Sindh lost yet another iconic poet this week when Saindad Sand passed away after a brief illness in Karachi.
Sand was born on March 1, 1960, in the Mattaro Sand village near Islamkot, a city in Tharparkar. He started writing poetry as a teenager, and his poems were published in notable Sindhi language dailies during the 1980s.
In 1986, he joined the provincial education department as a Sindhi language teacher. He spent the rest of his life in education and pursued writing and poetry in his spare time. He ultimately retired as the principal of the Sadiq Faqeer Degree College in 2020.
Unlike his peers, Sand's poetry focused on the natural beauty of Sindh and people falling in love. Sand ultimately established himself as a poet of the people.
The septuagenarian poet gained significant fame across the province after some of his poems became songs. Sadiq Faqeer, Fozia Sommro, Ustad Waheed Ali, Shafi Faqeer, and Kareem Faqeer sang his poetry. This honour placed him amongst Sindh's most illustrious poets during the the 1990s.
Singers such as Rajab Faeer, Nazqat Faqeer and Abbas Faqeer introduced Saindad Sand to the younger generations of Sindh.
Even though he was well known across Sindh, Sand's first anthology of poems, titled "Gorhan Galhayo" (Tears That Talked), was not published until 1995. He later wrote Khayalan Ja Pakhi (Birds of Ideas) in 2003 and Dil Jee Tareekh (History of the Heart). In 2007, he wrote Khiro Kitar Jiyan, a poetic tribute to slain prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
Apart from writing in Sindhi, he also tried his hand at poetry in relatively lesser-known languages of Sindh, including Dhatki and Marwari poetry.
During his long career, he also hosted a programme on the Mithi station of Radio Pakistan called "Salam Mithi". He used to discuss the importance of poetry and its multiple genres in the programme.
Sudden demise and tributes
His family said Sand had been complaining of a stomach-related disease in recent months. He was admitted to a private hospital in Karachi for treatment, where he was treated for 20 days but could not recover.
Moving scenes were witnessed when his body arrived in Mattaro Sand, his native village. Business activities in Mithi and Islamkot cities were suspended for his burial as the two regions mourned the poet's passing.
Noted Sindhi singers Abbas Faqeer, Ustad Rajab Faqeer and Karim Faqeer sang his poetry as they paid homage to the iconic poet.
Former Sindh culture minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah took to social media to pay tribute to the illustrious poet. He said Sindh had lost one of its finest poets who chose facile words for his works.
Ayaz Amar Sheikh, a notable poet of Sindh, said that Sand had inspired a new generation to become poets. He added that Sand's tremendous contributions to Sindhi poetry would be remembered.
His contemporaries, Dlip Kathori and Allah Bux Arisar, termed his death a huge loss for Sindhi literature and added that Sand was a man of distinct qualities and a dedicated educationist.