Enver Sajjad
Pakistani playwright and fiction writer (1935–2019)
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Anwar Sajjad, more commonly known as Enver Sajjad (27 November 1935 – 6 June 2019) was a Pakistani playwright and fiction writer. Because he was a novelist, playwright, actor, director, producer, voice-over artist, columnist, painter, dancer and physician,[1] he has been described as a polymath.[2][3]
27 November 1935
Anwar Sajjad was a Pakistani writer, playwright, actor, director, painter, dancer, voice-over artist and physician. He was associated with Urdu short fiction, Pakistani television and theatre, and was known for experimental and symbolic writing in Urdu literature.[4][5] He received the President's Pride of Performance in 1989.[4][5]
Early life and education
Sajjad was born in Lahore on 27 November 1935.[6][7] He studied medicine and completed his MBBS from King Edward Medical College, Lahore.[4][6] He later obtained a Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene from London.[4] After returning to Lahore, he practised medicine for a time at his father's clinic in Chuna Mandi, Lahore.[4]
Literary career
Sajjad began writing in the early 1950s while still a teenager.[8] His first novelette, Rag-i-Sang, was published in 1955.[4] His later works included Chauraha, Janam Roop, Khushiyon Ka Bagh, Neeli Notebook, Talash-i-Wajood, Zard Konpal, Rassi Ki Zanjeer, Nigar Khana Saba and Samandar.[4][6] He was known as the founding father of modern Urdu fiction and was credited by Dawn with introducing an abstract style into Urdu short-story writing.[4]
His short-story collection Chauraha was first published in 1965 and later appeared in a second edition in 1986.[9] His collection Istearay was published in 1970.[4][9] His book of essays, Talash-e-Vajood, was also discussed as an important statement of his views on art, culture, history and literature.[9]
Sajjad also translated The Blue Notebook, a novella by Soviet writer Emmanuil Kazakevich, into Urdu as Neeli Notebook.[8] According to Naazir Mahmood in The News International, Sajjad translated the work while imprisoned after the 1977 military coup in Pakistan.[8] Mahmood also wrote that Sajjad's novel Khushiyon Ka Bagh was written in August 1979 and was influenced by the work of the Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch.[8]
Television, theatre and performing arts
Sajjad was part of the early generation of writers and performers associated with Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV).[5] He wrote several television plays, including Picnic, Raat Ka Pichla Pehar, Koyal and Yeh Zameen Meri Hai.[5][7] The Express Tribune also stated that he wrote the first commissioned play telecast in the subcontinent in November 1964.[10]
In addition to writing, Sajjad acted in a number of PTV productions.[7] He was nominated for a PTV award for his performance in the drama serial Saba aur Samandar.[5] He was also known as a voice-over artist, teacher, painter and actor.[5][7] Sajjad remained active in Lahore's literary and artistic circles and chaired the Pakistan Arts Council Lahore before moving to Karachi.[5] In later years, he oversaw the scriptwriting department at the National Academy of Performing Arts, leaving the position because of illness and other grievances.[5]
Political and cultural associations
Sajjad was associated with progressive literary circles in Pakistan.[4] According to Dawn, he was a member of cultural and literary organisations and also had a long affiliation with the Pakistan Peoples Party.[4] Members of the Progressive Writers Movement remembered him after his death as a writer who continued to speak against capitalism and retained his political and artistic commitments.[4]
Personal life
Death
Sajjad died in Lahore on 6 June 2019 after a prolonged illness. He was 84.
Works
Fiction and essays
Television plays
Theatre plays
- Aik Thi Malika
- Khatra-e-Jan
- Meri Jan
- Faslay