Leesa Gazi (Bengali: লিসা গাজী; born 14 August 1969)[1] is a Bangladeshi-born British writer, playwright, theatre director and actress based in London.
Leesa Gazi | |
|---|---|
লিসা গাজী | |
| Born | 14 August 1969 East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, playwright, theatre director, actress, television presenter |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Title | Co-founder of Komola Collective |
| Children | 2 |
Background
editGazi's father fought during the Bangladesh Liberation War.[1]
Career
editGazi is the co-founder of theatre and arts company, Komola Collective.[2] She was the script-writer and performer of Six Seasons and Tahmima Anam's A Golden Age at the Southbank Centre. Her theatrical credits include:[3] Birangona: Women of War,[4] Sonata, Rokey's Dream, Demon's Revenge, Ponderful People, and Bonbibi. She also wrote the script for Bonbibi: Lady of the Forest in 2012.[3] She performed in People's Romeo,[5] which had an eight-week nationwide tour with Tara Arts.[3] Sonata, adapted and performed by Gazi, was invited to Bangladesh in 2010 by the British Council.[6] She performed in a serialised adaptation of A Golden Age. She worked as the cultural coordinator and as a voice artist for Akram Khan's Desh.[3]
In 2012, she worked as a script interpreter Globe to Globe Festival at the Globe Theatre on The Tempest. She acted on a play about domestic violence called Whisper Me Happy Ever After. She works for Train4change as an actor as well, and worked on a project with them on a film for the charity WaterAid. Between May and August 2014, she worked as an actor in a series of BBC Educational Films.[3]
Gazi hosts Aei Jonopode, a weekly live-phone-in show on Bangla TV. In 2010, her first novel Rourob was published.[3]
Gazi was awarded the Grants for the Arts by the ACE for the Birangona: Women of War theatre project by Komola Collective. She is the concept developer, co-writer and the performer of this theatre production.[3][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]
In May 2014, Gazi was interviewed by Nadia Ali on BBC Asian Network.[15]
Personal life
editGazi and her husband, have two children; one born 2004 (named Sreya), the other 2006 (named Orion).
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Life Goes On | ||
| 2019 | Rising Silence | Director | Gazi's directorial debut |
| 2023 | A House Named Shahana | Writer/Director |
Stage
edit| Year | Title | Credit | Theatre |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–2010 | Sonata | Tara Arts | |
| 2010 | Rokeya's Dream | ||
| Ponderful People | Face Front | ||
| 2010 | Bonbibi | Culturepot Global | |
| 2012 | Bonbibi: Lady of the Forest | ||
| 2015 | Birangona: Women of War | Tara Arts |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Bhuchar, Suman (9 May 2014). "Actor Leesa Gazi on Birangona: Women of War, stories of female survivors". Theatre Voice. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ "Arts & Culture". British Bangladeshi Power & Inspiration. January 2015. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Leesa Gazi". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Dey, Saurav (19 December 2014). "Komola Collective stages Birangona: Women of War". The Daily Star. Bangladesh. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
- ^ Vale, Paul (13 September 2010). "People's Romeo". The Stage. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
- ^ "A "Sonata" for Dhaka". The Daily Star. Bangladesh. 4 January 2010. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
- ^ Dey, Saurav (28 August 2013). "Bringing Forth Unsung Tales of Birangonas". The Daily Star. Bangladesh. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Nadiya, Shabnam (13 September 2013). "Birangona". Bdnews24.com. Bangladesh. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Sinha, Kounteya (25 March 2014). "Play in UK tells of Bengali women raped by Pakistani army during 1971 war". The Times of India. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Gazi, Leesa (31 March 2014). "Birangona: Will the World Listen?". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Anam, Tahmina (15 April 2014). "Bangladesh's Birangona women: 'Tell the world our story'". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Dey, Saurav (30 April 2014). "Bringing Forth Unsung Tales of Birangonas". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ "Komola Collective stages a series of shows of Birangona". New Age. Bangladesh. 20 December 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ Chatak, Hasan Mansoor (21 December 2014). "Komla Collective pays tribute to Birangonas". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ "Leesa Gazi talks to the writer behind the latest Brit Bangla play – Birangona". BBC Asian Network. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2014.