Shaikh writes, translates and teaches in English, Urdu and Hindi. For his first novel, The Library Girl (2017), he was adjudged Ne8x Author of the Year 2019. His children’s book, Letters to Ammi (2019), was shortlisted for Neev Book Award 2020. He was awarded the Sahityakosh Samman 2020 for his first poetry volume, Tehzeeb Talkies (2019), which was followed by Mominpura (2021) and Ansari’s Daughter (2024).