Sufia Kamal
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Sufia Kamal (Bangla: সুফিয়া কামাল) (June 20, 1911-November 20, 1999) was a poet, writer, organizer, feminist and activist from Bangladesh. She was born to a Muslim family in Barisal, Bangladesh. She is one of the most widely recognized cultural personalities in Bangladesh. When she died in 1999, she was buried with full state honors, the first woman in Bangladesh to receive this honor.
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[edit] Early life
Sufia Kamal was born in Shaestabad, daughter of a distinguished zamindar family, in Barisal. During her childhood, women's education was prohibited and she could not afford to get academic education. But she learnt Urdu, Arabic and Persian language from her house tutors. In 1918, she went to Kolkata with her mother where she came to meet with Begum Rokeya[1]. Kamal was married off at the age of 12, but her liberal husband allowed her to follow her literary pursuits. A short story "Shainik Bodhu" which she wrote was published in a local paper in 1923[2]. She encountered prominent South Asian personalities, such as Begum Rokeya, Kazi Nazrul Islam and Mahatma Gandhi. Rokeya, who can be regarded the first female feminist of Bengal, had a lasting impression on her.
Sufia Kamal's first poem, Bashanti (Of spring), was published in the then influential magazine, Saogat in 1926. In 1931 she became the first Bengali muslim female to be the member of Indian Women Federation.[3]
[edit] Literature
Kamal's literary career took off after her first poetry publication. Her first book of poems Sanjher Maya (Evening Beautiful) came out in 1938, bearing a foreword from Kazi Nazrul Islam and attracting praise from critics, not least of whom was the father figure of Bangla literature, Rabindranath. Sanjher Maya was translated in Russian in 1984.
In 1937 she published her first collection of short stories, Keyar KaNta (Thorns of the Keya tree).
[edit] Activism
In 1947, when "Shaptahik Begum" was first published, Sufia Kamal became its first editor. In October of that year after the partition of India she came to Dhaka. During a huge clash between Hindu and Muslim of that time Kamal worked for their friendship and joined in Peace Committee. In 1948, when "Purbo Pakistan Mohila Committee" formed, she became its chairman.[4] Kamal's activism continued in 1952, with the Language Movement. In 1961, when the Pakistani government banned Rabindra Sangeet (Songs of Rabindranath), she became involved in the movement among Bengalis that ensued in 1961. During the mass uprising in 1969, which demanded the resignation of General Ayub Khan, she promoted the cause by forming Mahila Shangram Parishad (Women's Struggle Group). She was involved in the 1971 Liberation War and all later movements against dictatorial regimes. Kamal was also instrumental in getting the first women's dormitory of Dhaka University to be named Rokeya Hall, after Begum Rokeya.
[edit] Awards
Sufia Kamal is believed to have won around 50 awards during her lifetime. An incomplete list:
- Bangla Academy Award for Literature (1962),
- Ekushey Medal (1976)
- Jatyo Kabita Parishad Award (National Poetry Council Award, 1995)
- Begum Rokeya Medal (1996)
- Deshbandhu CR Das Gold Medal (1996)
- Independence Day Award (1997)
- Lenin Centenary Jubilee Medal (1970) from the Soviet Union
- Czechoslovakia Medal (1986)
[edit] Works
- Mrttikar Ghran (The Fragrance of Earth)
- Ekattarer Diary (Diary of '71)
- Benibinyas Samay To Ar Nei (No More Time for Braiding Your Hair)
- Ekale Amader Kal (In This Time, Our Time)
[edit] References
- ^ Prothom Alo, November 20, 2006
- ^ Prothom Alo, November 20, 2006
- ^ Prothom Alo, November 20, 2006
- ^ Prothom Alo, November 20, 2006
