Ms. Mahnoor Yar Khan gave a talk on An Indian in Palestine: A Personal Story on 7 March at KRB Auditorium. The event was organized by the Cultural Wing of Student Life Committee. Prior to her talk there was an exhibition of artwork by children of Gaza from 2014 compiled by Ms. Mahnoor. 

Ms. Mahnoor Yar Khan, has had quite a multifaceted career spanning forty years and many countries. She has worked in film, in drama, as an activist and social worker, researcher and writer. Her main area of interest is working with people in areas of conflict. As a drama therapist and psychosocial consultant, she has spent over twenty years in the Palestinian territories. She was based in Gaza. She worked for short periods of time in Lebanon, Cambodia and Sri Lanka.

She has worked on a number of films both abroad and in India. Her most recent being on the rocks of Hyderabad  – Other Kohinoor’s the Rocks of Hyderabad, as co-producer with Uma Magal. The film was released in 2022 and has won a number of awards.

In 2016 she single handedly curated a multimedia and arts program titled GAZA51 which traveled to five cities in India and was held at universities, colleges, schools and various creative spaces. Art, poetry, storytelling, theatre performances, choreographed dances, panel discussions and film were part of the program.

In 1999 she brought out a Manual  – I am the sea, who are you, which was the outcome of five years of drama therapy research with adolescents in the Palestinian territories. Dr. Sue Emmy Jennings published her 1994 work  – The Drama has Just Begun in her book Dramatherapy – Theory & Practice, Part 3.

In 1990 she along with a group of activists founded Timbaktu collective in Anantapur district. The not-for-profit organization now works with over 156 villages in this drought affected region.

March 2025