Lenin El Ramly Egypt

Lenin El Ramly (Egypt, 1945) Lenin El Ramly is a comic dramatist who daringly questions social convention, hypocrisy and bigotry. His work includes popular television dramas and series, and he has written 40 plays, using techniques ranging from farce, parody and grotesque to satire and the absurd. Combining intellectual depth with entertainment, his play bi-l’-Arabi al-fasih (In Plain Arabic) is ‘remarkable for its biting satire’ and ‘an honest, though painful portrait of modern Arab society’. Among his 12 film scripts is Hello America (1998), dealing with Egypt’s relationship with the USA and Islamic terrorism. His works are performed throughout the Arab world and translated into other languages. He also publishes and has founded two drama troupes, educating and directing gifted amateurs. He guards his independence, does experimental work such as his most recent play entitled Take Off Your Masks, and adapts classical texts as in Peace of Women based on Aristophanes’ anti-war comedy, Lysistrata. El Ramly’s writings appeal to reason, while conveying sympathy for human weakness, and have wide social appeal and impact. This Award is presented to Lenin El Ramly in recognition of his constructive use of humour to provoke public analysis of social and cultural issues.

2005 Awards Book here.