Farida Hossain

{{Short description|Bangladeshi writer}}

{{Expand Bengali|ফরিদা হোসেন|date=September 2022}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}

Farida Hossain (born 19 January 1945) is a Bangladeshi writer, playwright, editor, director, and translator.{{Cite news |last=Bari |first=Sarah Anjum |date=2021-01-19 |title=Farida Hossain, Writing with Grace |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/book-reviews/news/farida-hossain-writing-grace-2030485 |access-date=2022-09-23 |work=The Daily Star |language=en}}

Hossain was born on 19 January 1945, in Kolkata, India, one of five siblings. Her father was a lawyer who worked with the International Labour Organization.{{Cite news |last=Bhattacharyya |first=Ranabir |date=2022-04-23 |script-title=bn:আমার সেই মেয়েটিকে নিয়ে গল্প লেখা হয়ে উঠল না: ফরিদা হোসেন |url=https://bangla.hindustantimes.com/lifestyle/bangladeshi-writer-farida-hossain-reminisced-about-india-her-childhood-and-the-war-of-independence-31650721568762.html |access-date=2022-09-23 |work=Hindustan Times |language=bn}} She later moved with her family to Bangladesh, living in Chittagong, then Narayanganj, and finally settling in Dhaka.

She began her career as a writer with a stage adaptation of Snow White in the Bangla language, which received a local award. Following this she was invited to work with Radio Pakistan, where she wrote, and performed stories, poems, and plays written by herself and others. While continuing to perform and write for radio, she published over 60 books during her career, including translations, novels, poetry, and plays.

She also wrote and directed several short films for children, which were broadcast in Bangladesh.

In 2004, she won the Ekushey Padak, Bangladesh's second highest civilian honor, for her contributions to literature.{{Cite news |title=The Daily Star Web Edition Vol. 4 Num 259 |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/2004/02/18/d40218011313.htm |access-date=2022-09-23 |work=The Daily Star |archive-date=1 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701060606/http://archive.thedailystar.net/2004/02/18/d40218011313.htm |url-status=dead }} She served as the president of the PEN Bangladesh Centre from 2003 and 2018.{{Cite web |last=Puig |first=Laia |date=2021-07-15 |title=Farida Hossain |url=https://www.pen100archive.org/farida-hossain/ |access-date=2022-09-23 |website=Unlocking the History of PEN |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |date=2017-05-07 |title=PEN Bangladesh celebrates Bangla New Year |url=https://archive.dhakatribune.com/feature/writing/2017/05/07/pen-bangladesh-celebrates-bangla-new-year |access-date=2022-09-23 |work=Dhaka Tribune}} She married Mohammad Mosharraf Hossain, with whom she had several children. She also founded a charitable organisation, Anjum Shishu Kollayan (Children's Welfare Foundation), and a literary magazine, Obinosshor.{{Cite web |title=History of the Bangladesh Centre |url=https://www.pen100archive.org/pen_centre/bangladesh-centre/history-of-bangladesh-centre/ |access-date=2022-09-23 |website=Unlocking the History of PEN |language=en-US}}