In the death of noted Sindhi poet Parwano Bhatti, Sindhi literature has become poorer. He breathed his last in Hyderabad on Thursday at the age of 82 after a prolonged illness. During the last days of life, he was diagnosed as having brain tumour.

Son of a policeman of Phulji, Dadu district, Parwano, whose real name was Mewo Khan Bhatti was born on Feb 6, 1934. His childhood was not settled as he had to be with his father who had often to move to different places all over lower Sindh on account of his job. However, he had primary education in Sindhi and passed the Sindhi vernacular examination which helped him land a job as a teacher. In those days, the position of a patwari (land record keeper) was quite luring, so he joined the Patwari Training College in Hyderabad.

After qualifying the course he actually worked as patwari but soon quit it and began writing for newspapers. By then he had come across a number of poets whose company enticed him to develop a taste for poetry.

In the 1960s, when Sindhi literature had two distinct major schools of thought he began attending literary sessions being organised by Jamiat Shuarai-Sindh, Bazm-i-Talibulmaula and Sindhi Adabi Sangat.

During these years he began working in Sindhi newspapers and served on various positions while all along he retained his liking for poetry. Soon, he began to compose ghazal, nazm and later tried composing quadruplet. By this time, this genre had become a popular feature, especially newspapers. In the poetical journey he took Johar, then Mewal, Azad and finally Parwano as his nom de plume.

In his poetical compositions, he used all similes and metaphors of average life and made life, its miseries and political overtures subjects of his poetical expression and described miseries of life he suffered and expressed distress and agonies that he faced.

Ironically, no collection of his poetry has appeared.

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2016