aaj ik aur baras biit gayā us ke baġhair
jis ke hote hue hote the zamāne mere
Born Shankar Dutt Kumar, on 3rd July 1935 in Bahawalpur, Kumar Pashi was an accomplished author of short stories, a distinguished poet, and an earnest writer. His family had left Delhi for Bahawalpur after the revolt of 1857. But after the partition of India, when he was about 12 years old, he returned to Delhi. Having witnessed the pain of migration at such a small age, grimness overwhelmed his younger self. The city of Delhi was extremely dear to him; his education took place here, and all his life he was, in one way or the other, associated with this city. He chose to be employed in Delhi, and did not like staying outside of it. His poetry flourished in Delhi and one day his book ‘Puraane Mausamo.n Ki Aawaaz’, caused a stir in the world of Urdu literature. Pashi is also considered as an exponent of Indian mythology in Urdu poetry.
Kumar Pashi also proved his mettle as a novelist and playwright. He also edited the literary magazine "Sutoor". His works include, ‘Puraane Mausamo.n Ki Aawaaz (1966)’, ‘Khwab Tamasha (1968)’, ‘Intizar Ki Raat (1973)’, ‘Ru-Ba-Ru (1976)’, ‘EK Mausam Mere Dil Ke Andar, EK Mausam Mere Dil Ke Baahar (1979)’, ‘Zawal-e-Shab Ka Manzar’, ‘Ardhangini Ke Naam (1987)’, and ‘Chand Chiragh (posthumously in 1994)’. His collection of short stories was published in 1972 titled, ‘Pahle Asman Ka Zawal’, and a collection of his plays was published in 1974 named, ‘Jumlon Ki Buniyad’. His complete works, published ‘Kulliyat-e-Kumar Pashi’, followed soon. On September 16, while he was on his way home from work, he fell unconscious on the way. He remained unconscious all night and passed away in the early hours of 17th September 1992.