Shahidul Zahir (1953-2008) is often considered as the foremost writer among the generation of post-Liberation War Bangladeshi authors of the 1970s. Best known for his experimental works that blend together magic realist and postmodernist techniques with acutely political thematic content, Zahir created a fictional universe whose accents and inflections were distinctively his own. His oeuvre consists of just four novels and three collections of short stories, but its influence on succeeding generations of aspiring writers has been immense. Like Syed Waliullah, Hasan Azizul Huq, and Akhtaruzzaman Elias before him, Zahir has created a legacy of his own – one that is both distinctive and oppositional.

Zahir was named Shahidul Haque at birth by his father – a name he continued to carry

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Citation: Hasan Al Zayed, Sarker. "Shahidul Zahir". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 15 February 2021 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=14649, accessed 31 October 2024.]

14649 Shahidul Zahir 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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