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NATURE’S CANVAS
ONCE CALLED `MEM DA PIND’ AFTER AN IRISH ACTRESS WHO RELOCATED
HERE, ANDRETTA IN HIMACHAL PRADESH TODAY IS A MAJOR DRAW FOR
ARTISTS AND NATURE LOVERS ALIKE. BY SYEDA FARIDA
Clockwise from above: Japanese terracotta
ware at the museum; a potter drying the clay
products; Norah Richards’ house; and pottery
panel along a street in Andretta
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It could have been like most
hamlets in HP (Himachal
Pradesh), affording views
of the Himalayas as far as
the eye can see. Except
that it is not. What makes
Andretta stand out is not
only its foreign-sounding name but also
its rich legacy. Till not so long ago, this
quaint village along the Dharamshala-
Palampur route in Kangra district of HP
was better known as `Mem da pind'
which translates as “village of the
English lady” after Norah Richards, an
Irish actress, who relocated here in the
1920s, after the demise of her husband,
Philips Richards, a professor at Lahore
University.
Her house – built in the local style
using mud, bamboo and slate and painted
canary yellow – continues to bask in the
winter sun at Andretta. Woodland
Estate, as her property was once called,
came to be known for the school of
drama she established. Back in the day,
doyens like Hindi film actor Prithviraj
Kapoor would grace the many theatre
festivals held here. Even today, the well
laid-out amphitheatre in the courtyard
of this great lady’s house is not to be
missed. Norah was instrumental in
Andretta’s evolution as an artists’ colony.
She invited eminent personalities such
as noted painter Sobha Singh, Professor
Jai Dayal from Lahore University,
famous painter-sculptor from Assam
B.C. Sanyal, and studio potter Sardar
Gurcharan Singh to make it their home.
Mirage, a popular heritage homestay
here, was once Professor Jai’s place of
residence.
Denis Harrap, who manages Mirage,
and left behind his work as an art
director and set designer in some of the
hippest places in London, New York and
Los Angeles 10 years ago to live in
Andretta, says, “The rat race in New York
doesn’t interest me anymore. Andretta
offers a more peaceful ambience… You
could say the grandfathers of modern
Indian culture were here. After
Independence, they needed to anchor
themselves and decided to come here.
Most of the houses were built in 1947-
48.” Perhaps it is this Zen-like quality
which drew actor Kabir Bedi, and before
him, his mother, Freda Bedi; and the
likes of Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna
Pathak Shah to Andretta.
Prithviraj used to stay at Mirage
whenever he visited Andretta, gushes
Denis. And why not? An imposing stone
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