Shafqat Tanvir Mirza


Shafqat Tanvir Mirza – known by many as STM was a Pakistani writer and a journalist. He was also a journalist union leader and was sent to jail twice because of his activities on behalf of newspapers he worked for.

Early life and career

Born in the village of Domeli, in the Punjab province of Pakistan, he studied at schools in Chakwal, Khushab, Wazirabad, Attock, Bahawalnagar and at Gordon College, Rawalpindi. Mirza's earlier career centred on Rawalpindi, where he worked for the daily newspapers Tameer and Hilal, as well as at Radio Pakistan. In 1970, he joined Daily Musawat, subsequently moving on to Daily Imroze, where he became the editor. In the 1990s, Shafqat Tanvir Mirza joined the English language newspaper Dawn, where he contributed regular columns on Punjabi language and culture.

Activities as an author and translator

Shafqat Tanvir Mirza was also active as an author, writing and translating a number of books. He wrote in Urdu, Punjabi and English.