Pakistani Writers That Left Us in the Year 2015

Renowned Pakistani Writers Who Passed Away in 2015

2015 has been an unlucky year for the literacy circles of Pakistan. Some of the very talented and legendary Pakistani writers passed away, leaving behind their great masterpieces.

Abdullah Hussain

Abdullah Hussain , an exceptional urdu novelist and the mastermind behind the well known “Udas Naslain”, passed away on July 4, 2015 at the age of 84. He was amongst the finest Pakistani writers who were nominated for the 2012 award of “Kamal-e-Fun”. This is one of the greatest literacy honors given for a lifetime achievement with regards to research and creative performance. It carries a prize money worth PKR 500,000.

He always took writing a novel as an architecture in which you lay bricks upon bricks in order to construct the walls, roof, windows and doors. It is hence not an easy task especially for the people who lack perseverance. A few of his famous works include novels like

which were considered as masterpieces of Pakistani Urdu literature. He spent around four to five years in writing one novel. He will always be remembered for his endless efforts in promoting the national language of Pakistan and the enhancement in Urdu literature.

Ishtiaq Ahmed

The legendary fiction novelist, Ishtiaq Ahmed passed away after a heart attack on November 17, 2015 at the age of 74. He was a prominent figure in the literature of children and has always been famous among the young generation for his Urdu novels featuring characters like Kamran Mirza, inspector Jamshed, Farooq, Mehmood, Shoki and Farzana.

Around 800 different novels are attributed to him, majority of which revolved around the idea of detectives and spies. His first book came out in 1973 whose fame continued throughout 1970s and 1990s.

Jamiluddin Aali

Jamiluddin Aali, a notable urdu poet and one of the legendary Pakistani writers passed away on November 23, 2015 at the age of 90 after he succumbed to respiratory diseases and diabetes. He was one of the migrants to Pakistan from India in 1947 and was honored with various awards for his outstanding contributions in Urdu literature. In 1991 he was given the Pride of Performance award and was also honored in 2004 with Hilal-e-Imtiaz. For around three years he served as the chairman of the Urdu Dictionary Board.

Some of his most famous national songs include

These songs instill a sense of patriotism amongst the people of Pakistan who will always remember Aali for leaving behind such notable works.

Justice Javed Iqbal

The son of Allama Iqbal and an intellectual figure, Justice Javed Iqbal left us on October 3, 2015 at the age of 91. Previously he served as a lawyer par excellence and later he was a politician and judge of dignity and integrity. In the later part of his life, he started his career in writing. He was known for translating the thoughts of his own father.

He penned down a number of Islamic books and books based on ideology and philosophy of Pakistan. Not only this, he translated the reconstruction of religious thought of Allama Iqbal along with his Javed Name originally written in Persian language. He also authored his autobiography in 2002, titled as “Apna Girebaan Chak”. This book brought him tremendous fame and hence its subsequent editions were produced.

Other famous works of this famous Pakistani writers include books like

For his endless efforts to promote Urdu literature, in 2004 he was honored with Hilal-i-Imtiaz. He has also been a great speaker in international conferences during his judicial and political career. He also took part in a Pakistani delegation to UN three times.

Aslam Azhar

Aslam Azhar, a leading broadcaster and a progressive ideologue, passed away on December 29, 2015 at the age of 83. Having a great experience in broadcasting and theatre, he was offered with a pilot project of three months at Radio Pakistan in 1964. As result of the endless efforts of Azhar and his team, the project turned out to be a great success.

With an intelligent mind and excellent abilities, this Pakistani writer quickly gathered a team of writers, cameramen, artists and designers and developed stations at Lahore, Karachi and Quetta for the purpose of bringing some quality programs. Other initiatives for which he must be credited include the 1982-83 award ceremony of PTV, in 1970 marathon transmission of elections, Music 89 as well as the Lahore Islamic Summit. Other famous works include Roobroo which was hosted by Mohsin Sherazi and Khuda ki Basti.

Kamal Ahmed Rizvi

The founding father of Pakistani Theatre, Kamal Ahmed Rizi left us on December 17, 2015. With acting as his main expertise, he was also adept as a writer, editor, director and painter. One of most popular sitcoms in the history of Pakistan, Alif Noon has been attributed to Rizvi. The comedy series featured Rafi Khawar as Nannha and Kamal Ahmed as Allan.

This famous Pakistani writer is known for being amongst the pioneers of the Pakistan Television. He trained a generation of directors, writers and actors during his long career. Other significant projects attributed to him include

In all his works, he used satire and comedy to highlight the social evils corrupting the society. In 1989, he was honored with Pride of Performance award for his endeavors towards Pakistani literacy circles.

The demise of such intellectuals who used the power of their pen and brilliant minds to take the literature of Pakistan to heights has left the nation in deep sorrow. However, these brilliant Pakistani writers will always be remembered and their works cherished.

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