hen I schedule an evening at the local theatre, I often picture an entertaining night out spent relaxing and watching a story unfold, as it sweeps me away from reality for a few hours. As a writer, I realise the impact visual content has on audiences. However, what many people do not realise is that theatre is more than entertainment. It is a unique, immersive learning experience for audiences of all ages.

Today, an increasing number of institutes and individuals have realised how important theatre is to children’s development. The number of schools catering to children’s theatre and performing arts across Pakistan is increasing. Atif Badar has shown through his patronage that theatre for young audiences is worthy of respect. Taking your children to see his show is certainly an exciting, memorable experience.

Atif Badar needs no introduction. With a vast and diverse experience across street, mobile and stage theatre, TV productions and feature films, he has done it all. Although has not formally studied theatre, this has not been an obstacle to the heights he has achieved. Despite being offered a senior managerial position in Singapore, he stayed in Pakistan for his unending love for everything theatre. He was associated with Sheema Kirmani and Khalid Ahmed’s Tehrik-i-Niswan, as he participated in residential workshops. He was praised by delegates from France, Germany, India, Bangladesh, the UK and the USA.

Theatre remained his continued learning process as he fine-tuned himself as an actor in various plays and workshops. Soon, he was spotted by Sania Saeed and her husband, Shahid Shafat, leading the theatre group, Katha, where he thoroughly enjoyed his work. He has the honour of working with established actors like Nadia Jamil and Ayesha Saqib. His work alongside Dr Jamil Ahmed and Prasanna Rama Swamy’s directorials has been commendable. Hailed as an opera actor by a German director in one such workshop, Badar was praised as he oscillated between Sheema’s Tehrik-i-Niswan and Sania’s Katha. His breakthrough came when he was featured in the critically acclaimed Ramchand Pakistani, Mehreen Jabbar’s directorial. Continuing in the same circuit, he realised that it was time to teach what he had learnt.

Atif Badar’s energy and talent are contagious. He teaches children how to think creatively through imagination. These skills are critical in the world of business leaders, where the ability to create solutions to problems is a necessary and valued asset that goes on to become the heart and soul of any organisation.

This yearning to disseminate knowledge of theatre and performing arts took him to the world of academia - The AMI School, where he is still engaged as a theatre and performing arts teacher. But he didn’t stop there and has also taught at several schools, including Meritorious, Indus Valley School, Habib Girls School and College, and PECHS Girls’ School. His freelance workshops and storytelling sessions are a delight for children. Needless to say, his work never goes unnoticed.

Rumana Husain, a children’s author, who holds Children’s Literature Festival (CLF) and Pakistan’s Learning Festival (PLF) sessions along with Ameena Saiyid and Baela Raza Jamil, got him to help children as well as teachers. Atif Badar played an integral part in dramatics, storytelling, performing arts, trotting across Pakistan – from Skardu, Gilgit, Multan, Abbotabad, Bahawalpur and Balochistan to Lahore - engaging them for heartwarming child-friendly sessions, to educate them in an unconventional way. However, the best is yet to come.

He also conducted several workshops and storytelling sessions for children for Oxford University Press, Pakistan (OUPP). His continued relationship with CLF and the PLF, and OUPP brought him in contact with Asghar Mirza who hired him as an acting coach for actors like Junaid Khan and Sonia Michelle among others.

Atif Badar’s energy and talent are contagious. He teaches children how to think creatively through imagination. These skills are critical in the world of business leaders, where the ability to create solutions to problems is a necessary and valued asset that goes on to become the heart and soul of any organisation. Badar’s unique skills are one of his most important assets.

Through creative movement classes, energetic dialogue delivery and improvisations, peppered with music, singing and dance, he immerses the audiences in his stories about characters from every background imaginable, to children from every background imaginable - from urban elite to rural street schools of Balochistan.

His impromptu, live sessions teach children how to face a crowd and be confident in any situation. This gives children a chance to learn in an exciting way without having to ‘teach’ them. It makes the classes enjoyable, so much so that some children repeatedly enroll for these sessions. This enables them to step into someone else’s shoes and see life from their point of view, learning lessons of empathy and cultural relativity and enriching learning and communication while having fun.

Atif’s methods are one-of-a-kind. He outshines many and is now giving back to the society. He is loved and respected by adults and children alike. Come winter vacation, do look out for his theatre sessions for an amazing artistic experience.

The writer is a freelance journalist