Mir Gul Khan Nasir

Mir Gul Khan Nasir
 also widely regarded as Malek o-Sho'arā Balochistan May 14, 1914 – 6 December 1983) was a prominent politician, poet, historian, and journalist from Balochistan, Pakistan. Born on 14 May 1914 in Noshki, Gul Khan Nasir was at the forefront of the Baloch Nationalist Movement and was most active between 1935 to 1980. His father’s name was Mir Habib Khan and he belonged to the Paindzai family of the Zagar Mengal sub branch of the Mengal tribe. Mir Gul Khan’s mother “Bibi Hooran” belonged to the Rakhshani branch of the Bolazai Badini. Mir Habib Khan had five sons and three daughters. Mir Gul Khan Nasir was number seven among his eight siblings and he was the fourth amongst his brothers (i.e.) Mir Samand Khan, Mir Lawang Khan, Mir Lal Bux, Mir Gul Khan and Col. Sultan Mohammad Khan.

Education

Mir Gul Khan Nasir studied until Fourth Grade in his village. For further studies he was sent to Quetta where he got admission in Government Sandeman High School. After passing his matriculation examination from this school, he went to Lahore in order to pursue a higher education in Islamia College Lahore. During his second year in Islamia College, a piece of coal went into Mir Gul Khan’s eye due to which he had to discontinue his education and return to Quetta. Lahore, at that time, was the hub of knowledge and political and social activities. The political, cultural, social and literary movements in Lahore made quite an impression on Mir Gul Khan Nasir. When he returned to Quetta Balochistan was split into several parts namely The Chief Commissioner's Province and The Balochistani princely states. The province of Balochistan was under direct British rule while the Balochistani States was indirectly controlled by the British through the Tribal Chiefs (sardars) and rulers,whom they had bought. In this situation the rulers of Balochistan were in no hurry to make the state progress and better the lives of its inhabitants. Because of these conditions Mir Gul Khan Nasir stepped into politics in order to join the other leaders who were fighting to liberate the people of Balochistan from the Imperialist powers.

Boxing

When he went to Lahore, Mir Gul Khan Nasir saw the students taking part in different sports so he immediately tried out for the college football team and was selected. But with time, he got interested in boxing and began learning the sport. It didn't take him long to become quite good at it. His height (above 6'00") also provided him with an advantage in the game.

"Boxing helped Gul Khan Nasir get out of many a tight spot in his life" – Aqil Khan Mengal

After his training, Mir Gul Khan began participating in boxing tournaments. In the All India Universities Boxing Championship he was the runner up. It was in this tournament that he broke his nose.

Anjuman-e-Ithihaad-e-Balochistan Anjuman-e-Islamia Ryasat-e-Kalat

In 1921 an organization named “Anjuman-e-Ithihaad-e-Balochistan” was formed to struggle for the rights of the people of Balochistan. When Mir Gul Khan Nasir came back to Kalat, he joined this organization and was an active participant in it. During this time he also briefly held the office of Vice-Minister of Jhalawan in Kalat State. By 1936 Anjuman-e-Ithihaad-e-Balochistan had become inactive so The Baloch youth formed another organization “Anjuman-e-Islamia Ryasat-e-Kalat”. Malik Abdul Raheem Khwaja Khail was elected the General Secretary of this organization while Mir Gul Khan Nasir was the President. Mir Gul Khan resigned from his designation as the Vice-Minister of Jhalawan in order to promote the new organization. Afraid of the popularity of the Anjuman, the political agents of Kalat conspired against the party and managed to have it banned in kalat State.

Kalat State National Party

After the ban on “Anjuman-e-Islamia Ryasat-e-Kalat”, On 5 February 1937 the Baloch youth once again got together and formed a new political organization by the name of "Kalat State National Party" (KSNP). Mir Abdul Aziz Kurd was elected its President, Mir Gul Khan Nasir the Vice President and Malik Faiz Muhammad Yousafzai became the Secretary General. The Kalat State National Party was affiliated with the Indian National Congress. It played an important role in curbing the power and influence of the Tribal Chieftains or Sardars, abolition of cruel and unusual taxes imposed on the poor by the Sardars and formation of a democratically elected Parliament fashioned after the British Parliament on Kalat State's independence. The KSNP had several ups and downs with the Khan of Kalat. At first most of the top leaders of the party such as Abdul Aziz Kurd, Faiz Muhammad Yoyusafzai, Gul Khan Nasir, Abdul Rahim Khwajakhel etc. were serving as government officials. In 1939, during an annual session of KSNP in which Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo was also taking part as a representative of a Karachi-based political party, some thugs sent by the local sardars tried to disrupt the rally by firing at the participants. After that all the members of the Party who had government jobs resigned and were arrested. This was the incident which caused Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo to join the KSNP. After some time the Khan reconciled with the KSNP leaders and re-employed them as government officials. Once again tensions rose between the KSNP and the Khan of Kalat and this time the KSNP leadership resigned for good never to work as government servants again. Paul Titus and Nina Swidler in their book "Knights Not Pawns: Ethno-Nationalism and Regional Dynamics In Post-Colonial Balochistan" write:

The Khan attempted to play off nationalist and sardari differences by maintaining his authority as the traditional head of the Balochi tribes while appealing to the leaders of the Balochi nation. This was not always possible, and by 1939 the activities of the nationalists had so antagonized the sardars and British that they pressured the Khan to declare KSNP illegal in Kalat State. The ban on the party was lifted after World War II, though antagonism between the sardars and nationalists remained.In March 1946, for example the Balochi activist poet Gul Khan Nasir was expelled from Kalat State following complaints to the agent to the Governor-General in Balochistan from the Badini, Jamaldini and Zagar Mengal sardars. They claimed that Nasir and other activists had created disturbances in the town of Noshki by making speeches charging that the sardars were appropriating and selling local residents' wheat rations.

