Sheikh Faisal Abdur Rouf Mohammad Ziauddin Haider (known as Zia Haider; 18 November 1936 – 2 September 2008) was a Bangladeshi writer, poet, playwright, translator and professor. He was the founder president of

Nagorik Natya Sampradaya Nagorik Natya Sampradaya is a Bangladeshi theatre company. Established in 1968, it was the first theatre group in Dhaka and started performing plays on stage in 1972. The chairperson of the group is the actor and director Aly Zaker and his wife, ...

and founder of the Bangladesh Institute of Theater Arts. He wrote 7 poems, 4 plays and translated several plays. He was awarded

Ekushey Padak Ekushey Padak () is the second highest civilian award in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of martyrs of the Bengali language movement of 1952. The award is given to recognize contributions in a number of fields, including culture, education, and e ...

by the

Government of Bangladesh The government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh () is the central government of Bangladesh. The government was constituted by the Constitution of Bangladesh comprising the executive (the president, prime minister and cabinet), the ...

in 2001 and

Bangla Academy Literary Award The Bangla Academy Literary Award (; ''Bangla Academy Shahitya Puroshkar'') is given by the Bangla Academy of Bangladesh in recognition of creative genius in advancement and overall contribution in the field of Bengali language and literature. ...

in 1977.

Early life and education

Sheikh Faisal Abdur Rauf Muhammad Ziauddin Haider was born into an aristocratic

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work./ref> are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest ...

''Zamindar'' family of

Sheikhs Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning " elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim scholar. Though this title generally refers to men, there are also a small number of ...

on 18 November 1936 to Hakimuddin Sheikh and Rahima Khatun in Doharpara in Pabna Town of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

. His father Hakimuddin Sheikh was a prominent ''Zamindar'' in Pabna Town and would have received the title of ''

Khan Bahadur Khan Bahadur – a compound of ''Khan'' "Leader" and ''Bahadur'' "Brave" – was an honorary title in British India conferred on Indian subjects who were adherents of Islam or Zoroastrianism. The equivalent title for Hindus, Buddhists and India ...

'' from the ruling

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

had the

Partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...

been delayed a few years. He was the eldest among his brothers,

Rashid Haider Rashid Haider (15 July 1941 – 13 October 2020) was a Bangladeshi author and novelist. He was awarded Ekushey Padak in 2014 and Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1984 by the government of Bangladesh. He was the author of more than 70 books throu ...

, Makid Haider, Daud Haider, Zahid Haider, Abid Haider and Arif Haider.

Career

Haider started his career in journalism. In 1961, he joined the weekly ''Chitrali''. Later, he joined as a professor at the Government Tolaram College, Narayanganj. Occasionally, he took over as the officer of the Culture Department of

Bangla Academy The Bangla Academy (, ) is the official regulatory body of the Bengali language in Bangladesh. It is an autonomous institution funded by the Government of Bangladesh that fosters the Bengali language, literature and culture, works to develop an ...

. After that, he worked as a senior producer in Pakistan Television. He started teaching as an Assistant to the Department of Fine Arts of

Chittagong University The University of Chittagong () also known as Chittagong University (CU), is a public research university located in Chittagong, Bangladesh. It was established on 18 November 1966. It is the fifth oldest university of Bangladesh. Having an area ...

in 1970. He founded the

. He established the Bangladesh Institute of Theater Arts (BETA).

References

1936 births 2008 deaths Rajshahi College alumni 20th-century Bangladeshi male writers Bengali-language writers Recipients of the Ekushey Padak Recipients of Bangla Academy Award Pabna Edward College alumni 20th-century Bengalis 21st-century Bengalis 21st-century Bangladeshi male writers 20th-century Bangladeshi writers 21st-century Bangladeshi writers {{Bangladesh-writer-stub