaan-3, his emphasis on applications for societal good remains central. Research papers, such as those in Science Direct on ISRO's culture, credit him with fostering an innovative, people-centric environment. In a world chasing Mars and the Moon, Chitnis and his mentor Dr Sarabhai, reminded us that space technology's greatest triumph is improving life on Earth.

As we bid farewell to this centenarian pioneer, let us remember him not just for rockets and satellites, but for the light he brought to countless villages.

Prof. E.V. Chitnis's life was a testament to the power of science with a soul. India owes him an eternal debt.

Rest in Peace Dr Chitnis, you and your contributions will ever remain etched in the annals of Indian space programs.

 Images Courtesy : NCSC, Dr PV Venkitakrishnan, Dr Shekhar Mande,  and Indian Express

Birth Centenary Tribute to Ebrahim Alkazi : The Architect of Modern Indian Theatre

This year, 18 October 2025, marks the centenary of Ebrahim Alkazi—the legendary theatre director, art connoisseur, educator, and institution-builder whose influence on Indian theatre, pedagogy, and aesthetics remains unparalleled. Though a century has passed since his birth, Alkazi’s legacy feels immediate and alive, continuing to shape the sensibility of Indian theatre and its allied arts, more so with his legacy perpetuated through Alkazi Foundation for Arts.

When I look back today, I feel a deep sense of privilege and gratitude to have hosted his monumental retrospective, The Theatre of Ebrahim Alkazi: A Modernist Approach to Indian Theatre, at the National Gallery of Modern Art, Mumbai in 2016. Although Lalit Kala had organised an exhibition earlier on Alkazi, but due to the paucity of space to present the life and times of Alkazi, full justice could not be done in the exhibition at Delhi and in that sense the exhibition at NGMA Mumbai was truly remarkable and one of the most meaningful curatorial experiences for Amal Allana daughter of Alkazi, who curated this exhibition during my tenure as Director of NGMA Mumbai. The exhibition served as a befitting homage paid to the living legend, a towering figure whose work defined an era of modern Indian theatre. Unfortunately, although it was planned that Alkazi would be personally present at the valedictory of the exhibition, unfortunately due to his ailing health the nonagenarian could not make it to the exhibition.

On his passing in August 2020, I had paid my tribute on my blog whose link is appended at the end of this write up. 

A Visionary Born of Many Worlds

Ebrahim Alkazi was born on 18 October 1925 in Pune, to a Saudi Arabian father and a Kuwaiti mother. Among nine siblings, young Alkazi grew up in a multilingual household, speaking Arabic, Marathi, Gujarati, and English with ease. His early schooling at St. Vincent’s High School in Pune and later studies at St. Xavier’s College, Bombay, exposed him to the vibrancy of India’s emerging cosmopolitan arts scene.

It was in Bombay that his lifelong engagement with theatre began—first as a member of Sultan “Bobby” Padamsee’s Theatre Group, which would become the crucible of India’s modern English theatre movement. Later, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London, graduating in 1947—the very year of India’s independence. During his RADA years, he directed over fifty plays and won the BBC Broadcasting Award (1950).

Although offered lucrative and prestigious opportunities in the United Kingdom, Alkazi chose to return to India. In that singular act of choice—of return and commitment—he announced his larger vision: to build, not borrow; to create an Indian modernism grounded in its own soil.

The Bombay Years and the Curator’s Eye

On his return, Alkazi immersed himself in Bombay’s artistic ferment of the 1950s. With Roshen Alkazi and their circle of collaborators, he co-founded the Theatre Unit, which became the crucible for English-language theatre in the city. Alongside his theatre productions, he edited Theatre Unit Bulletin and curated the remarkable 13-part lecture series This Is Modern Art, bridging theatre with visual culture.

These activities prefigured what later became a defining feature of his vision: the confluence of theatre, art, and design. He maintained close associations with members of the Bombay Progressive Artists’ Group—Husain, Raza, Souza, and Padamsee—inviting them to collaborate on stage sets, posters, and scenography. This early fusion of art and theatre was not incidental; for Alkazi, stagecraft, lighting, costume, and space were as integral to performance as the actor or the text.

At the National School of Drama: Institution and Discipline

In 1962, Alkazi took charge as Director of the National School of Drama (NSD) in Delhi—a post he held with distinction for fifteen years until 1977. His tenure remains the most transformative period in the institution’s history, often referred to as the “golden age of NSD.”

He revolutionised training by introducing a rigorous, holistic curriculum that combined classical Indian traditions with modern international theatre practices. Under his guidance, students were trained not only in acting but also in design, lighting, movement, direction, and dramaturgy.

Alkazi also founded the NSD Repertory Company (1964) to ensure that training found immediate expression in professional performance. His legendary productions—Girish Karnad’s Tughlaq, Mohan Rakesh’s Ashadh Ka Ek Din, and Dharamvir Bharati’s Andha Yug—set new aesthetic benchmarks. His Andha Yug, performed in the Purana Qila in Delhi, remains etched in memory as a site-specific masterpiece that turned history into a living stage.

Alkazi’s exacting standards were both feared and revered. He was known to arrive at dawn rehearsals, demanding from students a near-spiritual devotion to craft. For him, theatre was not a pastime—it was discipline, ethics, and vocation. His protégés—Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Uttara Baokar, Rohini Hattangadi, Pankaj Kapoor, and many others—carry forward that ethos even today, a testament to his enduring influence. Incidentally, many of his students made it to the opening of his retrospective at NGMA Mumbai. 