Muslim League

After Kalat's accession to Pakistan in 1948, the KSNP broke up. The Khan of Kalat, Mir Ahmedyar Khan joined Muslim League after the accession but was hesitant to do it alone so he sent Mir Ajmal Khan to Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo and Gul Khan Nasir to persuade them into joining the Muslim League with the Khan. Both Gul Khan and Ghaus Bakhsh thought that joining the ML would provide them the platform they needed to raise the voice for Kalat's rights. But within days they realized that they would never be able to achieve what they wanted while they were in the Muslim League. So they left the ML never to turn back to it ever again.^[4]

Usthman Gal

In the years that followed, Pakistan went through many changes. In 1954 the Communist Party was banned in Pakistan and then in 1955, all the provinces of West Pakistan were merged into one unit. In these conditions the Baloch ethnic nationalist politicians under the leadership of Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Mir Gul Khan Nasir, Agha Abdul Karim Khan (the brother of Khan of Kalat), Mohammad Hussain Anqa and Qadir Bux Nizamani^[5] formed the "Usthman Gal" which is Balochi for "The People's Party". Agha Abdul Karim was elected as the President of this party.

Pakistan National Party

In 1956, the "Usthman Gal" was merged into the Pakistan National Party which also included "Khudai Khidmatgar" from N.W.F.P, "Azaad Pakistan Party" from Punjab, "Sindh Mahaz" from Sindh and "Woror Pashtun" from the Pashtun dominated areas of Balochistan. In this way, the Pakistan National Party emerged as the largest Left-Wing Political Party in West Pakistan.

National Awami Party

In 1957, The PNP merged with Maulana Bhashani's Awami League to form the National Awami Party. It was the principal opposition party to the military regime for much of the late 1950s and mid-1960s. The party split in 1969 into two factions; the head of one faction remained in newly formed Bangladesh, while the remaining faction became the principal opposition party to the rule of Pakistan's Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. The party was outlawed by the Pakistani government in 1975 and much of its leadership was subsequently imprisoned for alleged anti-state activities.

1958–1960

During this period of Ayub Khan's rule, most of the Baloch leadership including Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Gul Khan Nasir and Faiz Muhammad Yousafzai were arrested on different charges. They were imprisoned in Quetta's Quli Camp which was famous for the inhumane torture of its prisoners. There the Baloch Leaders were subjected to different kinds of torture. They were hung upside down from their feet and beaten, not allowed to sleep for days, laid face-down on the floor while soldiers jumped on their backs with army boots. By the time he was released, Mir Gul Khan couldn't even walk straight.
This was a very important period for the politics of Balochistan because it was in those years that the young and dynamic Sardar Ataullah Khan Mengal and Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri entered Balochistan's political scene. It was also during that period that Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti was sacked from his position as the Minister of State for Interior of Pakistan and arrested. As a result of this, he also joined the NAP.

1960–1970

During 1960–1970, the National Awami Party or NAP presented strong resistance to the Ayub Regime and for this reason, its leaders were constantly in and out of jail. In this decade Ataullah Mengal was catapulted to the top of the Baloch leadership because of his charismatic personality and Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri also earned a lot of fame because of his political philosophy. Mir Gul Khan Nasir went to jail around 5–6 times from 1962 – 1970. As a result of NAP's struggle during this decade, the One Unit was discarded and Balochistan got the status of a province.

1970 elections

In 1970, general election were held in Pakistan in which the NAP managed to get a majority in Balochistan and N.W.F.P while the Pakistan People's Party got most of the seats of Punjab and Sindh. Mir Gul Khan Nasir won a seat in the Provincial Assembly after defeating a big landlord/marble mine owner Mir Nabi Bakhsh Zehri of the Muslim League Qayyum group Chaghi. East Pakistan broke away from Pakistan and Bangladesh was formed because of controversy that arose over the election's result. After the fall of East Pakistan, Bhutto wasn't willing to allow the NAP form its governments in N.W.F.P and Balochistan. But as a result of extensive dialogue held between Z.A. Bhutto and Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, NAP was able to form coalition governments in both the provinces in 1972.

NAP government

In Balochistan Sardar Ataullah Khan Mengal was elected as the First Chief Minister of Balochistan while Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo became the Governor. Gul Khan Nasir was a Senior Minister in this government and held the portfolios of Education, Health, Information, Social Welfare and Tourism. Later, Tourism and Information portfolios were given to other ministers. As the Minister of Education, Gul Khan managed to lay down the foundation for the Bolan Medical College which is, to this day, the only medical college in Balochistan.
During this time, differences had arisen between Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti and the rest of the NAP leaders. Bhutto, who was looking for a way to remove the NAP government, saw this and used Akbar Bugti to dismiss the NAP government. The N.W.F.P government resigned in protest. Governor's rule was imposed with Nawab AKbar Khan Bugti as appointed as the Governor of Balochistan. Three months after the dismissal of the NAP government, Gul Khan Nasir was arrested on various charges before any other leader. In August 1973, Mir Gul Khan's brother, Mir Lawang Khan, died in an operation carried out by the Pakistani Military. Mir Gul Khan's younger brother, Colonel (R) Sultan Mohammad Khan (who was the head of the Balochistan Reserve Police), was arrested the day he returned to Quetta after burying Mir Lawang Khan. Along with Colonel Sultan, Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Ataullah Mengal, Khair Bakhsh Marri and Bizen Bizenjo were also arrested. Since all this happened during Akbar Bugti's regime, therefore the public sentiment was against him in Balochistan at that time. Mir Gul Khan Nasir wrote a lot of poems against Bugti during his imprisonment. Later, a commission, known as Hyderabad tribunal, was set up and Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Sardar Ataullah Mengal, Gul Khan Nasir, Nawab Marri, Khan Abdul Wali Khan, Syed Kaswar Gardezi, Habib Jalib and many others had to defend themselves in a treason case in front of the tribunal.
While in prison, differences arose between the Baloch leaders. After the ouster of Bhutto's government by General Zia-ul-Haq, negotiations for the winding up of the Hyderabad tribunal and the release of all detainees was initiated leading to their eventual release in 1979. On their release, Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Gul Khan Nasir and Ataullah Mengal brought back their followers who had taken refuge in Afghanistan while Khair Bakhsh Marri and Shero Marri, themselves, went to Afghanistan. Sardar Ataullah Mengal also left for London. Gul Khan Nasir and Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo joined Wali Khan's National Democratic Party.

