Nora’s Journey to Pakistan: Tehrik-e-Niswan’s Gurrya Ka Ghar and the Challenges of Adapting A Doll’s House in Pakistani Context

Abstract

The scarce number of research of Ibsen in Pakistan, despite the popularity of his works in South Asia region, is due to the fact that there have been merely a small number of productions created and performed in the country. Even one of the most prominent feminist plays frequently used to promote gender equality in various Muslim countries, A Doll’s House, has only been adapted several times in Pakistan. I argue that there are four categories of contextual elements that delayed the entry of the play to the Pakistani stage and obstructed it from being performed widely and frequently: political, economic, religious and social factors. With the combination of the in-dept analysis on the Pakistani context and the study of Tehrik-e-Niswan’s Gurrya Ka Ghar, it can be concluded that whereas political and economic factors caused the absence of the play during the early post-Partition of India to the late 1980’s, religious and social factors were the greatest hindrance to the spread of the play from the time it was first performed in 1992 to 2019. This Master’s thesis is a step forward to filling the gap of research regarding Ibsen in Pakistan and the global reception of Ibsen’s plays; at the same time, this study sheds light on the development of the Pakistani theatrical tradition, which has significance beyond a study of the reception of one particular playwright’s works.