Archives and the Alkazi Foundation

After stepping down from NSD, Alkazi turned increasingly toward the archival and curatorial domains. He founded Art Heritage Gallery in Delhi in 1977, a space that championed both modern and experimental Indian art. His passion for preservation and scholarship culminated in the Alkazi Foundation for the Arts (AFA), which today include invaluable archives comprising more than 100,000 historical photographs from the 19th and 20th centuries; and also a repository documenting Alkazi’s own productions as well as the broader evolution of Indian stagecraft.

Incidentally, during my tenure as the Director of NGMA Bangalore, I witnessed first hand a glimpse of the collection of some of these rare photographs from the collections of AFA during an exhibition (2013), the ‘DAWN UPON DELHI - The Rise of Capital'  which was organised by the Alkazi Foundation for the Arts in collaboration with NGMA Delhi. This exhibition showcased a collection of late 19th and mid 20th century engravings, maps, plans, vintage and most importantly archival photographs (from the collection of AFA), the Archaeological Survey of India, the Central Public Works Department archives and the archives of D.N. Chaudhuri and Habib Rahman. This exhibition left a lasting impression on me. Today as we celebrate the birth centenary of Ebrahim Alkazi, coincidentally, CSMVS, where I am currently serving as a Senior Advisor, is hosting an exhibition titled "Disobedient Subjects: Bombay 1930–1931" which showcases the Civil Disobedience Movement in Mumbai, more particularly by women. This exhibition organised at CSMVS in collaboration with Alkazi Foundation for the Arts, features rare photographs from the K.L. Nursey album and explores how the camera was used as a tool of resistance during India's freedom struggle and how women in large numbers took part in Mumbai in civil disobedience and freedom struggle. The exhibition also features some of the historical photographs from the collections of Mani Bhavan with which I am associated.

The AFA has ensured that the visual and performative histories of India have not lost to time, like most of our ancient history. Alkazi’s concept of the living archive—one that provokes inquiry rather than merely stores information—continues to inspire curators, archivists, and historians alike and has motivated several other institutions to develop their own archives like the CSMVS which has its own archives.

The 2016 Retrospective at NGMA Mumbai

The exhibition “Theatre of Ebrahim Alkazi: A Modernist Approach to Indian Theatre” a retrospective exhibition of Alkazi, organised at NGMA Mumbai in 2016, when I headed this installation, has helped the legacy of Alkazi to be captured in vivid memories of people. This retrospective exhibition, curated by his daughter Amal Allana and her husband Nissar Allana, unfolded across the NGMA’s magnificent grand semicircular galleries, one leading to the other, transforming them into an architectural journey through a life devoted to theatre, art and crafts. Inaugurated on 9 September 2016 by H.E. Saud Al-Sati, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to India, the opening of the exhibition was graced by Alyque Padamsee, Vijaya Mehta, Amal and Nissar Allana, and several of Alkazi’s distinguished students and admirers and art connoisseurs of Mumbai. Sharing the stage with these luminaries, during the opening of this exhibition will ever remain etched in my memory 

The exhibition traced Alkazi’s journey—from his early years in Pune and Bombay to his NSD tenure and later archival pursuits. The gallery walls carried mock-ups of theatre posters, scale models of sets, and rare photographs from productions such as Tughlaq and Andha Yug. A striking installation titled The Alkazi Times presented a 60-foot timeline of his life interspersed with historical headlines, political events, and theatre milestones. Every exhibit spoke of discipline, innovation, and vision. For visitors and practitioners of arts alike, the show became a bridge between the past and the present, reminding us how one man’s singular dedication reshaped Indian theatre.

This exhibition was meant to culminate on his 91st birthday, 18 October 2016—a symbolic celebration of his lifelong engagement with the stage. Unfortunately, owing to health restrictions, Alkazi could not travel to attend the valedictory of the exhibition. Yet, his presence was deeply felt in every corner of the NGMA’s galleries that day.

The Legacy of a Theatre Sage

Ebrahim Alkazi redefined what theatre could mean in India. Before him, the stage was often treated as ephemeral—a transient form without permanence. He gave it gravitas, structure, and academic legitimacy.

He combined the modernist precision of RADA with India’s classical and folk energies, building bridges between natya, ritual, and modern dramaturgy. He introduced new ethics to rehearsal, emphasized the architectural design of performance spaces, and placed lighting and scenography at the heart of theatrical creation.

Under his influence, theatre ceased to be an isolated art; it became an ecosystem involving painters, writers, architects, and photographers. His legacy thus straddles not only performance but also education, curation, and institution-building.

His trilogy of Padma awards—Padma Shri (1966), Padma Bhushan (1991), and Padma Vibhushan (2010)—recognizes a lifetime devoted to cultural nation-building. Yet, beyond awards, his truest legacy lies in the generations of artists he trained and the institutional ethos he instilled: integrity, humility, and creative rigor.

A century after his birth, Alkazi’s ideas remain strikingly relevant. At a time when performance is often reduced to spectacle, his belief in process and disciplinestands as a corrective. When arts institutions struggle for continuity, his example reminds us of the necessity of pedagogic vision and institutional stewardship. In an age of digital immediacy, Alkazi’s insistence on rigorous preparation and respect for every aspect of stagecraft feels almost revolutionary. His theatre was not about instant applause; it was about building a culture of excellence, a collective standard that transcended the individual performer.

Alkazi was a man of Arab descent who chose to stay in India, contributing to the shaping of its modern cultural identity. As we commemorate Ebrahim Alkazi’s centenary today, we remember the eternal dramatist, mentor, and visionary of Indian theatre. Long live his legacy.