Pakistan National Party

After sometime, Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo had a falling out with Wali Khan over the Saur Revolution of Afghanistan. Mir Ghaus Bakhsh and Mir Gul Khan left the NDP and formed the Pakistan National Party or PNP. Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo was elected as PNP's President while Gul Khan Nasir became the President of PNP Balochistan. Even though Gul Khan had joined Mir Ghaus Bakhsh's party, he was of the opinion that the Baloch should not be pushed into another term of turmoil by pitting them against the Martial Law Regime but rather they should be educated, trained and made ready for the future conditions that might change the situation and geography of the subcontinent. But Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo thought that the Martial Law should be fought head on to make democracy in Pakistan stronger. The Establishment, taking advantage of the situation, set the state machinery into motion and by using different tools, especially the media, aggravated the differences between the two leaders to the extent that Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo demanded a resignation from Gul Khan Nasir which Gul Khan refused to tender in. But after the lapse of some more time, Mir Gul Khan tendered in his resignation and concentrated all of his abilities towards his literary work.

Imprisonment

Mir Gul Khan Nasir was arrested on several occasions from 1939 to 1978 on many different charges, all of them pertaining to politics. He collectively spent almost 15 years of his life in jail.

Literary services

Mir Gul Khan Nasir wrote poems in English, Urdu, Balochi, Brahui and Persian. Most of his poems are in Balochi language. He was good friends with Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Once Faiz Sahib offered to translate Mir Gul Khan’s poems in urdu but Mir Gul Khan turned down the offer. Most of Mir Gul Khan Nasir’s Urdu poetry was written between 1933–1950 and there has been no publication of his Urdu poetry to this date.
Mir Gul Khan’s poetry is filled with revolutionary and anti-imperialist themes and it reflects his progressive nature and socialist ideals. Mir Gul Khan Nasir was very much against the class differences that prevailed at that time, and still do. His poems exhibit his dislike for the chauvinistic attitude of the rich towards the poor. A famous quatrain of his goes as follows:

"Had Mir Gul Khan Nasir been born in Punjab he would've become Faiz Ahmed Faiz and if Faiz had been brought up in Balochistan, he would've become Gul Khan Nasir". — Habib Jalib[11]

Balochi:

Wáhde pa ĝaríbáñ ki jaháñ tang bibít

Láp húrak, badan lúč pa badrang bibít

Haq int ča čušeñ wár o azábeñ zindá

Máří bisučant, sar birawant, jang bibít

Translation:

When the world starts to constrict around the poor man

His mutilated naked form is left to fend for his hungry gut

Then it's better from this life of misery and torture

If war ensues, heads roll & lavish palaces are burnt to the ground

Bibliography

Mir Gul Khan wrote many books on history and poetry and translated several works from other languages into Balochi and Urdu. A list of some of his books is given below:

• Gul Baang (1951) was his first collection of Balochi Poetry.
• History of Balochistan (1952) (Urdu) Volume 1 – After much research Mir Gul Khan published this book which consists of 340 pages. It is a history of the Baloch Race and removes many mis-conceptions about the Baloch which were prevalent at that time.
• History of Balochistan (1957) (Urdu) Volume 2 – This volume consists of 15 chapters and deals with the history of Balochistan from Khan Khudadad Khan to Khan Ahmed Yar Khan until 1955.
• Daastaan-e-Dostain o Sheereen (1964) is considered to be one of the best books of Mir Gul Khan Nasir. In this book he has penned the classical Balochi Love Story of Dostain and Sheereen. In the preface of this book the famous Baloch author Azaat Jamaldini called Mir Gul Khan “The Great Poet of the Balochi Language”.
• Koch o Baloch (1969) was a book in which Mir Gul Khan, through intellectual reasoning proved that the Brahvis and the Balochis actually came from the same race.
• Garand (1971) is an important collection of Mir Gul Khan Nasir’s poems.
• Balochistan Kay Sarhadi Chaapa Maar (1979) is an Urdu translation of General Dyre’s “Raiders of the Frontier” by Mir Gul Khan Nasir.
• Seenai Keechaga (1980) is a Balochi translation of Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s Sar-e-Waadi-e-Seena by Mir Gul Khan Nasir.
• Mashad Na Jang Naama (1981) – Mir Gul Khan Nasir completed this Brahvi book when he was a student in the 8th grade but it was published in 1981.
• Shah Latif Gusheet (1983) is a Balochi translation of that part of Shah Abdul Latif Bhatai’s poetry which concerns the Balochs.

Posthumous compilations

• Gulgaal (1993) is the ninth compilation Mir Gul Khan’s poetry.
• Shanblaak (1996) is Mir Gul Khan Nasir’s tenth collection of Balochi Poetry which also includes Urdu translations by himself.

Awards

Mir Gul Khan Nasir was posthumously awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz (President's Award) in 2001 for his literary services. Other Sitara-i-Imtiaz winners that year were Dr.Ilyas Ishqi, Professor Dr.Allama Naseer-ud-din Nasir and Kishwar Naheed.
In 1962, when the USSR government decided to award Faiz Ahmed Faiz with the Lenin Prize, they also wanted to present Mir Gul Khan Nasir with the Prize but because of his (Mir Gul Khan's) differences with the Ayub Khan Regime of that time, he wasn't allowed to go to Moscow.

