Iconic Sindhi and Urdu poet Shaikh Ayaz was remembered on his 21st death anniversary on Saturday. A session was convened by Sindhi Adabi Sangat, Shikarpur chapter to commemorate the poet and pay a great tribute to him. The event was organised at Shikarpur Press Club. Shiakh Ayaz’s poetry played a major role in the development of progressive thinking in the country, particularly in Sindh while he was the very imprint of Shah Latif’s mystic poetry.Shaikh Ayaz’s poetry was translated in all the major languages of the world including English, Urdu, Sindh, French, Chinese, and Russian. The prominent Sindhi and Urdu poet late Shaikh Ayaz [Mubarak Shaikh] was born on March 2 1923, before partition, in Shaikh Muhallah Shikarpur. He was a lawyer by profession but he also served as the Vice-Chancellor [VC] of Sindh University Jamshoro, Sindh after he was appointed by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto during his regime. Shaikh Ayaz introduced modern trends in Sindhi poetry and literature; he wrote more than 50 books of poetry, plays, biographies, articles and short-stories in both Sindhi and Urdu languages and the translation of Shah-Jo-Risalo in Urdu, that credit also goes towards him, the first poem he wrote was at the age of 14. He was awarded “Sitara-i-Imtiaz” for his literary services while he always remembered as a revolutionary and romantic poet.Shaikh Ayaz’s love for the people of Sindh and the language is clearly visible in his poetry and has inspired the Sindhi youth to propel for change. Besides, Ayaz also put up with the troubles of jail during the regime of General Ayub Khan, whereas Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, was his fellow inmate.He died on December 28, 1997 in Karachi, after suffering from cardiac-arrest and is buried in Bhit Shah near Qarar pond. Abdul Sattar Kaladi, Zubair Soomro, Iqbal Detho, Mumtaz Mangi, Adeel Mahar, Sajjad Mahar, Sultan Rind, Apa Safia Abbasi, Zia Shahid, Sodho James, Waheed Phulpoto, Hisamuddin Memon, Humari Chandio, Zahid Bhanbhro, and others demanded that higher authorities attribute prominent station road Shikarpur with his name because of he had lit the name of Shikarpur and played a major role in the development of progressive thinking in the country, especially in Sindh.A resolution also with unanimously passed to paid great homage to prominent poet Shaikh Ayaz. Published in Daily Times, December 30th 2018.