Shamim Azad (born 11 November 1952)[1] is a Bangladeshi-born British bilingual poet, storyteller and writer. She won 2023 Bangla Academy Literary Award in the poetry category.[2]
Azad's work ranges from Bangladeshi to European folktales. Her performance fuses the lines between education and entertainment and her workshops are rooted in Asian folk, oral traditions and heritage.[5]
Azad has published 37 books[6] including novels, collections of short stories, essays and poems in both English and Bengali and has been included in various anthologies including British South Asian Poetry, My Birth Was Not in Vain, Velocity, Emlit Project and Mother Tongues. She wrote two plays for Half Moon Theatre.[7] She has worked with composers Richard Blackford, Kerry Andrew, choreographer Rosemary Lee, visual artist Robin Whitemore and playwright Mary Cooper.[6]
Azad is a trustee of Rich Mix in Shoreditch, founder chair of Bishwo Shahitto Kendro (World Literature Centre UK) in London.[8] She is part of the East storytelling group, which invites local residents to join in sharing some of the stories brought together by the Eastend's rich, diverse history of immigration.[9]
Azad received the Bangladesh "Bichitra Award" in 1994, "Year of the Artist" Award from London Arts in 2000, "Sonjojon- A Rouf" Award in 2004, and UK "Civic Award" in 2004. Community Champions Award in 2014 by Canary Wharf group PLC.[8] In 2016, she was awarded Syed Waliullah Literature Award, which is conferred by the Bangla Academy.
^ abcKarim, Mohammed Abdul; Karim, Shahadoth (October 2013). British Bangladeshi Who's Who(PDF). British Bangla Media Group. p. 62. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
^Karim, Mohammed Abdul; Karim, Shahadoth (October 2009). British Bangladeshi Who's Who(PDF). British Bangla Media Group. p. 33. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