Death

Soon after resigning from the leadeship of PNP, Mir Gul Khan's health deteriorated and he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Not having enough money, or accepting any from his relatives, he was not able to procure treatment in time. It was only after his condition became so bad that he could not leave his bed that he was taken to Karachi, where doctors, after checking him, gave him only a few days to live. Mir Gul Khan Nasir died on 6 December 1983 in the Mid East Hospital, Karachi. He was taken back to his village, Noshki, in a huge procession. On 7 December 1983 he was laid to rest in his village's cemetery. The funeral proceedings were attended by a large number of people. Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Bizenjo, Malik Faiz Miuhammad Yousafzai and other leaders were not able to attend because they were in jail, while Nawab Akbar Bugti's movement had been restricted to Quetta. Ataullah Mengal and Khair Bakhsh Marri were abroad, in self-exile
www.urdubhasha.blogspot.com/gulkhannasir

Faiz Ahamd Faiz

Faiz Ahmad Faiz
Born 13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984) MBE, NI,Lenin Peace Prize was an influential left-wing intellectual, revolutionary poet, and one of the most famous poets of Urdu. He also wrote poems in Punjabi ^[1] language as well. A notable member of the Progressive Writers' Movement (PWM), Faiz was an avowed Marxist. Listed four times for the Nobel Prize in poetry, he received the Lenin Peace Prize by the Soviet Union in 1962. Despite being repeatedly accused of atheism by the political and military establishment, Faiz's poetry suggested a more nuanced relationship with religion in general and with Islam in particular. He was, in fact, greatly inspired by both secular poetry and South Asia's Sufi traditions. His popular ghazal Hum Dekhenge is an example of how he fused these interests.
Faiz was controversially named and linked by Prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan's government for hatching the conspiracy (see Rawalpindi conspiracy case) against Liaquat Ali Khan's government, along with a left-wing military sponsor Major-General Akbar Khan. Having been arrested by Military police, Faiz among others received a maximum sentence by JAG branch, although his sentence was commuted after the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan in 1951.

He remained extremely influential in Pakistan and his work continues to influence the country's literature and arts. Faiz was publicly honored by the Pakistan Government after his literary work was publicly endorsed and posthumously honored him with nation's highest civil award, Nishan-e-Imtiaz, in 1990.

Background

Faiz Ahmad Faiz was born on 13 February 1911, in Sialkot. Faiz hailed from an academic family that was well known in literary circles. His home was often the scene of a gathering of local poets and writers who met to promote the literacy movement in his native province.His father was a barrister who worked for the British Government, and an autodidact who wrote and published the biography of Amir Abdur Rahman, an Emir of Imperial Afghanistan.Although his family were devoted Muslims, Faiz was brought up in a secular tradition of Islam. Following the Muslim South Asian tradition, his family directed him to study Islamic studies at the local Mosque to be oriented to the basics of religious studies by Maulvi Ibrahim Mir. According to Muslim orthodox tradition, he learned Arabic, Persian, Urdu language and the Quran. According to a book written by Sarvat Rehman, while Faiz was brought up as an orthodox Muslim, he saw himself as an agnostic.Faiz was also a Pakistan nationalist, and often said "Purify your hearts, so you can save the country...".
His father later took him out of Islamic school as he wanted his son to follow the footsteps of the great Indian Muslim educationist Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, sending him to attend the Scotch Mission School, which was managed and run by a local British family. After matriculation, he joined the Murray College at Sialkot for intermediate study. In 1926, Faiz enrolled in Department of Languages and Fine Arts of the Government College University (GCU), Lahore. While there, he was greatly influenced by Professor Mir Hassan and Professor Shamsul Allam who taught Arabic language. Professor Hasan had also taught the renowned philosopher, poet, and politician of South Asia, Dr. Muhammad Iqbal. In 1926, Faiz attained his B.A. with Honors in Arabic language, under the supervision of Professor Mir Hassan. In 1930, Faiz joined the post-graduate programme of the GCU, obtaining M.A. in English literature in 1932. The same year, Faiz passed his post-graduate exam in the 1st Division from Punjab University's Oriental College, where he obtained a Master's degree in Arabic in 1932. It was during his college years that he met M. N. Roy and Muzaffar Ahmed who influenced him to become a member of the Communist Party.
In 1941, Faiz became affectionate to Alys Faiz, a British national and a member of Communist Party of the United Kingdom, who was a student at the Government College University where Faiz taught poetry.While Alys opted for Pakistan citizenship, she was a vital member of Communist Party of Pakistan, played a significant role in Rawalpindi Conspiracy Case when she brought together the communist mass. Together, the couple gave birth two daughter Salima and Moneeza Hashmi.

Military service

In 1935 Faiz joined the faculty of Muhammedan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh, serving as a lecturer in English and British literature Later in 1937, Faiz moved to Lahore to reunite with his family after accepting the professorship at the Hailey College of Commerce, initially teaching introductory courses on economics and commerce. During the midst of World War II, he enrolled in the British Indian Army in 1942.He was commissioned and attained the rank of Captain. Faiz served with the unit led by Akbar Khan, a left-wing general. Although, he was kept out of World War II war operations, Faiz was given a desk assignment when he joined the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in New Delhi. In 1943, Faiz was promoted to Major rank, and then Lieutenant-Colonel in 1944. In 1947, Faiz opted for newly established State of Pakistan. However, after witnessing the 1947 Kashmir war with India, Faiz decided to leave the army and submitted his resignation in 1947.

