15 Facts About Sufia Kamal

Begum Sufia Kamal was a Bangladeshi poet, feminist leader, and political activist.

Sufia Kamal took part in the Bengali nationalist movement of the 1950s and civil society leader in independent Bangladesh.

Sufia Kamal led feminist activism and was a president of Bangladesh Mahila Parishad.

Sufia Kamal died in 1999 and was the first woman to be given a state funeral in Bangladesh.

Syeda Sufia Begum was born on 20 June 1911, in her maternal home Rahat Manzil in Shayestabad, located in the Backergunge District of Eastern Bengal and Assam.

Sufia Kamal was raised by her mother, Sabera Begum, the youngest daughter of Nawab Mir Muazzam Hussain, in Shayestabad.

Sufia Kamal's education began at the local maktab, where she learnt Arabic.

In 1925, Sufia Kamal met Mahatma Gandhi, which inspired her to wear simple clothing.

At the age of eleven years, Sufia Kamal was married to her maternal cousin Mir Syed Nehal Hossain, a law student and the son of Mir Syed Motahar Hussain of Shayestabad.

Seven years later, Sufia married Kamaluddin Ahmed and subsequently moved to Barisal town.

In 1947, Sufia Kamal became the inaugural editor of the Begum weekly magazine specialized on women's issues which was published by Mohammad Nasiruddin.

Sufia Kamal did not see the oppression of women as mainly a class issue.

Sufia Kamal was instrumental in getting the first women's dormitory of Dhaka University to be named Rokeya Hall, after Begum Rokeya.

The Pakistani government was forced to broadcast an interview with the poet on radio only to prove that Sufia Kamal was still alive.

Sufia Kamal used to give food and medicine to certain rickshaw pullers at the Science Laboratory, Dhaka.