Gauri Ayyub (13 February 1931 – 13 July 1998) was a social worker, activist, writer and teacher based in Kolkata (Calcutta) for most of her life.
Married to the philosopher and literary critic, Abu Sayeed Ayyub[1] (1906–1982), Gauri was a writer in her own right, and is known for her short stories, translations, and numerous articles on social issues.
She is recognised for her role in the propagation of communal harmony in Bengal, active assistance to the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 and vocal opposition to the curbing of human rights during the declaration of emergency in India in 1974.
She assisted writer and social worker Maitreyi Devi in founding Khelaghar,[2] initially as a shelter for Bangladeshi children orphaned during the war of 1971.
Her family had roots in the former East Pakistan and the occasional arduous journey from Patna to Mymensingh (now in Bangladesh) formed an important part of her early memories.
Most significantly, it commemorated the shooting down of several Bengali students, exactly a year back in Dhaka, who had protested against the imposition of Urdu as the national language of Pakistan.
[9] Gauri Ayyub died in her home in Kolkata (13 July 1998) at 67 [10] She wrote on educational issues and taught Bengali to several foreign students and scholars.
Among the Japanese students she interacted with were Masayuki Usuda, Nariaki Nakazato and Kyoko Niwa, who later went on to achieve recognition as scholars on India and Bengal.
[19] Not reflected in her own bibliography, however, is her very significant contribution to the transcription and production of much of Abu Sayeed Ayyub's [1] literary output, a substantial part of which came after he was physically incapacitated by Parkinson's disease.