Academia and literacy

In 1936, Faiz joined a literary movement, Progressive Writers' Movement (PWM) and was appointed its first secretary by his fellow Marxist Sajjad Zaheer. In East and West-Pakistan, the movement gained considerable support in civil society. In 1938, he became editor-in-chief of the monthly Urdu magazine "Adab-e-Latif (lit. Belles Letters) until 1946. In 1941, Faiz published his first literary book "Naqsh-e-Faryadi" (lit. Imprints) and joined the Pakistan Arts Council (PAC) in 1947.From 1959–62, Faiz served as the secretary of Pakistan Arts Council, and later became Rector of Abdullah Haroon College in 1964.The same year, Faiz became the vice-president of Pakistan Arts Council in 1964.
Faiz was a good friend of Soviet poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko who once said "In Faiz's autobiography... is his poetry, the rest is just a footnote".During his lifetime, Faiz published eight books and received accolades for his works. Faiz was a humanist, a lyrical poet, whose popularity reached neighbouring India and Soviet Union. Indian biographer Amaresh Datta, compared Faiz as "equal esteem in both East and West".Throughout his life, his revolutionary poetry addressed the tyranny of military dictatorships, tyranny, and oppressions, Faiz himself never compromised on his principles despite being threatened by the right-wing parties in Pakistan.Faiz's writings are comparatively new verse form in Urdu poetry based on Western models. Faiz was influenced by the works of Allama Iqbal and Mirza Ghalib, assimilating the modern Urdu with the classical.Faiz used more and more demands for the development of socialism in the country, finding socialism the only solution of country's problems.During his life, Faiz was concerned with more broader socialists ideas, using Urdu poetry for the cause and expansion of socialism in the country.The Urdu poetry and Ghazals influenced Faiz to continue his political themes as non-violent and peaceful, opposing the far left politics in Pakistan.

Internationalism and communism

Faiz believed in Internationalism and emphasised the philosophy on Global village. In 1947, he became editor of the Pakistan Times and in 1948, Faiz became vice-president of the Pakistan Trade Union Federation (PTUF). In 1950, Faiz joined the delegation of Prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan, initially leading a business delegation in the United States, attending the meeting at the International Labour Organization (ILO) at San Francisco, California. During 1948–50, Faiz led the PTUF's delegation in Geneva, and became an active member of World Peace Council (WPC).
Faiz was a well-known communist in the country and had been long associated with the Communist Party of Pakistan, which he founded in 1947 along with Marxist Sajjad Zaheer and Jalaludin Abdur Rahim.Faiz had his first exposure to socialism and communism before the independence of State of Pakistan which he thought was consistent with his progressive thinking. Faiz had long associated ties with the Soviet Union, a friendship with atheist country that later honoured him with high award. Even after his death, the Russian government honoured him by calling him "our poet" to many Russians. However his popularity was waned in Bangladesh after 1971 when Dhaka did not win much support for him. Faiz and other pro-communists had no political role in the country, despite their academic brilliance
Although Faiz was a not a hardcore or far-left communist, he spent most of the 1950s and 1960s promoting the cause of communism in Pakistan.During the time when Faiz was editor of the Pakistan Times, one of the leading newspapers of the 1950s, he lent editorial support to the party. He was also involved in the circle lending support to military personnel (e.g. Major General Akbar Khan). His involvement with the party and Major General Akbar Khan's coup plan led to his imprisonment later.
Later in his life, while giving an interview with the local newspaper, Faiz was asked by the interviewer as if he was a communist, Faiz he replied in his usual nonchalant manner: "No. I am not, a communist is a person who is a card carrying member of the Communist party ever made. The party is banned in our country. So how can I be a communist?..."

Rawalpindi plot and exil

Main article: Rawalpindi conspiracy

The Liaquat Ali Khan's government failure to Indian-held Kashmir had frustrated the military leaders of the Pakistan Armed Forces in 1948, including Jinnah himself serious doubt on Ali Khan's ability to ensure the integrity and sovereignty of Pakistan.After returning from the United States, Ali Khan imposed restrictions on Communist party as well as Pakistan Socialist Party. Although the East Pakistan Communist Party had ultimate success in East-Pakistan after staging the mass protest to recognised Bengali language as national heritage.
The Muslim League after Jinnah founded struggling to survive its existence in West-Pakistan. Therefore, Prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan imposed extreme restrictions and applied tremendous pressure on communist party for not being properly allowed to function openly as a political party. The conspiracy had been planned by left-wing military officer and Chief of General Staff Major-General Akbar Khan. On 23 February 1951, a secret meeting was held at General Akbar's home, attended by other communist officers and communist party members, including Marxist Sajjad Zaheer and communist Faiz. General Akbarassured Faiz and Zaheer that the communist party would be allowed to function as a legitimate political party like any other party and to take part in the elections. But, according to communist Zafar Poshni who maintained, in 2011, that "no agreement was reached, the plan was disapproved, the communists weren't ready to accept General's words and the participants dispersed without meeting again". However the next morning, the plot was foiled when one of the communist officer defected to ISI revealing the motives behind the plot. When the news reached to Prime minister, the orders of massive arrests were ordered to Military Police by the Prime minister. Before the coup could be initiated, General Akbar among other communists were arrested, including Faiz.in a trial led by the Judge Advocate General branch's officers in a military court, Faiz was announced to spent four years in Montgomery Central Jail (MCJ),^[13] due to his influential personality, Liaquat Ali Khan's government continued locating him in Central Prison Karachi and the Central Jail Mianwali. His case later proceeded by socialist Huseyn Suhravardie as his defence counselor.Finally on 2 April 1955, Faiz's sentence was commuted by the Prime minister Huseyn Suhrawardy, and departed to London, Great Britain soon after. In 1958, Faiz again returned but was again detained by President Iskander Mirza, allegedely blamed Fiaz for publishing the pro-communist ideas and advocacy for pro-Moscow government. However, due to Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's influence on Ayub Khan, Faiz's sentence was commuted in 1960 and he was departed to Moscow, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics; he later settled in London, United Kingdom.

