Sindhis are across the border in
Pakistan too. There they write in the Perso-Arabic script, while in
India the Devanagari is used.
History of Sindhi Language:
Sindhi is actually an offshoot of some of the dialects of the Vedic
Aryans. Sindh, on the north west of undivided India, had always been the
first to bear the onslaught of the never-ending invaders, and as such
absorbed Hindi, Persian, Arabic, Turkish, English and even Portuguese.
Sindh is where Persian and Indian cultures blended, for the area was
introduced to Islam in 712AD. Thus, very little of Sindhi literature of
the earlier period has survived. The Summara and Summa periods are
virtually blank except for the few poems of Hamad, Raju and Isack. The
heroic ballads of this period set to music by Shah Abdul Karim
(1538-1625) are the earliest records of the Sindhi language.
Real flourish of Sindhi poetic talent came during the last stages of
the 18th century. Although the time was not appropriate for cultural
developments as invaders repeatedly plundered the country during this
period. Several works like Shah Abdul Latif's Shah-Jo-Rasalo, the magnum
opus of Sindhi literature, were produced.
Shah-Jo-Rasalo describes the life of common man, the sorrows and
sufferings of the ill-starred heroes of ancient folklore. Sachal,
another eminent, poet closely followed Shah Abdul Karim. He was a Sufi
rebel poet who did not adhere to any religion and denounced religious
radicals. The poet Saami was a complete contrast to Kari, more pious
than poetical, yet possessing a charm of his own. There was an excess of
songsters in Sindhi who recited similar ideas and themes in varied
tones. The notables among them are Bedil, his son Bekas, and Dalpat. Gul
Mohamad introduced Persian forms of poetry replacing the native baits
and Kafees. Mirza Kaleech Beg who composed on the same lines contributed
a lot to Sindhi literature.
Dayaram Gidumal and Mirza Kaleech were two of the early prose writers.
The former was a great scholar and he was famous mainly for his
metaphysical writings. The noted lexicographer and essayist Parmanand
Mewaram wrote essays that educated and instructed both the young and the
old. This peer group also comprised of Bherumal Meherchand, Lalchand
Amardinomal and Jethmal Parsram, and Acharya Gidwani, N. R. Malkani and
Dr H. M. Gurbuxani. The Partition of India, however, did not put a brake
on the literary output of Sindhi. Plays and poetry have continued to
develop, but their themes have changed. Music and beauty are no longer
favoured, while poverty, filth and moral degradation rule the mind of
the poets. A very crude variety of stories, though popular, are now the
representatives of the Sindhi literature. Essay writing has witnessed a
far greater interest on the side of the writers. Sindhi literature is
thus a far more junior member of the family of Indian literature.