SRINAGAR: Mirza Mehdi Ali, the father of British Kashmiri novelist, Mirza Waheed, is no more. He breathed his last around midnight in a Srinagar hospital. He was in his seventies and lived in the Baghwanpora locality of Lal Bazaar.
Mirza, a fully vaccinated senior citizen, contracted Covid19 last fortnight. His vital organs were eventually infected especially his lungs as a result of which he passed away. He also had renal failure owing to resultant implications. Doctors at SKIMS tried everything to ensure his survival but he could not survive, the family sources said. He was 78.
The family has decided against permitting any congregation because of the pandemic issue. They made an announcement at their ancestral graveyard at Baghwanpora that there will not be a congregation beyond the funeral.
Son of Mirza Mohammad Ali, a renowned artist of his era, Mehdi Ali served the tourism department of Jammu and Kashmir and moved from place to place till his superannuation.
Mirza Mehdi Ali was the eldest of three brothers. His youngest brother died in 2011. He is survived by his two sons and three daughters and grandchildren along with his wife. His eldest grandchild is 22.
“He was a very warm person and incredibly generous,” Mirza Waheed, his novelist son, said. “He dedicated his entire life to the education of his children.” A former BBC journalist, Waheed lives in London. He has authored three novels, The Collaborator, The Book of Golden Leaves and Tell Her Everything. All three novels are set within and around Kashmir. However, he was around his father when he contracted Covid19 and breathed his last.