Return to Pakistan and government work

In 1964, Faiz finally returned to his country and settled down in Karachi, and was appointed Principal of Abdullah Haroon College. In 1965, Faiz was first brought to government by charismatic democratic socialist Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who was tenuring as Foreign minister in the presidency of Ayub Khan. Bhutto lobbied for Faiz and giving the honorary capacity at the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MoIB) working to rallying the people of West-Pakistan to fight against India to defend their motherland. During the 1971 Winter war, Faiz rallied to mobilize the people, writing patriotic poems and songs that opposed the bloodshed during separation of Bangladesh from Pakistan.
In 1972, Prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto brought him back when Bhutto appointed Faiz as Culture adviser at the Ministry of Culture (MoCul) and the Ministry of Education (MoEd) Faiz continued serving in Bhutto's government until 1974 when he took retirement from the government assignments.
Faiz had strong ties with Bhutto, and had been deeply upset upon Bhutto's removal by Chief of Army Staff General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in 1977, in a military coup codename Fair Play.Again, Faiz was monitored by Military Police and his every move watched In 1979, Faiz departed from Pakistan after learning the news of Bhutto's execution had been taken place. Faiz took asylum in Beirut, Lebanon, but returned to Pakistan in poor health after renewal of the Lebanon War in 1982.In 1984, Faiz died in Lahore, Punjab Province, shortly after hearing a nomination of Nobel Peace Prize.

Sufism[edit]

Faiz was an avowed supporter of Sufism. He had close relations with several Sufi saints of his time. He was a favourite of Baba Malang Sahib, a Sufi of Lahore, Wasif Ali Wasif, Ashfaq Ahmad, Syed Fakhruddin Balley and other renowned Sufis. Once when he was asked how he could compare Sufis with socialist comrades, he replied, "They [Sufis] are the real comrades". He is also credited for coining the term Ana al-Haqq in the political sense.^{[citation needed]}
Faiz was first accused of Atheism during his trial, when to the Prosecutor-General, Faiz famously quipped: "Don’t you know applying ‘"Fragrance"’ is Sunnah?...". The questioner protested and said: "My dear sir, I doubt if you are a great one for following the Sunnah and so on!", then Faiz replied: "Why not, I am also a part of the Islamic culture..."

Legacy

Although living a troubled life, Faiz's work, political ideology, and poetry became immortal, and often dubbed as "greatest poet" of Pakistan. Faiz remained extremely popular and infleuntial figure in the literary development in Pakistan's arts, literature, and drama and theatre adaptation. In 1962, Faiz brought a great name for his country in the Soviet Union who had been hostile and antagonistic relations with Pakistan. The Lenin Peace Prize, a Soviet equivalent of Nobel Peace Prize, helped lift Faiz's image even higher in the international community. It brought Soviet Union and Pakistan much closer, putting past behind and working for development of people of both sides. Most of his work was translated in Russian language.
Faiz, whose work is considered the backbone of development of Pakistan's literature, arts and poetry, was one of the most beloved poets in the country Along with Allama Iqbal, Faiz is often known as "Poet of East". While commenting on his legacy, classical singer Tina Sani mesmerised Faiz's legacy as she puts it:

Faiz Ahmad Faiz... (was) like a comrade, his thoughts were soft but effective and inspired the classical singers as it did others in the plays we did... Faiz’s poetry never gets old because the problems and situations in this country have not changed. Today we sing him because of his beautiful poetry, missing out on the reasons behind his poems that had predictions...

—Tina Sani, commenting the legacy of Faiz, 

Major literary works

• Naqsh-e-Faryadi (1943)
• Dast-e-Saba (1952)
• Zindan-Nama (1956)
• Dast-e-Tah-e-Sung (1965)
• Mere Dil Mere Musafir
• Sar-e-Wadi-e-Sina

All these have been combined as one book Nuskha Haa-e-Wafa (Urdu: نسخہ ہاے وفا).

Accolades and international recognition

Faiz was the first Asian poet to receive the Lenin Peace Prize, awarded by the Soviet Union in 1962. In 1976 he was award the Lotus Prize for Literature.He was also nominated for the Nobel Prize shortly before his death in 1984.
At the ceremony held in grand Kremlin hall in Moscow, Faiz received the award with stage full of Russian attendees, Faiz thanked the Russian government for conferring the honour, and delivered the acceptance speech at the ceremony, which appears as a brief preface to his collection Dast-i-tah-i-Sang (Hand under the rock) is a great piece of humanist literature, as he delivered:

Human ingenuity, science and industry have made it possible to provide each one of us everything we need to be comfortable provided these boundless treasures of nature and production are not declared the property of a greedy few but are used for the benefit of all of humanity… However, this is only possible if the foundations of human society are based not on greed, exploitation and ownership but on justice, equality, freedom and the welfare of everyone… I believe that humanity which has never been defeated by its enemies will, after all, be successful; at long last, instead of wars, hatred and cruelty, the foundation of humankind will rest on the message of the great Persian poet Hafez Shiraz: ‘Every foundation you see is faulty, except that of Love, which is faultless....

—Faiz Ahmad Faiz, 1962, 

In 1990, his services were belatedly honoured by the Pakistan Government when ruling Pakistan Peoples Party led by Prime minister Benazir Bhutto, accepting the recommendation, and posthumously awarded Faiz, the highest civilian award, Nishan-e-Imtiaz in 1990. In 2011, the Pakistan Peoples Party's government declared the year of 2011 "as the year of Faiz Ahmed Faiz".In accordance, the Pakistan Government set up a "Faiz Chair" at the Department of Urdu at the Karachi University and at the Sindh University followed by the Government College University of Lahore established the Patras, Faiz Chair at the Department of Urdu of the university, also in 2011. The same year, the Government College University (GCU) presented the golden presented shields to the University's Urdu department, which was issued and presented by the GCU vice-chancellor Professor Dr. Khaleequr Rehman, who noted and further wrote: "Fiaz was poet of humanity, love and resistance against oppression". In 2012, at the memorial ceremony was held at the Jinnah Garden to honour the services of Faiz by the left-wing party Avami National Party and Communist Party, by the end of the ceremony, the participants chanted his name: "The Faiz of workers is alive! The Faiz of farmers is alive...! Faiz is alive....!"

