Tomas Habib was a stage actor born in Baghdad, Iraq in 1918. In 1940, he founded a theatre group called Anwar Al-Fan (The Lights of Art) and went on to perform in many other theater groups, including Firqet Ansar Al-Tamtheel Al-Faniya (Supporters of Artistic Representation), Al-Firqa Al-Arabiya Al-Faniya (The Arab Artistic Group) and Firqit Babil Al-Faniya (The Babylon Artistic Group). In addition to theatre, Habib also worked in radio and television, through which he presented several Iraqi and foreign plays. Habib is considered one of the first to introduce a realistic folk form to theatre performances.