Shaukat Siddiqi ( ur, شوکت صدیقی; 20 March 1923 – 18 December 2006) was a Pakistani
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...
of
fiction
Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...
Siddiqi was born on 20 March 1923 in a literary family of
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
,
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
.Novelist Shaukat Siddiqui dies The Nation (newspaper), Archived from the original on 21 October 2007, Retrieved 25 July 2018 He gained his early education in his home town and earned a B.A. in 1944 and an M.A. (Political Science) in 1944. After 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: ...
, he migrated to Pakistan in 1950 and stayed in
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...
, but soon permanently settled 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 ...
. His early days in Pakistan were full of financial trouble and political opposition, which he soon overcame. He accompanied
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto ( ur, , sd, ذوالفقار علي ڀٽو; 5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam ("the People's Leader"), was a Pakistani barrister, politician and statesman who served as the fourth ...
on several foreign tours.
He was an active member of the Pakistan Writers' Guild and a member 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 ...
'' which was then and still is a part of the larger organization, 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 ...
in the India-Pakistan subcontinent. Shaukat Siddiqui worked at the news-desks of the Karachi newspapers ''Times'', ''Pakistan Standard'', and the ''Morning News''. He finally got promoted to be the editor of the
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 ...
Urdu language
Urdu (;"Urdu" ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ur, , link=no, ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, In ...
newspapers ''Daily Anjaam'', the ''Weekly Al-Fatah'' and the ''Daily Musawat'', before finally saying goodbye to journalism in 1984.
Literary work
Siddiqi's first short story, "Kaun Kisi Ka", appeared in ''Weekly Khayyam'' in
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...
, Pakistan. In 1952, his first collection of short stories, ''Teesra Admi'', was brought out and proved to be a great success. Subsequently, other collections of short stories followed: ''Andhere Dur Andhere'' (1955), ''Raaton Ka Shehar'' (1956) and ''Keemya Gar'' (1984).
His magnum opus is '' Khuda Ki Basti (God's Village)'', which has appeared in 50 editions and has been translated into 26 languages. It has been dramatised time and again. Its English translation was by David Mathews of
London University
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree- ...
.
The novels ''Kamin Gah'' (1956), '' Jangloos'' (in three volumes, first volume dated September, 1978), and ''Char Deewari'' (1990) are fictionalized accounts of his childhood in
Lucknow
Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...
, India.
If one looks at the full text of Part 1 of the novel Jaangloos, then one sees that the last page of Part-1 of this novel "Jaangloos" has the dateline "Karachi, September, 1978" printed as the last line of this page. This is an important fact because one year after the appearance of Part-1 of Jaangloos, Amjad Islam Amjad wrote the screenplay for the Pakistan Television drama serial "Waaris" which was broadcast in 13 one hour long episodes starting in December, 1979. More importantly, the central plot and characters of Waaris are identical to the plot and characters of Jaangloos. However, Amjad Islam Amjad never acknowledged that he had adapted/copied Shaukat Siddiqui's novel Jaangloos into the drama serial Waaris.
* ''Teesra Admi'' (1952)
* ''Andhere Dur Andhere'' (1955)Writer Shaukat Siddiqui passes away Dawn (newspaper), Published 19 Dec 2006, Retrieved 25 July 2018
* ''Raaton Ka Shehar'' (1956)
* ''Kamingah'' (1956)
* '' Khuda Ki Basti'' (1957)
* ''Keemyagar'' (1984)
* '' Jangloos'' (Part 1 of this novel is dated September, 1978)
* ''Char Deewari'' (1990)
Awards and recognition
* 'Kamal-i-Fun' (Lifetime Achievement) Award in literature in 2003 by the
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...
in collaboration with the
Pakistan Academy of Letters
The Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) ( ur, ) is a national academy with its main focus on Pakistani literature and related fields. It is the largest and the most prestigious learned society of its kind in Pakistan, with activities throughout th ...
Adamjee Literary Award Adamjee Literary Award, also known as Adamjee Prize, is a literary award bestowed by the government of Pakistan. It is presented by the president. The award seeks to recognize those people who have made "meritorious contribution" to the literature ...
He died on 18 December 2006 of cardiac arrest in Karachi at the age of 83, leaving behind a wife, two sons and three daughters.
Shaukat Siddiqui was known to use the technique of socialist realism in his writings and did not leave his characters in the quagmire of apathy and inaction. But, instead, tried to suggest to them to assert themselves and change their own destiny. He portrayed the life of a section of Karachi's poor very successfully in his writings. Siddiqui's commitment to the truth and his faith in the destiny of mankind guided him in his literary journey.