Shafi Muhammad Shah () PP (7 September 1949–17 November 2007), commonly known as Shafi Mohammad, was a Pakistani film and television actor. Popularly known as ''Shah Jee'', he worked in some 500 television dramas in both Urdu and Sindhi, while also starring in some notable movies, such as ''Biwi Ho To Aisi'' (1982), ''Aisa Bhi Hota Hai'' (1984), ''Talash'' (1986) and ''Rubi'' (1986).

Early life

Shafi was born in

Kandiaro Kandiaro (, ) is a town in the Naushahro Feroze District of Sindh province of Pakistan and the headquarters of Kandiaro Taluka. It is famous for Dargah Allahabad Jalsa. The city population is approximately 45,000. The town is situated on the eart ...

Naushahro Feroze District Naushahro Feroze District (, ) is a district in the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Its capital is Naushahro Feroze city. Administratively subdivided into five talukas and 51 union councils, according to of Pakistan it had a population of 1,612, ...

, Sindh, and got his early education in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

before earning a postgraduate degree from the

University of Sindh The University of Sindh (; ; informally known as Sindh University) is a public research university in Pakistan located in the city of Jamshoro in the Sindh province. It is one of the oldest universities in Pakistan and was certified by ISO in 2 ...

Jamshoro Jamshoro (, ) is a city and the capital of Jamshoro District, in Sindh, Pakistan. It is on the right bank of the Indus River, approximately northwest of Hyderabad and northeast of the provincial capital of Sindh, Karachi. This city is popula ...

Career

Shafi began his career with plays broadcast by

Radio Pakistan The Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (); also known as ''Radio Pakistan'', serves as the national public broadcaster for radio in Pakistan. Although some local stations predate its founding, it is the oldest existing broadcasting network in P ...

's Hyderabad station and later moved to

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 ...

and began his career as a TV actor. His first TV appearance was in the Sindhi-language play ''Moti-a Jehro Mann-e'', telecast in 1972. Shah was introduced by the well known PTV producer Shahzad Khalil in his Urdu drama serial '' Teesra Kinara'' from where he joined the elite club of the country's leading TV stars.

Death

Shafi died in his sleep at his Clifton home on 17 November 2007. His funeral prayers were offered at Imambargah Yasreb in the

Defence Housing Authority Defence Housing Authority (DHA) () is a Pakistan Army-administered real-estate developer that governs housing and municipal services for Defence neighbourhoods across Pakistan. The Defence Secretary is its chairman and it is managed by the Paki ...

. He was buried in the Defence graveyard. The cause of death was liver failure.

Social activism

On 12 March 2004, Shafi joined

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

and

WHO The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has 6 regional offices and 15 ...

efforts to help persuade parents to get their minor children vaccinated against

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 ...

Tribute and honour

In 1985 he received the best actor award from Pakistan Television. At the 9th PTV Awards he won the Best Actor Award in 1998. The day following his death, participants at a

Karachi Press Club The Karachi Press Club (KPC @pressclubkhi) () is an organization of the community of the journalists. It also takes account of academics, business people and people from the public service. Karachi Press Club was the first press club that was est ...

(KPC) meeting paid tribute to Shafi. In the meeting organised by the KPC's cultural committee, numerous artists, including Anwar Solangi, Manzoor Qureshi and Mumtaz Kanwal, turned up to pay their respect to the actor they had known and loved. On 16 November 2008, the first death-anniversary of Shafi Mohammad Shah, a book titled "Wo aadmi tha ya moti dana? (transl. Was he a human being or a pearl?)", authored by Nagina Hisbani on the life and artistic performance of Shah, was launched. The launching ceremony was organised by the Sindh Fankaar Welfare Trust, at the Mumtaz Mirza Auditorium. Shafi Shah won Best Actor Drama Series in

The 1st Indus Drama Awards The 1st Indus Drama Awards ceremony, presented by Indus TV Network, sponsored by Dulux, took place on 23 September 2005, at PAF Museum, Karachi. The ceremony was recorded, and was scheduled to be televised in Pakistan and UAE on 1 October 2 ...

2005 for ''Maa Aur Mamta'' (Mannat). He was also recipient of 'Pride of Performance Award' from the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

Notable television plays

*''Aanch'' *''Bund Gulab'' *''

Chand Grehan ''Chand Grehan'' () is a 1995 Pakistani television series written by Asghar Nadeem Syed and directed by Tajdar Alam. Synopsis The story is about political dictionary and social status difference. It follows Shehrbano (Huma) who comes from a ...

'' *''Dairey'' *''Deewarain'' *''

Jungle jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅgala'' ...

'' *''Adam Hawa aur shaitan'' *'' Zeenat'' *''Kali Dhoop'' *''Marvi'' *''Mohabbat Khawab Ki Surat'' * ''Mannat (Maa Aur Mamta)'' *''Tapish'' *'' Teesra Kinara'' *''Zehar Baad'' *''Dhori'' (Ary Digital) *''Kaanton sey aagey'' (Tv one) *''Muhib Sheedi'' (1992) ( Sindhi language) *''Ilzam'' (1993) *''Muskarahat'' (1995)

Accolades

References

External links

Shafi Muhammad Shah Profile – Pakistan TelevisionRemembering Shafi Muhammad – Musiq Pakistan.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shah, Shafi Muhammad 1949 births 20th-century Pakistani male actors 2007 deaths Sindhi people People from Naushahro Feroze District Pakistani male television actors PTV Award winners Pakistani male film actors 21st-century Pakistani male actors Recipients of the Pride of Performance University of Sindh alumni Pakistani Shia Muslims Male actors from Karachi Sindhi male actors