Sindhis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group, originating from and native to the Pakistani province of Sindh, who share a common Sindhi culture, history and language. The historical homeland of Sindhis is bordered by the southeastern part of Balochistan, the Bahawalpur region of Punjab and the Kutch region of Gujarat.
Kazi Abdul Jaleel, popularly known as Amar Jaleel, is a Sindhi fiction writer and a Columnist whose columns appear in various Sindhi, Urdu and English-language dailies of Pakistan. He has authored 20 books, and received awards including Pride of Performance (Pakistan), and Akhal Bharat Sindhi Sahat Sabha National Award (India).
Sitara Devi was an Indian dancer of the classical Kathak style of dancing, a singer, and an actress. She was the recipient of several awards and accolades, and performed at several prestigious venues in India and abroad; including the Royal Albert Hall, London (1967) and at the Carnegie Hall, New York (1976).
Prerana Deshpande is a recognized Indian exponent of Kathak dance.
Bhavna Pani is an Indian actress, model and dancer. She is trained in classical dance forms – Odissi and Kathak, as well as in ballet and contemporary modern dance. She debuted in films in 2001 with Tere Liye.
Gauri Jog is a Kathak dancer, Choreographer and research scholar from Chicago. She has been practicing Kathak dance and considered as an exponent of Lucknow and Jaipur Gharana. Her creations include Krishna Leela, Shakuntala, Jhansi Ki Rani, Kathak Yatra, East meets West, Fire - the Fiery Tale among others. She brings to life traditional "art of storytelling" through the technical elements in Kathak. She is very popular especially among younger generation due to her unique approach to combine some Bollywood steps and Yoga into the Kathak while taking care not to cross the boundaries of tradition. Her experiments with combining Kathak with Flamenco, Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Mexican and American Ballet have won many accolades. Since 1999 Gauri Jog and her group have performed more than 325 dance shows in North America and India.
Rani Karnaa was an Indian classical dancer, known for her proficiency in the Indian dance form of Kathak, and regarded by many as one of the greatest exponents of the art form. She was honoured by the Government of India, in 2014, by bestowing on her the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for her services to the field of dance.
Roshan Kumari Fakir Mohammad is an Indian classical dancer, actor and choreographer, considered by many as one of the foremost exponents of the Indian classical dance form of Kathak. She follows the Jaipur Gharana and is the founder of Nritya Kala Kendra, Mumbai, an academy promoting Kathak. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1975, she received the fourth highest Indian civilian honour of Padma Shri from the Government of India in 1984.
Mangharam Udharam Malkani was an Indian scholar, critic, writer, playwright, literary historian and professor in the Sindhi language. He was the pioneer of modern Sindhi dramas. He was recognized as the "Grand old man of Sindhi literature".
Mohan Kalpana was an Indian writer in the Sindhi language. He was one of the foremost writers of fiction in the post-independence era of Sindh and India. He died on 19 June 1992.
Pandit Sunder Prasad was a guru (teacher) of - Jaipur Gharana of the Indian classical dance form, Kathak. He received his training from his father Pandit Chunnilal of Jaipur Gharana. He also trained under Bindadin Maharaj of Lucknow Gharana. Sunder Prasad performed all over the country. Sunder Prasad was not just an artist, he is also a teacher. He taught Kathak Dance for almost 30 years in Mumbai and then shifted to Chennai. He was honoured by Natak Academy of Delhi in the year 1958.
Nighat Chaudhry is a Kathak classical dancer who was born on 24 February 1959, in Lahore, Pakistan. She moved to London with her parents when she was one year old. She studied ballet and contemporary dance; but when she was 14, she met Nahid Siddiqui, one of the greatest Kathak dancers, and began training with her. Inspired to learn the classical forms of her own culture, she abandoned ballet. In order to understand and absorb the nuances of the Indian style, she wished to be closer to its origins; and she moved back to Pakistan. She eventually became a trained Sufi & Mystique Kathak classical dancer and has been active as a professional Kathak dancer for over three decades.
Arjan Tanwani, popularly known by his pen name Arjan Hasid, was an Indian Sindhi language poet who had authored seven collections of poems and ghazals. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award in Sindhi in 1985 for his collection of ghazals Mero Siji (1984) and was conferred with the Sahitya Akademi fellowship in 2013, the highest honour of the Sahitya Akademi.
Shirin Vajifdar was an Indian classical dancer, choreographer, instructor and critic. She was one of the first Parsis who took up Indian classical dance. A doyenne of Kathak, she was an acclaimed performer and teacher. Her choreography in the film Mayurpankh (1954) was lauded.
Mohanrao Shankarrao Kallianpurkar was a Kathak dancer and teacher from Karnataka, considered to be one of the greatest scholars and teacher of Kathak dance form. He belongs to Jaipur school of Kathak.
Kumari Jethi Tulsidas Sipahimalani was a Sindhi politician and first woman deputy speaker of Sind legislative assembly.
Ekta is a 1942 Sindhi film produced by Karim Bux Nizamani and directed by Homi Wadia in Bombay at Wadia Studios. This black and white film holds the distinction of being the first Sindhi film and was entirely financed by Karim Bux Nizamani. The movie starred Nizamani and Kaushalya in the lead roles, with a central theme revolving around Hindu-Muslim unity.
Kalyan Bulchand Advani was an Indian poet, critic, and scholar of Sindhi literature. He compiled an edition of the Shah Jo Risalo in 1958 and translated Kalidas's work Shakuntala in Sindhi. He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award by the Government of India in 1968.
Popati Hiranandani was an Indian writer who authored more than sixty books in Sindhi language during her life. She was an essayist, fiction writer, poet, educationist, feminist and social activist. She made significant contributions to Sindhi literature before and after the partition of India. She won several awards including the Sahitya Akademi Award (1982), Woman of the Year Award (1988), and the Gaurav Puraskar (1990) among others.
Bhagwanti Navani was an Indian singer and actress known for her work in Sindhi-language music and films. She was a folk as well as playback singer. Due to her melodious and sweet voice, she was popularly known as "Sindhi Koel". Her marriage songs, called "Laada" are popular in India and Pakistan. She appeared as the heroine in the film Sindhua Jay Kinaray and performed as a playback singer in eight films.
