The Hindus fled their ancestral homeland Sindh when they faced threats and attacks after Partition. They lost their properties and assets, and over time would lose their language, culture, and important aspects of their history too. However, they were determined that their children’s disrupted education would resume seamlessly, to give them the best chance of future success. In an era when printing was a laborious and costly process, school administrators dutifully undertook the difficult task of carrying documents across the new border, quickly regrouping in the places where they settled, and raising funds to get their schools started again.
Saaz Aggarwal is an independent researcher, writer and artist based in Pune, India. Her body of writing includes biographies, translations, critical reviews and humour columns. Her books are in university libraries around the world, and much of her research contribution in the field of Sindh studies is easily accessible online for example in https://www.sahapedia.org/sindhworkis-unique-global-diaspora, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZVBQWpTX4Uww1e-ZP_kT8A and http://blackandwhitefountain.com/. Her 2012 Sindh: Stories from a Vanished Homeland is an acknowledged classic.
With an MSc from Mumbai University in 1982, Saaz taught undergraduate Mathematics at Ruparel College, Mumbai, for three years. After a career break when she had a baby, during which time she established a by-line as a humour writer, she was appointed features editor at Times of India, Mumbai, in 1989, where she launched Ascent, the highly successful HR pullout of the Times of India Group. From 1998 to 2006, she was HR and Quality Head of Seacom, an Information Technology company based in Pune.
As an artist, she is recognized for her Bombay Clichés, quirky depictions of urban India in a traditional Indian folk style., as well as a unique range of offerings at the annual Art Mandai event in Pune. Her art incorporates a range of media and, like her columns, showcases the incongruities of daily life in India.
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