Bapsi Sidhwa (; 11 August 1938 – 25 December 2024) was a Pakistani novelist who wrote in English and was resident in the United States. Sidhwa was best known for her collaborative work with Indo-Canadian filmmaker

Deepa Mehta Deepa Mehta, (; born 15 September 1950) is an Indian-born Canadian film director and screenwriter, best known for her Elements Trilogy, Fire (1996 film), ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth (1998 film), Earth'' (1998), and ''Water (2005 film), Water'' (2 ...

: Sidhwa wrote both the 1991 novel '' Ice Candy Man'' which served as the basis for Mehta's 1998 film ''

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

'' as well as the 2006 novel '' Water: A Novel'', on which Mehta's 2005 film ''

Water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

'' is based''.'' A documentary about Sidhwa's life called "Bapsi: Silences of My Life" was released on the official YouTube channel of " The Citizens Archive of Pakistan" on 28 October 2022 with the title " First Generation -Stories of partition: Bapsi Sidhwa".

Background

Sidhwa was born to

Parsi The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster ( ). Among the wo ...

parents Peshotan and Tehmina Bhandara in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, Bombay Presidency. She is of

descent. Roughly three months after her birth, she moved with her family to

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

, Punjab Province. She was two years old when she contracted

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

, requiring severe surgeries as a young child and leaving an impact throughout her life.Sidhwa, Bapsi interview by Melissa, Verne and Cao, Arthur. 28 June 2013. Houston Asian American Archives oral history interviews, MS 573, Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University. https://digitalcollections.rice.edu/documents/detail/bapsi-sidhwa-oral-history-interview/333174 Sidhwa grew up having to live through distressing events during Partition, producing experiences that would shape her writing in the future. For example, a young Sidhwa was walking with her gardener a few months before Partition when they came across a

gunny sack A gunny sack, also known as a gunny shoe, burlap sack, hessian sack or tow sack, is a large Bag, sack, traditionally made of burlap (Hessian fabric) formed from jute, hemp, sisal, or other natural fibres, usually in the crude Spinning (textile ...

, which hid a young man's corpse inside. This experience in particular is mirrored in her novel '' Cracking India,'' in addition to showing up in Mehta's ''

.'' Sidhwa uses her experiences living through Partition as a background for the novel and creating the main character, Lenny. Sidhwa received her BA from Kinnaird College for Women University in

, Pakistan, in 1957. Shortly after graduating, she got married at the age of 19 and moved to

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

, a change in scenery which she recalls as an initial shock which became easier to handle once she was able to engage with a community of other Zoroastrians. Sidhwa had a daughter and a son, though her marriage ended after five years, and she moved back to Lahore. Her son remained in Mumbai with his father's family, and Sidhwa was unable to see him for many years due to heightened border restrictions. Sidhwa eventually remarried in

to her husband, Noshir, who is also a

. She had three more children and began her career as an author. One of her children is Mohur Sidhwa, who is a candidate for state representative in Arizona. She was residing in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

in the US. She described herself as a "Punjabi-Parsi". Her first language was Gujarati, her second language was

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

, and her third language was English. She could read and write best in English, but she was more comfortable talking in Gujarati or Urdu and often translated literally from Gujarati or Urdu to English. Sidhwa died in Houston, Texas on 25 December 2024, at the age of 86.

Teaching

After attending a fellowship at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, Sidhwa started her first teaching job at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. Teaching writing to graduate students, Sidhwa initially experienced difficulty in teaching due to lack of experience, frequently experiencing

panic attacks Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense fear and discomfort that may include palpitations, otherwise defined as a rapid, irregular heartbeat, sweating, chest pain or discomfort, shortness of breath, trembling, dizziness, numbness, con ...

before her lectures. Sidhwa left Columbia after one academic term and started living in

, teaching at the University of St. Thomas before eventually teaching at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

's School of Continuing Studies. Sidhwa also taught at the

University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

, and

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

Awards

*Bunting Fellowship at Radcliffe/Harvard (1986) *Visiting Scholar at the Rockefeller Foundation Center, Bellagio, Italy, (1991) * Sitara-i-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence) Award, (1991, Pakistan's highest national honor in the arts) *Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Writer's Award (1994) * Mondello Prize (Premio Mondello for Foreign Authors) for ''Water'' (2007) * Inducted in the Zoroastrian Hall of Fame (2000)

Works

The city of

, Pakistan, where she was brought up, is central to her four novels below: *''Their Language of Love'' : published by Readings Lahore (2013, Pakistan.) *''Jungle Wala Sahib'' (Translation) (Urdu) : Published by Readings Lahore (2012, Pakistan) *''City of Sin and Splendour : Writings on Lahore'' (2006, US) * '' Water: A Novel'' (2006, US and Canada) *''Bapsi Sidhwa Omnibus'' (2001, Pakistan) *''An American Brat'' (1993, U.S.; 1995, India) *'' Cracking India'' (1991, U.S.; 1992, India; originally published as ''Ice Candy Man'', 1988, England) *''The Bride'' (1982, England; 1983;1984, India; published as ''The Pakistani Bride'', 1990 US and 2008 US) *'' The Crow Eaters'' (1978, Pakistan; 1979 &1981, India; 1980, England; 1982, US)

References

External links

Literary Encyclopedia
*
Sense of the City: Lahore (BBC Online article by Bapsi Sidhwa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sidhwa, Bapsi 1938 births 2024 deaths Parsi writers Kinnaird College for Women University alumni University of Houston faculty Rice University faculty Columbia University faculty Mount Holyoke College faculty American people of Gujarati descent American people of Parsi descent Parsi people Pakistani Zoroastrians Pakistani dramatists and playwrights Pakistani women dramatists and playwrights Pakistani novelists Pakistani women novelists Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz English-language writers from Pakistan Writers from Lahore Pakistani women writers Pakistani emigrants to the United States Pakistani expatriates in India Pakistani people of Gujarati descent Pakistani women's rights activists