Zarina Baloch ( sd, زرينه بلوچ) (29 December 1930 – 25 October 2005) was a Pakistani
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
singer, vocalist and composer. She was also an actress, Radio and TV artist, writer, teacher for over 30 years, political activist and social worker.
Early life and family
She was born on 29 December 1930 in Allahdad Chand Village,
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
, Sindh, Pakistan
her mother, Gulroz Jalalani, died in 1940 when Zarina was six years old. She studied with Mohammad Juman, who was also a Sindhi singer. At early age 15 years, her family arranged her marriage with a remote relative. She had two children: Akhter Baloch also known as Zina (born in 1952), and Aslam Parvez (born in 1957). However, Baloch and her husband disagreed on the subject of her further education and the pair were separated in 1958. Baloch joined Radio Hyderabad in 1960 and received her first Music Award in 1961. Then Zarina married Sindhi politician Rasool Bux Palijo, their marriage took place in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...
on 22 September 1964 and they had a son, Ayaz Latif Palijo. In 1967, she became a teacher at the Model School
Sindh University
The University of Sindh ( ur, ; sd, سنڌ يونيورسٽي; informally known as Sindh University) is a public research university in Pakistan located in the city of Jamshoro. It is one of the oldest universities in Pakistan and was certifi ...
. She retired in 1997 and died in 2005 of Brain Cancer in
Liaquat National Hospital
The Liaquat National Hospital is located at Stadium Road, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
History
Soon after Independence the Red Cross Fete Committee, which was chaired by Syed Wajid Ali, raised about PKR 800,000 through meena bazaars organized un ...
.
Imprisonment and political activism
In 1979, Zarina was arrested and imprisoned in
Sukkur
Sukkur (; ) is a city in the Pakistani province of Sindh along the western bank of the Indus River, directly across from the historic city of Rohri. Sukkur is the third largest city in Sindh after Karachi and Hyderabad, and 14th largest city ...
and
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...
Martial Law
Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory.
Use
Marti ...
. Because of her struggle against the
ruling class
In sociology, the ruling class of a society is the social class who set and decide the political and economic agenda of society. In Marxist philosophy, the ruling class are the capitalist social class who own the means of production and by exte ...
es and against
gender discrimination
Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primaril ...
,
feudalism
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...
Yahya Khan
General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan , (Urdu: ; 4 February 1917 – 10 August 1980); commonly known as Yahya Khan, was a Pakistani military general who served as the third President of Pakistan and Chief Martial Law Administrator following his p ...
, she earned the title of ''JeeJee'' (mother) of the
Sindhi people
Sindhis ( sd, سنڌي Perso-Arabic: सिन्धी Devanagari; ) are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group who speak the Sindhi language and are native to the province of Sindh in Pakistan. After the partition of British Indian empire in 1947, m ...
Sindhiani Tahreek
Sindhiani Tahreek ( sd, سنڌياڻي تحريڪ, "Sindhi women's movement") (also known as The Sindhiyani Tehreek) is a women-led political organization formed by rural women in Sindh, the southern province of Pakistan.
History
Sindhiyani Teh ...
,
Women's Action Forum
Women's Action Forum (WAF) is a women's rights organization in Pakistan.
History
Women's Action Forum (WAF) was established in Karachi in September, 1981Sindhi,
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
Pride of Performance
The Pride of Performance ( ur, ), officially known as Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sports, an ...
Faiz Ahmed Faiz
Faiz Ahmad ''Faiz'' (13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984; Urdu, Punjabi:
فیض احمد فیض) was a Pakistani poet, and author of Urdu and Punjabi literature. Faiz was one of the most celebrated Pakistani Urdu writers of his time. Out ...
Award
*
Pakistan Television Corporation
Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore.
Background
Historical co ...
(PTV) Award
*
Lal Shahbaz Qalandar
Hazrat Sayyid Usman Marwandi, (1177 - 19 February 1274) popularly known as Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (), was a Sufi saint and poet of present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Lal Shahbaz Qalandar was born in Marwand, Sistan to a family from Baghdad ...
She wrote many songs and poetry which became popular among the nationalists in Sindh and
Balochistan
Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...
. She was the author of several stories and poems, and her Book "Tunhinjee Gola Tunhinjoon Galhion" was published in 1992.
Famous songs
* Mor Tho Tilley Rana
* Sabhka Moomal Sabbko Raarno
* Tunhnjii Yaarii
* Sindhri tey sir ker na dendo
* Kaang Lanvain
* Guzrii Vaii Barsaat
* Bbii Khabar Na Aahai Par
* Kiin Karyaan Maan
* Jjariyan Bhar Jaaiyoon
* Saavak Rat main Saanvara
* Paee Yaad Aaya
* Gehraa Gehraa Nairn
Sassui Palijo
Sassui Palijo ( Sindhi: سسئي پليجو) is a politician and a columnist from Thatta, Sindh, Pakistan. Palijo is currently affiliated to Pakistan Peoples Party, served as a Senator on women's reserved seat from Sindh from 2015 to 2021. She ...