Hameed Akhtar (12 March 1923 – 17 October 2011), was a newspaper columnist, writer, journalist and the secretary-general of the
Progressive Writers Association
The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or ''Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind'' (( ur, ) or ''Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh'' (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगति ...
in Pakistan. He was also the father of TV actress Saba Hameed.
Early life
Hameed Akhtar finished his basic education in Ludhiana area and was a childhood friend of the now renowned poets Sahir Ludhianvi and
Ibn-e-Insha
Sher Muhammad Khan ( ur, ), ( Punjabi, ), better known by his pen name Ibn-e-Insha, ( ur, ), ( Punjabi, ) (15 June 1927 – 11 January 1978)independence of Pakistan
The Pakistan Movement ( ur, , translit=Teḥrīk-e-Pākistān) was a political movement in the first half of the 20th century that aimed for the creation of Pakistan from the Muslim-majority areas of British India. It was connected to the per ...
in 1947, he joined the daily Urdu language newspaper
Daily Imroze
''Daily Imroze'' ( ur, روزنامہ اِمروز) is an Urdu language newspaper in Pakistan published daily from Karachi.
This is one of the oldest newspapers of Pakistan that originally started publishing from Lahore in the newly independent P ...
in 1948 in Lahore and then later became its editor. In 1970, he co-founded the daily Urdu language newspaper 'Azad' with fellow journalists ''Abdullah Malik'' and
I. A. Rehman
Ibn Abdur Rehman, also known as I.A. Rehman (1 September 1930 – 12 April 2021) was a Pakistani peace and human rights advocate, and a veteran communist.
A protégé of the great Urdu poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz, he became chief editor of the ''Pakist ...
. Hameed Akhtar was a well-respected newspaper columnist and wrote columns for many newspapers in his lifetime, most recently for
Daily Express
The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...
newspaper. Writer
Intezar Hussain
Intizar Hussain ( ur, ; 21 December 1925 – 2 February 2016) was a Pakistani writer of Urdu novels, short stories, poetry and nonfiction. He is widely recognised as a leading literary figure of Pakistan. He was among the finalists of the Man Bo ...
described Hameed Akhtar as a chronicler of the
Progressive Writers Movement
The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or ''Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind'' (( ur, ) or ''Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh'' (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगति ...
who worked relentlessly for progressive causes such as achieving equality among humans, and his lifetime contributions are of great value. He also said, after Hameed Akhtar's death, that he wanted to pass on his bitter and sweet memories of the tough times he had to the next generation through his pen. Over his lifetime, to name a few, Hameed Akhtar had interacted with writers like Faiz Ahmad Faiz,
Munnu Bhai
Muneer Ahmed Qureshi (6 February 1933 – 19 January 2018), better known as Munnu Bhai, was a Pakistani newspaper journalist, columnist, poet and a writer. He was awarded the Pride of Performance Award by the President of Pakistan in 2007 for his ...
,
Hafeez Jalandhri
Abu Al-Asar Hafeez Jalandhari ( ur, ) (born 14 January 1900 – 21 December 1982) was a Pakistani Urdu-language poet who wrote the lyrics for the National Anthem of Pakistan
Patras Bokhari
Syed Ahmed Shah (Urdu: ), commonly known as Patras Bokhari (October 1, 1898–December 5, 1958), was a Pakistani humorist, writer, broadcaster and diplomat who served as a Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations.
Born in Pes ...
President of Pakistan
The president of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=s̤adr-i Pākiṣṭān), officially the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is the ceremonial head of state of Pakistan and the commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Armed Forces.Hameed Akhtar's award info on Dawn (newspaper) Published 16 August 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2019
Books and film scriptwriter
* Aashnaayian Kia Kia
* Kaal Kothri – this book was a memento of his time in jail
* Royedad-e-Anjuman
* Sukh Ka Sapna (film script written for this 1962 film)
* Paraaye Aag (film script written in 1971)
Death and legacy
He died on 17 October 2011 in Lahore, Pakistan after a long battle with cancer at age 88. Hameed Akhtar's survivors are his wife, 3 daughters and 1 son including his TV actress daughter Saba Hameed. Saba Hameed first married Syed Pervaiz Shafi. They were later separated and divorced. They had a daughter, actress
Meesha Shafi
Meesha Shafi ( ur, ) is a Pakistani-born Canadian singer, actress and model.Waseem Abbas, with whom she had a son named Ali Abbas, also an actor.
After his death, veteran Pakistani journalist and human rights activist
I. A. Rehman
Ibn Abdur Rehman, also known as I.A. Rehman (1 September 1930 – 12 April 2021) was a Pakistani peace and human rights advocate, and a veteran communist.
A protégé of the great Urdu poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz, he became chief editor of the ''Pakist ...
called him an enlightened person who was an excellent journalist, a good short story writer and a filmmaker.