Salma Laghari, better known as Amar Sindhu ( ur, امر سندھو, sd, امر سنڌو) (born 28 August 1968) is a Pakistani
author
An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states:
"''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
,
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...
academic
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...
.
Early life and education
Sindhu's real name is Salma Laghari. She was born to Hussain Bukhsh Laghari on 28 August 1968 in village Dodo Laghari,
Mirpur Khas District
Mirpur Khas District ( sd, ضلعو ميرپورخاص, ur, ) is one of the districts in the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Its capital is Mirpur Khas.
Administrative divisions
The district of Mirpur Khas is sub-divided into 7 tehsils:
* Digri ...
, Sindh, Pakistan. She holds two master's degrees and an LLB degree.
Sindh University
The University of Sindh ( ur, ; sd, سنڌ يونيورسٽي; informally known as Sindh University) is a public research university in Pakistan located in the city of Jamshoro. It is one of the oldest universities in Pakistan and was certifi ...
Jamshoro
Jamshoro ( sd, ڄام شورو, ur, ) is a city and the capital of Jamshoro District, located in Sindh, Pakistan. It is located on the right bank of the Indus River, approximately northwest of Hyderabad and northeast from the provincial cap ...
. She is also a
Sindhi-language
Sindhi ( ; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by about 30 million people in the Pakistani province of Sindh, where it has official status. It is also spoken by a further 1.7 million people in India, where it is a scheduled language, withou ...
poet.
Activism
As a human rights and civil society activist Sindhu has been involved in a number of issues including the rights of minorities, women, violence, She has also been a part of fact finding teams. As a socialist feminist and women rights activist, she is active, founding and leading member of
Women's Action Forum
Women's Action Forum (WAF) is a women's rights organization in Pakistan.
History
Women's Action Forum (WAF) was established in Karachi in September, 1981 In 2012, she suffered minor injuries when she was shot while traveling to Karachi, Sindhu led the "
Aurat Azadi March
The Aurat Azadi March ( ur, , lit=Women's Emancipation March) was started in 2018 in Pakistan by members of Women Democratic Front (socialist-feminist organization), other organizations like Women's Action Forum (Women's rights organization), Elimi ...
" (Women's Freedom March) in
Sukkur
Sukkur (; ) is a city in the Pakistani province of Sindh along the western bank of the Indus River, directly across from the historic city of Rohri. Sukkur is the third largest city in Sindh after Karachi and Hyderabad, and 14th largest city ...
on March 8, 2020 held on Women's Day 2020. Sindhu along with
Arfana Mallah
Arfana Mallah ( ur, عرفانہ ملاح) is a Pakistani Human rights activist, leader of the Women's Action Forum and a professor of Chemistry at the University of Sindh, Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan.
Education
Arfana BegumMallah received a maste ...
started chapter of Women's Action Forum in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
in 2008. Sindhu was inspired by Sabeen Mahmud's T2F in Karachi, and she along with Haseen Shah and Arfana Malah started the "Khanabadosh Writers Cafe" at the
Sindh Museum
The Sindh Museum ( ur, سندھ میوزیم ) is a museum located in Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan. The museum was established in 1971 to collect, preserve, study, and exhibit the records of the cultural history of Sindh. It also sometimes hosts cu ...
to offer a space where intellectuals and creative people from Hyderabad and other areas of Sindh can engage in intellectual discussions. In 2015, she organised the "Ayaz Festival" to celebrate the life of the Sindhi poet
Shaikh Ayaz
Shaikh Ayaz SI ( ur, , ) born Mubarak Ali Shaikh ( ur, , ) (March 1923 – 28 December 1997) was Sindhi language poet, prose writer and former Vice Chancellor of University of Sindh. He is counted as one of the prominent and great Sindhi po ...
(1923–1997). Those who paid homage included veteran politician
Rasool Bux Palijo
Rasul Bux Palejo (also spelled Rasool Bux Palijo) (, ur, ; 21 February 1930 – 7 June 2018) was a Pakistani leftist, Marxist leader from Sindh, scholar and writer. He was a human-rights lawyer and the leader and founder of Awami Tahre ...
and writer,
Noorul Huda Shah
Noorul Huda Shah (born in Hyderabad, Sindh on 22 July 1951) is a Pakistani dramatist, short story writer, poet and columnist. She was also the Information Minister during the caretaker government in Sindh. Shah writes in both Sindhi and U ...
. In 2015, the Cafe also hosted a tribute to Hassan Mujtaba, a poet and journalist.
Articles and publications
Sindhu is a writer and political analyst. She has written as a columnist in
Dawn News
Dawn News is one of Pakistan's 24-hour Urdu news channel. Based in Karachi, the station is a subsidiary of Pakistan Herald Publications Limited (PHPL), Pakistan's largest English-language media group.
The test transmission of the station occ ...
and Humsub. She has written many articles in English, Urdu and Sindhi. Her work has been translated into the German language.
She also published a magazine named ''Adrish'' on social, political and cultural issues.
Sindhu is the author of a bilingual book of poetry book ''Ojagiyal Akhyun Ja Sapna'', and "Jaagti Ankho Kay Sapnay". Sindhu has written many articles about the poetry of
Shaikh Ayaz
Shaikh Ayaz SI ( ur, , ) born Mubarak Ali Shaikh ( ur, , ) (March 1923 – 28 December 1997) was Sindhi language poet, prose writer and former Vice Chancellor of University of Sindh. He is counted as one of the prominent and great Sindhi po ...