Sarmad Sehbai

Sarmad Sehbai (; born 1945) is a Pakistani poet, playwright, film and theatre director, who has worked in Urdu, Punjabi and English.

Early life and education He was born in Lahore, Punjab, British India, and pursued his studies at Government College Lahore, where he gained recognition for his Urdu poetry.

Poet and playwright Sarmad Sehbai appeared on the Pakistani literary scene as a poet and made his theatre debut in the early 1970s.

Novelist In late 2024 Sarmad Sehbai released his first English-language novel, The Blessed Curse, a fiction which serves as a satire on the contemporary conditions of Pakistan, and it received critical acclaim from writers such as Mohammed Hanif and Mohsin Hamid.

Awards and recognition Pride of Performance Award for Literature by the President of Pakistan in 2021.