Bashir Niaz

Bashir Niaz (9 July 1936 – 5 August 2002) was a Pakistani film story, dialogue, and screenwriter. He is known for writing scripts/dialogues for blockbuster movies like Diya aur tofaan (1969), Aina (1977), and Bandish (1980). He won a total of 15 Nigar Awards as a dialogue/scriptwriter.

Bashir Niaz
Born	9 July 1936 Gujranwala, British India
Died	5 August 2022(2022-08-05) (aged 86) Lahore, Pakistan
Alma mater	Government Islamia College, Lahore
Occupation	Screenwriter
Years active	1963–2002
Children	4
Awards	15 Nigar Awards

Early life

Bashir Niaz was born on 9 May 1936, in Jamke Chattha, Gujranwala District, Punjab, British India (now Punjab, Pakistan). He graduated from Government Islamia College, Lahore. Then he joined journalism and worked for several magazines and journals. Later he turned towards film journalism and worked for the weekly Nigar.^[1]

Career

Niaz started his career as a screenwriter in 1963 by writing a script for the movie Chhoti Behan. Initially he teamed up with directors like Shabab Kiranvi, K. Khurshid, and Haider Chowdhri. Later he developed a professional understanding with the director Nazar-ul-Islam.

Niaz was known as "the magician of dialogues", and was good at creating witty, emotional, and dramatic dialogues for the general public.^[1] In 1980, he was asked to write a Pakistani version of the Hollywood film Random Harvest (1942). He wrote the script for Bandish, a platinum jubilee hit of the year.^[2][3] During his long career as a screenwriter, he wrote stories and dialogues for many successful Urdu and Punjabi films.

Filmography

Some of the popular films of Bashir Niaz as a writer are:

• Ehsaas (1972)
• Naukar Wohti Da (1974)
• Aina (1977)
• Ambar (1978)
• Parakh (1978)
• Zindagi (1978)
• Shola (1978)
• Khushboo (1979)
• Bandish (1980)
• Noukar te maalik (1982)
• Doorian (1984)
• Dhee rani (1985)
• Hum eik hain (1986)
• Janbaaz (1987)
• Mukhra (1988)^[4]
• Zakhmi Aurat (1989)
• Chahat (1992)
• Rani Beti Raaj Kare Gi (1994)

Awards

Niaz received his first Nigar Award for the movie Ehsaas (1972). As a story/dialogue/screenwriter, he won a record 15 Nigar Awards from 1972 to 1994 for both Urdu and Punjabi films.^[1][5][4]

Death

Niaz had a heart attack in 2002. He died on 5 August 2002 at age 63, in London and was buried in Samanabad graveyard, Lahore.^[1]