Ada Jafri

Ada Jafarey ( : ) , often spelled Ada Jafri and has been called "The First Lady of Urdu Poetry". She was also an author She received awards from the Government of Pakistan, the Pakistan Writers' Guild, and literary societies of North America and Europe in recognition of her contribution to Urdu literature. died when she was three, and her mother reared her. She started composing poetry when she was twelve Sabiha Jafarey is married to Zubair Iqbal and is settled in Potomac, Maryland, US. They have three children: Sabah Iqbal, Yusuf Iqbal and Sameer Iqbal. at the age of 90. The Pakistani Minister for Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage, Pervez Rashid, the Governor of Sindh, Dr. Ishratul Ebad Khan, the Pakistani Prime Minister, Mian Nawaz Sharif, Dr. Muhammad Qasim Bughio, Chairman PAL, and Zahida Parveen, Director-General PAL, expressed sorrow over the death of Jafarey. They praised her work in the field of Urdu poetry and prayed for her soul. Her funeral prayer was held in Al-Hilal Mosque, Karachi. She was buried in the PECHS graveyard, Jamshed Town, Karachi on 13 March 2015.

Literary career The first female poet Ada Jafarey was part of a traditionally conservative society where women were not allowed to think and express independently. though her works include feminist themes like discrimination and dehumanisation of women and of them being viewed as sexual objects. as well as Urdu Haiku. Ada Jafarey published her first collection of poems, in 1950. Her book, , containing short essays with short biographies and brief commentaries on the work previous Urdu poets was published in 1987. was sung and popularised by Ustad Amanat Ali Khan. In recognition of her work, the Government of Pakistan awarded her the Medal of Excellence in 1981.

The Government of Pakistan conferred upon her the Pride of Performance Award for Literature in 2003 (awards were announced on 14 August 2002). She expressed her views thus:

Critical reputation Various critics say that Jafarey's poetry is full of politeness of expression. She combines both old and new thoughts in a unique artistic way through her poetry.

Qazi Abdul Ghaffar, in his introduction to Ada Jafarey's collection of verses, particularly mentioned her name in the field of feminist way of expression.

The Urdu poet and critic, Jazib Qureshi, said: "Ada Jafarey is the first and only lady poet who carries in her poetry the eternal colours of Ghalib, Iqbal, and Jigar."