Birth: 4 January 1935
Death: 5 December 1987
Daud Kamal was a Pakistani Writer. He had done work in the
English literature of Pakistan. He is called the T.S Eliot of Pakistan. Often referred to as the T.S. Eliot of
Pakistan, Kamal was influenced by modernist writers such as Ezra Pound, T.S.
Eliot, and W.B. Yeats. His father, Chaudary Muhammad Ali, served as the
vice-chancellor of the University of Peshawar.
Education
He received his early education at Burn Hall Abbottabad and later attended Burn Hall Srinagar. He also studied at Islamia College Peshawar. For higher education, he attended the University of Peshawar and the University of Cambridge.
Career
He had started writing when he was in his twenties. He served as
the chairman and teacher at the English department of the University of
Peshawar.
His themes of poetry were mostly the injustice of kings towards
man. History, rural and pastoral. His poetry also had themes of Sufism and
spirituality. The connection of a man with the universe was the important theme
of his writings.
His writings had a sense of loss in them. He wanted to know the
identity of oneself. The legacy which makes a nation great is also the main
character of his writings.
Prominent Work
Recognitions
Remote Beginnings
Before the Carnations Wither
Daud Kamal as a Translator
Daud Kamal had translated the Urdu literature books into
English. He translated the works of Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Mirza Ghalib.
Achievements
He had won “three gold medals in three international poetry
competitions sponsored by the Triton College, U.S.A.
In 1987, in Pakistan, he was given the Faiz Ahmed Faiz Award. The President of Pakistan gave him the Pride of Pakistan Award in 1990, which
is a great honor for any citizen of Pakistan.
Death and Burial
Daud Kamal died on 5 December 1987 in the United States. He was
buried in the graveyard of the University of Peshawar, where he had taught for
29 years.
