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By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
The Urdu Academy of North America held its monthly literary session on January 20, 2013. The event, held at the Chandni Restaurant, was dedicated to the life and work of two prominent Urdu poets, Nasir Kazmi and Anwar Anjum.
Tashie Zaheer, President of the Urdu Academy, was MC for the first session. He presented a well researched maqala (paper) on the life and work of Nasir Kazmi (1925-1972).
Urdu enthusiasts elated the audience with recitation of the poetry of Nasir Kazmi. They were: Usman Rashid, Mukesh Kackar, Ishaq Nagpurwala, Irshad Khan, Meraj Sultana Ghazali, Tasadduq Attari, Hatim Rani, Abdus Sattar Ghazali, Shehzad Basir, Talat Khan, Nagesh Avadhani, Khalid Rana and Jafar Shah.
Syed Nasir Raza Kazmi, is one of the greatest poets of this era, especially in the use of "ista'aaray" and "chhotee beher". Kazmi was born on December 8, 1925 at Ambala, Haryana. He died in Lahore on March 2, 1972.
Kazmi started his poetic life in 1940 by following the style of Akhtar Sherani and wrote romantic poems and sonnets. Later he began writing ghazals under the guidance of Hafeez Hoshyarpuri. He was a great admirer of Mir Taqi Mir and probably the melancholy and "Ehsaas-e-Mehroomi" in his poetry was a direct result of that admiration. His tutor in poetry was Hafeez Hoshyarpuri, who himself used a lot of symbols from nature in his poems.
Nasir used to hum his poetic verses and this humming was appealing to many of his readers / listeners.
He migrated from Ambala, India to Lahore Pakistan in August 1947. He also worked as a Staff Editor in Radio Pakistan. He used to sit at Tea House and wander at Mall Road, Lahore with his friends. He was fond of eating, wandering and enjoying life. Normally people take him as a sad poet but most of his poetry is based on romantic happiness and the aspect of hope. Few people know that he did some great translations of English poets, especially his translation of Walt Whitman's "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry" by the title of "Brooklyn Ghaat Ke Paar" is a real masterpiece and worth reading.
His last four books were published after his death of stomach cancer. A few days before his death, Kazmi said in a television interview with Intezaar Hussain:
'horse riding, hunting, wandering in a village, walk along the river side, visiting mountains etc. were my favourite pastimes and probably this was the time when my mind got nourishment for loving nature and getting close to the expression of poetry. All my hobbies are related with fine arts, like singing, poetry, hunting, chess, love of birds, love of trees etc ... I started poetry because I used to reflect that all the beautiful things those I see, and those in nature are not in my hands, and they go away from me. Few moments, that time which dies, cannot be made alive. I think can be alive in poetry, that is why I (Nasir) started poetry!'[Source Wikipedia]
Prof. Anwar Anjum
Poet Arshad Rashid was the MC for the second session dedicated to the life and work of Anwar Anjum who died in 1969 at the age of 26 because of liver cirrhosis.
As usual Anjum's thought provoking poetry was recited by a number of Urdu lovers including: Shehzad Basir, Misbah Rehman, Tasadduq Attari, Meraj Sultana Ghazali, Abdus Sattar Ghazali, Talat Khan, Hatem Rani, and Nagesh Avadhani.
Naseer Humyun and Tashie Zaheer spoke emotionally about their personal experiences with Anwar Anjum who was the elder brother of Tashie Zaheer and brother-in-law of Naseer Humayun.
Anwar Anjum left this temporary abode at a very young age but he left a rich legacy of poetry to inspire the young generation. Perhaps his poetry is the meeting point of the classical poetry and the modern poetry. Tellingly, Nasir Kazmi, who is considered as the last poet of Mir Taqi Mir tradition, was a friend of Anwar Anjum.
Anwar Anjum's poetry has the beautiful combination and reflection of the classical and modern Urdu poetry. His poetry may be considered a trend setter for the new generation.
Dr. Arsh Siddiqui, professor at the Oriental College says there are people who attain maturity and wisdom at an early age and Anwar Anjum was among those.
Anwar Anjum earned Master of Arts degree in 1963 from the Oriental College Lahore and joined the Education Department as a lecturer. Read More about Anwar Anjum
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