TEACHER OF THE SOCIETY
This book of the columns “Fikr Farhee hath mein” (tablet of wisdom) is a third book in the series of printed books of well known Sindhi writer Manzoor Kohyar . His two previous books of the short stories in Sindhi i.e. “Sij Lahn Khan poe” (after sunset) and Firaq Jee manzil” (destination of longing) have made a mark in the sindhi literature and provided a high-quality reading to the Sindhi book loving readers. The book under review, is hoped, will also go a long way in leaving its positive impact on the readers for which it is meant.
Column is a popular genre of the Journalistic literature but lately it has taken a prominent place in the general literature as well. The columns already printed in the newspapers or magazines are later on compiled into the book and as such they remain for all time easily available for the readers. These columns written by the writer were published in the Sindhi newspapers Hilal Pakistan and Awami Awaz during the years of 1989-90 and 1990-91 respectively under his name as Manzoor Baloch. His columns are not conventional but unique, in the sense that they sometime seem like a chapter of the history and at the other the running commentary on the issues relating to the people and the society. Digging deep into the past and bringing the true facts to the readers is his trait. He does so, what I feel, that he wishes to share his knowledge and experiences with readers for the overall good of the society. He does not write for providing only entertainment to the people but his sole purpose is to awaken the people and hit the evil hard so as to purge the society from all impurities. The topics of his columns speak volumes of his commitment to the cause. He has written on number of the issues confronting the society i.e. gender bias, deterioration of the towns and cities, matters concerning to the minorities, decline in the standard of education, threats to the democracy, ever widening gape amongst the people on the basis of their economic conditions. These and other like these issues keep him inciting on raising his voice against them which he successfully does through writing and speaking on different literary forums. In writings, his columns, stories and TV dramas are worth mentioning.
Though he is a government officer but given his literary and academic contribution, I call him the teacher of the society; he does not teach in a four-walled classroom like other school teachers with the help of conventional teaching tools but whole of the society is like his class room in which he teaches through his writings to those who wish to learn. His all the three books are testimony to this claim for they, despite being the books of the pure literature and the special literature contain the treasurer of knowledge within their pages and hence look like academic books.
Mukhtiar Samo
Knowledge Centre Larkana
Light of Wisdom