Sara Shagufta (31 October 1954 – 4 June 1984) was a Pakistani poet who wrote poetry in

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

language. She committed suicide by throwing herself before a passing train in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...

Life

Sara was born on 31 October, 1954 in

Gujranwala Gujranwala ( ur, , label=none; ) is a city and capital of Gujranwala Division located in Pakistan. It is also known as "City of Wrestlers" and is quite famous for its food. It is the 5th most populous city proper after Karachi, Lahore, Faisala ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

in a lower-class family. Her family had migrated to

from

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

during the

partition of India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...

in 1960s. Her father had remarried, so her mother was responsible for her and her siblings’ upbringing. Her mother supported the family through home-based work such as making flower garlands. Sara’s letters give an insight on the difficulties she and her family faced growing up in a household with an absent father. They faced economic hardship, which escalated as far as the family going hungry. Belonging to a poor and uneducated family, she wanted to rise socially but could not pass her

matriculation Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now ...

. She was forcibly married at the age of 17 and had a child with her husband, that died as a newborn. The blame for the baby's death was directed towards Sara, which led to her divorce from her husband. This was followed by three other unsuccessful marriages. An abusive relationship with her father, emotionally and sexually abused in her childhood, divorced by four men, shunned by her children and outcast by society, Sara Shagufta led a life littered with suffering. She developed mental illnesses as a result of the challenges she faced. She was admitted to a mental hospital due to her illness. After a non-fatal suicide attempt, she committed suicide at an early age of 29 on 4 June 1984, around 11 PM, by throwing herself before a train passing from

Drigh Colony Drigh Colony ( ur, ڈرگ کالونی ) is a neighbourhood in the Korangi District in eastern Karachi, Pakistan. It is part of Shah Faisal Subdivision. Demographics There are several ethnic groups in Shah Faisal Town including Muhajirs, S ...

railway crossing in Karachi.

Works

Her collections of poetry was published posthumously as ''Aankhein'' and ''Neend Ka Rang'' by Saeed Ahmed, a person she was in love with. Asad Alvi translated her poetry into English and published as ''The Colour of Sleep and Other Poems'' (2016). English translations of her poems 'Woman and Salt', 'To Daughter, Sheely' and 'The Moon is Quite Alone' appear in ''We Sinful Women'' by

Rukhsana Ahmad Rukhsana Ahmad (born 1948) is a Pakistani writer of novels, short stories, poetry, plays, and a translator, who after marriage migrated to England for further studies and pursue a career in writing. She has campaigned for Asian writers, particula ...

.Ahmad, R. (1991). We sinful women: Contemporary Urdu feminist poetry. London: The Women's Press.

Legacy

Indian author

Amrita Pritam Amrita Pritam (; 31 August 1919 – 31 October 2005) was an Indian novelist, essayist and poet, who wrote in Punjabi and Hindi. A prominent figure in Punjabi literature, she is the recipient of the 1956 Sahitya Akademi Award. Her body of wo ...

, also a close friend of Sara, wrote two books based on the life and works of Sara; ''Ek Thi Sara'' (There was a Sara) (1990) and ''Life and Poetry of Sara Shagufta'' (1994). ''Main Sara'' (Me, Sara), a play written by Shahid Anwar, is based on the life of Sara. ''Sara Ka Sara Aasman'', another play written by Danish Iqbal and directed by Tarique Hameed, is also based on the life of Sara. Based on Amrita Pritam's books on Sara, the play was presented by Wings Cultural Society at

All India Radio All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All a ...

's Urdu Theatre Festival in 2015.

References

1954 births 1984 deaths Punjabi people Urdu-language poets from Pakistan Pakistani women writers Suicides in Pakistan Suicides by train 1984 suicides {{Pakistan-writer-stub

Life

Works

Legacy

Further reading

See also

References