TEHRAN – Simindokht Vahidi, an influential poet who won fame after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, was honored for her lifetime achievements during a special ceremony at the Owj Media Organization in Tehran on Tuesday.

The ceremony was attended by Academy of Persian Language and Literature director Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, and several other cultural officials.

Speaking at the ceremony, Haddad-Adel thanked the organizers who arranged such a ceremony in honor of the lady whose poetry enjoys such delicate beauty that is hardly seen in works by male poets.

He said that Vahidi was a great help in the early days of the revolution during which there was an immense need for cultural programs on radio and TV. 

Poet Farbia Yusefi, also attending the ceremony, called Vahidi the poet who has always given a chance to the youth.

“The love of Imam Khomeini (the founder of the Islamic Revolution) and religious commitments were other reasons for the poets to get together in the Art Bureau in the early days of the revolution and Ms. Vahidi was always present at those meetings,” poet Hossein Esrafili said.

Born in 1933 in Jahrom, Fars Province, Simindokht Vahidi wrote her first book “Bereaved Tulips” at the age of 25. 

She continued her cooperation after the Islamic Revolution in 1979 with Iran’s radio and the Art Bureau. 

She was also chief editor of the cultural monthly “Kowsar”. The poet used to recite poetry for the soldiers during the war while she was visiting the war-stricken cities or the frontlines.

Vahidi has been honored with the Cultural Lady of the Year Award at the third edition of the Tahereh Saffarzadeh Literary Award.

Vahidi received the award for her research, cultural and academic activities and her collections of poetry and books on the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war in 2015.

Photo: Simindokht Vahidi attends a ceremony held at the Owj Media Organization in Tehran on July 25, 2017 to honor the poet for her lifetime achievements.

RM/YAW