Father Stanley Kozhichira, a Catholic priest who has been into theater productions in India, has been elected president of SIGNIS Asia.
SIGNIS is a global Catholic lay ecclesial movement for professionals in the communication media, including press, radio, television, cinema, video, media education, internet, and new technology.
“My personal thoughts are for working together as a team to build a strong Catholic communication network in the Asian region and to make SIGNIS a brand among the youngsters,” said the 50-year-old priest of the Archdiocese of Delhi after his election on July 14.
He said that as a professional street theater person, he would like to bring into the organization a collective decision-making concept.
Father Kozhichira, who is currently president of SIGNIS India, succeeded Father Joseph Anucha Chadeja of Thailand.
He has been in theater for more than 30 years and has written and directed over 110 plays and street plays. An expert in street theater, he has conducted workshops in street theater for 22 years.
He has also produced documentaries and telefilms for Doordarshan, India’s national television network, and other production houses as director, assistant director, senior producer and script writer.
Father Kozhichira won in 2012 the prestigious Limca World Record for “Ars ke Krantikari,” a cine-drama based on the life of Saint John Mary Vianney.
Father Kozhichira was born on June 25, 1972. He was ordained a priest on May 18, 2001. He holds doctorates in Mass Communications and Pastoral Communications and a masters degree in sociology.
He edits the “Voice of Delhi,” the archdiocesan news magazine, and Buland Prajatantr (Strong democracy), a bimonthly Hindi Tabloid of the Catholic bishops in Hindi-speaking region.