Translations

Faiz Ahmad Faiz's poetry has been translated into many languages, including English and Russian. A Balochi poet, Mir Gul Khan Nasir, who was also a friend of Faiz Ahmad Faiz, translated his book Sar-e-Wadi-e-Seena into Balochi with the title Seenai Keechag aa. This work by Faiz was translated by Gul Khan while he (Gul Khan) was in jail during Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's regime for opposing the government's policies. It was published in 1980, after Zia-ul-Haq toppled Bhutto's government and freed all the political prisoners of his (Bhutto's) regime. Victor Kiernan, British Marxist historian translated Faiz Ahmed Faiz's works into English, and several other translations of whole or part of his work into English have also been made by others; a transliteration in Punjabi was made by Mohinder Singh.
Faiz Ahmad Faiz, himself, has also translated works of notable poets from other languages into Urdu. In his book "Sar-i Waadi-i Seena" there are some translations of the famous poet of Dagestan, Rasul Gamzatov. "Deewa", a Balochi poem by Mir Gul Khan Nasir, was also translated into Urdu by Faiz.

Plays and dramatic productions on Faiz

• Sheeshon ka Maseeha by Omer Khawaja and Shabana Azmi.
• Dard Aayega Dabe Paon by Sheela Bhatiya.
• Kuchh Ishq kiya Kuchh Kaam written by Danish Iqbal and staged by IPTA Delhi. This multi-media Stage Production is being premiered at Sri Ram centre, New Delhi on 11 November 2011. This Play is basically a Celebration of the Faiz's Poetry and featuring events from the early part of his life, particularly the events and incidents of pre-partition days which shaped his life and ideals. Directed by K K Kohli this musical Production featured Artists like Shamir Abadan, Jaishri Sethi, Dr Naseem, Izhar, Minhaj, Prateek Kapoor, Twinkle Khanna and Amit Bajaj in lead roles. This script is the first part of Faiz trilogy written by Danish Iqbal at the occasion of Faiz Centenary Celebrations.
• Chand Roz Aur Meri Jaan – A dramatised reading of Faiz's letter and letters written by his wife Alys Faiz. This Production was initially done at the start of his birth centenary celebrations at India Habitat Center, New Delhi by Danish Iqbal and Salima Raza. 'Chand Roz Aur Meri Jaan' was also done at Amritsar Faiz Festival organised by Preet Ladi, at Punjab Natshala, Amritsar, on 6 October 2011. This time it was done by Suchitra Gupta and Danish Iqbal.
• 2011 Drama Festival of Delhi Urdu Academy is basically devoted to Productions about Faiz. Apart from 'Kuchh Ishq kiya Kuchh Kaam' by IPTA, Delhi and 'Chand Roz Aur Meri Jaan' by Wings Cultural Society, this Festival will also feature Plays by Peirreot's Troupe on Faiz, namely 'Jo Dil Pe Guzarti Hai'. The festival also presented, for the first time on stage 'Tera Bayaan Ghalib', directed by Dr Hadi Sarmadi and performed by Bahroop Arts Group, which was an adaptation of one of Faiz's few plays for the radio.

In popular culture

A collection of some of Faiz's masterpieces in different genres and tributes by his family, contemporaries and scholars who knew him through his immortal poetry was published in 2011, under the name of "Celebrating Faiz" edited by D P Tripathi. The book was released on Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary in Punjab province of Pakistan.
urdubhasha.blogspot.com/faizahmadfaiz

Akhtar ul Iman

Akhtar ul Iman

(1915–1996) was a noted Urdu poet and screenwriter in Hindi cinema, who had a major influence on modern Urdu nazm.

He won the Filmfare Award for Best Dialogue in 1963 for Dharmputra and 1966 for Waqt. He was awarded the 1962 Sahitya Akademi Award in Urdu, for his Poetry Collection, Yadein (Memories), by Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters

Early life and education

Born in Qila, Najibabad, in the Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh in 1915.
He gained his initial education at Bijnor, where he came in contact with poet and scholar Khurshid ul Islam — who taught at Aligarh Muslim University — and developed a long association with Ralph Russell. He graduated from the (Zakir Husain College) in Delhi.

Career

After receiving a Master of Arts in Urdu Literature from Delhi University, he worked in the Civil Supplies Department^[vague] and All India Radio in Delhi. From 1945 after he moved to Mumbai (then Bombay), he started working for Hindi cinema as a script writer.
His poetry is highly individualistic and innovative. He stands apart from other poets of his time in his themes, style, language^] He preferred nazm over more popular ghazal as a mean of poetic expression. Akhtar ul Iman's language is "coarse and unpoetic". He uses "coarse" and mundane poetic expressions to make his message effective and realistic. His poetry strives to find out a balance between the conflicting or extreme choices faced by man. He chose free verse for his nazms to make his conversational style of expression more realistic.
He was strongly influenced by Meeraji and N. M. Rashid and is more similar to them than other poets of his era. He was close friend of Meeraji, who lived with him until his death. Together they formed the Halqa-e-Arbab-e-Adab ("Circle of friends of Poetry"). Poets who belong to this circle wrote independently of the ideology and standards set by the Progressive Writers' Movement. Although they were few in numbers they contributed significantly and had a major influence on later generations of poets It was also a starting point of Modernisnm in Urdu.
He left behind a substantial legacy for new generation of poets to follow which explores new trends and themes in modern Urdu poetry giving a new direction to the modern and contemporary Urdu nazm with emphasis on philosophical humanism.
He was the father-in-law of actor Amjad Khan.

Books

• Iss Aabad Kharabe Mein (Urdu)-published by Urdu Academy, Delhi, India. Autobiography of a famous Urdu writer of India.

