Urdu Poets (Fehmida Riaz)

Fahmida Riaz (Urdu: فہمیدہ ریاض) is a well known Urdu writer, poet, and feminist of Pakistan. She is author of Godaavari, Khatt-e Marmuz' and 'Khana e Aab O Gil - the first translation of the Masnavi of Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi into Urdu.

Fahmida Riaz was born on July 28, 1946 in a literary family of Meerut, UP, India. Her father, Riaz-ud-Din Ahmed, was an educationist, who had a great influence in mapping and establishing modern education system for Sindh. Her family settled in Hyderabad following her father's transfer to Sindh. Fahmida learnt Urdu, and Sindhi language literature in childhood and later Persian.

Her early life was marked by the loss of her father when she was just 4 years old. She was already making poetry at this young age. Her mother (Husna Begum) supported the family unit through entrepreneurial efforts until Fahmida entered college, when she started work as a newscaster for Radio Pakistan. Fahmida's first poetry collection was written at this time. She was persuaded by family to enter into an arranged marriage after graduation from college, and spent a few years in the UK with her first husband before returning to Pakistan after a divorce.

During this time she worked with the BBC Urdu service (Radio) and got a degree in film making. She has one daughter from her first marriage. She worked in an advertising agency in Karachi before starting her own Urdu publication "Awaz". She met and married Zafar Ali Ujan, a leftist political worker and had two children with him. The liberal and politically charged content of Awaz drew the attention of the Zia regime and both Fahmida and Zafar were charged with multiple cases, the magazine shut down and Zafar thrown in jail. Fahmida was bailed by a fan of her works before she could be taken to jail and fled to India with her two small children and her sister on the excuse of a Mushaira invitation. She has relatives in India. Her husband later joined her there after his release from jail.

The family spent almost seven years in exile before returning to Pakistan on the eve of Benazir Bhutto's wedding reception. During this time Fahmida had been poet in residence for a university in Dehli. She was appointed MD of the National Book Foundation in Benazir's first tenure and later persecuted by the first Nawaz Sharif govt., labelled an Indian agent and made virtually unemployable because of threats from the govt.. She worked three simultaneous jobs to support the needs of her growing children at this time. In the second tenure of Benazir's govt. she was given a post at the Quaed e Azam Academy. When Benazir's govt. toppled a second time, Fahmida was again persona non grata for Islamabad.

Fahmida lost her son Kabeer in October 2007. He drowned while swimming with friends on a picnic.

This was soon after Fahmida had translated fifty of Rumi's poems dedicated to Shams Tabriz.

Her first poem was published in Funoon of Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi, when she was merely 15. Her first collection of poetry appeared just after two months of marriage at the age of 22.

• Pathar ki Zaban
• Khatt-e Marmuz
• Godavari
• Kya tum poora chand na dekho ge
• Karachi
• Gulabi kabootar
• Badan darida
• Dhoop
• Aadmi ki zindagi
• Khule dareeche se
• Halqa meri zanjeer ka
• Adhoora aadmi
• Pakiustan, literature and society
• Qafle parindon ke
• Ye Khana e Aab O Gil