KARACHI: December 26 marks the death anniversaries of two great poets, Munir Niazi and Parveen Shakir who left an everlasting impact on modern Urdu literature.
Born in Karachi, Shakir completed her Masters in English and became an acclaimed poet with her first published collection “Khushbu” in 1976. Following “Khushbu“, she further wrote volumes “Sadburg” and “Khudkalami”.
After her last published work, “Inkaar” in 1990, a collection “Kaf-i-Aina” was published posthumously in 1996. All of her collections can be viewed in the volume called “Maah-i-Tamam“.
Popular for her outspoken feminist sentiments in poetry, Shakir received the country’s highest honour — the “Pride of Performance” award for her significant contribution to Urdu literature.
She also served as a teacher and a career civil servant.
Belonging to the generation before Shakir, Munir Niazi was born in 1928 in India and following the independence of Pakistan migrated to Sahiwal with his family.
Known for his melodious ghazals and harmonious poems, Niazi also penned songs for famous films like Us Bewafa Ka Sheher Hai for Shaheed (1962) and Zinda Rahe To for Kharidar (1976).
Unlike Shakir who wrote in Urdu, Niazi also had command over Punjabi and published three of his works in Punjabi namely “Safar Di Raat”, “Char Chup Cheezan” and “Rasta Dasan Walay Teray.”
Some of his Urdu collections include “Taiz Hawa aur Tanha Phool”, “Jungle Main Dhanak” and “Mah-i-Munir”.
While it has been 28 years since Shakir’s sad demise in a car accident in Lahore in 1994, Niazi passed away in 2006 after suffering from a respiratory disease.
