The Hindu : National : Qurratulain Haider passes away

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 22, 2007
ePaper

National

National

Qurratulain Haider passes away

Qurratulain Haider

Noida: Renowned Urdu writer and Jnanpith winner Qurratulain Haider died here on Tuesday after a prolonged illness.

Ms. Haider (80) breathed her last around 2.30 a.m. in a hospital where she had been treated for several weeks, family sources said. Born in Aligarh, U.P., Ms. Haider began writing at a time when writing fiction was yet to take deep roots as a genre in the poetry-dominated Urdu literature.

A trendsetter in Urdu fiction and author of 12 novels and four collections of short stories, she is credited with instilling a new sensibility into Urdu literature. Aag ki Darya (River of Fire), a historical tale that moves from th e fourth century to the modern India and Pakistan, is considered her magnum opus. Ms. Haider herself translated it into English.

She was awarded the Jnanpith in 1989 for her novel Aakhir-e-Shab ke Hamsafar (Travellers Unto the Night). She was also awarded the Sahitya Akademi award in 1967, the Soviet Land Nehru Award in 1969 and Ghalib Award in 1985. The gov ernment honoured her with the Padma Shri. She served as a guest lecturer in universities abroad. — PTI

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National