Poetry

He has published seven collections:

• Tareek Sayyara (1943)
• Gardyab (1946)
• Aabjoo (1959)
• Yaden (1961)
• Bint-e-Lamhaat (1969)
• Naya Ahang (1977)
• Sar-o-Samaan (1983)

Play

• Sabrang (1948): a one-verse play.

Translation and compilation by others

• Zamistan Sard Mehrika (Urdu)- Last Poetic Collection of an unforgettable Urdu poet. Compiled and edited by Sultana Iman and Bedar Bakht.
• Query of the Road - Selected Poems of Akhtar-ul-Iman with Extensive Commentary by Baidar Bakht

Indian cinema

His contribution to Hindi cinema is significant, keeping in mind the number of landmark and hit movies he has contributed as a script writer (dialogue, story and screenplay).His first landmark movie was Kanoon, which became a big hit despite the fact that it had no songs or comedy sequences. This achievement remains unparalleled in Hindi cinema.^] Other important movies to which he contributed as a script writer were Dharmputra (1961) — for which he received a filmfare award — Gumrah, Waqt, Patther ke Sanam, and Daagh.
The one movie which has his lyrics is Bikhare Moti.

Awards

Literary awards

• 1962: Sahitya Akademi Award - Urdu: Yadein (Poetry)
• Iqbal Samman

and Numerous other literary awards.

• Filmfare Award
  • 1963: Best Dialogue: Dharmputra
  • 1966: Best Dialogue: Waqt

Filmography

• Vijay (1988) - writer
• Chor Police (1983) - writer
• Lahu Pukarega (1980) - director
• Do Musafir (1978) - writer
• Chandi Sona (1977) - writer
• Zameer (1975) - writer
• 36 Ghante (1974) - writer
• Roti (1974) - writer
• Naya Nasha (1973) - writer
• Bada Kabutar (1973) - writer
• Daag (1973) - writer
• Dhund (1973) - writer
• Joshila (1973) - writer
• Kunwara Badan (1973) - writer
• Dastaan (1972) - writer
• Joroo Ka Ghulam (1972) - writer
• Aadmi Aur Insaan (1969) - writer
• Chirag (1969) - writer
• Ittefaq (1969) - writer
• Aadmi (1968) - writer
• Hamraaz (1967) - writer
• Patthar Ke Sanam (1967) - writer
• Gaban (1966) - writer
• Mera Saaya (1966) - writer
• Phool Aur Patthar (1966) - writer
• Bhoot Bungla (1965) - writer
• Waqt (1965) - writer
• Shabnam (1964) - writer
• Yaadein (1964) - writer
• Aaj Aur Kal (1963) - writer
• Akeli Mat Jaiyo (1963) - writer
• Gumrah (1963) - writer
• Neeli Aankhen (1962) - writer
• Dharmputra (1961) - writer
• Flat No. 9 (1961) - writer
• Barood (1960) - writer
• Kalpana (1960) - writer
• Kanoon (1960) - writer
• Nirdosh (1950) - writer
• Actress (1948) - writer
• Jharna (1948) - writerwww.urdubhasha.blogspot.com/akhtaruliman

Aijaz Siddiqi

Aijaz  Siddiqi (1911–1978) was a Urdu writer and poet. He was the son of the famous Urdu poet, Seemab Akbarabadi. He was born in Agra, Uttar Pradesh. After having founded Qasr-ul-Adab in 1923, Seemab Akbarabadi had in the year 1930 started publication of a literary journal in Urdu from Agra titled Shair; he was its first editor. A few years later i.e. in 1935, in order to concentrate on the other than more important activities of Qasr-ul- Adab, he had handed over the charge of this magazine to Aijaz Siddiqi who carrying forward the tradition of his father remained its editor till 1978 long after the publication of Shair was shifted from Agra to Mumbai in 1947and Seemab Akbarabadi had in 1951 died in Karachi. Mahendra Nath, the Urdu short-story writer and younger brother of Krishan Chander had also joined him to compile and edit several special issues of Shair.
in his dress and appearance Aijaz resembled his father.Presently there exist two collections of his poems – 1) Khwaabon ke masiha and 2) Karb e khud kalaami, both published in 1966.www.urdubhasha.blogspot.com/aijazsiddiqi

Rafiq Husain

Husain was born to Syed Mohammed Taqi an aristocratic family in Baragaon, Jalalpur, Ambedkar Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh. He was the first Indian Ph.D. holder on the Urdu poetry of Allama Iqbal. He received a master degree in Urdu Literature from Allahabad University.He was awarded the gold medal in English literature during his graduation from Allahabad University.Husain married Husnara Begum in January 1948, and the couple had four sons and two daughters

Career

He was selected in PCS  and served as Registrar of Co-Operative Society. On completion of his postgraduate studies, he joined Allahabad University as Lecturer on the persecution of the Vice Chancellor Amarnath Jha of Allahabad University. Later he became Chairman of Allahabad University Delegacy and Head of the Urdu Department. A competition occurred between Rafique Hussain and Firdaus Fatima Naseer for the Professorship in Urdu

Bibliography

• Urdu Ghazal aur unski Nash-vo-Numa, 1942
• Mir Hasan ki ḥayat aur Siḥrulbayān ka tanqidi jaizah, 1960
• Dabistan, 1964,
• Guizār-E-aqīdat, 1966
• Afsanvi uṣul aur fasanah-yi ajaib, 1975
• Mas navi Siḥr al-bayan: yaʻnī, Qiṣṣah-yi Be Naẓīr va Badr-i Munīr, 1978
• Azmat-e-Marasi
• Pahli Tankid Pahla Naqad
• Mawazna Anis wa Dabir
• Masnawi Gulzar Naseem by Pt Daya Shankar "Naseem" with an introduction and notes by Rafiq Husainwww.urdubhasha.blogspot.com/ragiqueahmad