Kala Prakash

Kala was born on 2 January 1934 to a moderate family of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.[1] She was only 13 when Pakistan was created and Sindhi Hindus had to leave their homeland. At that time, she was studying at Haridevi High School in Karachi. The deep pain of partition and bitter sense of homelessness can easily be felt in her writings.[2] After migration to India, she studied at K.J. Khalnani High School. She got a master's degree from Jai Hind College Mumbai and entered into Government service as an auditor. She continued this job till 1977. After getting a Diploma in Sindhi, she joined as a lecturer. During her teaching career, she always encouraged and inspired young girls to take up Sindhi literature.

Her first story Dohi Bedohi (ڏوهي بيڏوهي) was published in the literary magazine "Naeen Dunya" in 1953. Her first novel published in 1957 was "Hik Dil Hazar Arman".[3] In 1954, she was married to noted poet Moti Parkash.[4] She moved to Dubai in 1980 to join her husband who was appointed there to manage Indian High School Dubai. After the retirement of her husband, they returned to India in 2002 and settled in Adipur.

Her short stories were published in various prominent literary magazines including Naeen Dunya, Sipoon, Rachna, and Hindwasi. She also wrote on the poetry of Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai and Sachal Sarmast. According to her, Shah Latif should be called the poet of People rather than that of mysticism.[5]

• Akhil Bharat, Sindhi Boli, and Sahit Sabha Award, 1965
• Maharashtra Sindhi Sahitya Academy Award, 1992
• Sahitya Academy Award, 1994
• Ishwari Jeevatram Buxani Award, 2001
• Priya Darshni Academy Award, 2010
• Sindhi Language Authority Award, 2011

She died on 5 August 2018.[11]