Mehr Afshan Farooqi

COLUMN: WHY AZAD OVERLOOKED MOMIN

COLUMN: WHY AZAD OVERLOOKED MOMIN

It is perplexing that Muhammad Husain Azad (1830-1910), author of the scintillating, so-called ‘first history of Urdu poetry’, Updated 05 Aug, 2024 05:14pm
COLUMN: LITERARY & SPOKEN LANGUAGE

COLUMN: LITERARY & SPOKEN LANGUAGE

On a recent visit to Iran, I was shocked at how little I could understand of spoken Persian. I could read and... Published 31 Mar, 2024 08:52am
COLUMN: THE POETRY OF LOVE

COLUMN: THE POETRY OF LOVE

This past year I designed an undergraduate course that I called ‘The Poetry of Love’. One of the challenges of the course was how Published 28 Jan, 2024 09:15am
COLUMN: FLOWERS IN A MIRROR

COLUMN: FLOWERS IN A MIRROR

The great 19th century Urdu and Farsi poet Ghalib was a master in creating neologisms. He excelled in pushing language to its... Published 26 Nov, 2023 08:26am
COLUMN: A MUSHAIRA IN VIRGINIA

COLUMN: A MUSHAIRA IN VIRGINIA

The mushaira at Richmond, Virginia, in late August this year reminded me of gatherings from my childhood, when poets... Published 24 Sep, 2023 05:25am
COLUMN: THE MIGRANT POET

COLUMN: THE MIGRANT POET

Kunwar Muhammad Jamilur Rahman Khan Jamil was born and raised in Lahore, Pakistan. He served as Joint Secretary Halqa-i-Takhleeq Published 23 Jul, 2023 05:25am
COLUMN: MY HEART AND GHALIB - III

COLUMN: MY HEART AND GHALIB - III

The hospital twinkles with lights, like a beacon dispelling the darkness of the winter morning. The lobby sparkles. A steady... Published 21 May, 2023 07:58am
COLUMN: MY HEART AND GHALIB – II

COLUMN: MY HEART AND GHALIB – II

‘Constriction’ is a multivalent word. It holds in its depths a slew of emotions. It is like a tight knot of feelings inside your Published 19 Mar, 2023 08:02am
COLUMN: MY HEART AND GHALIB - I

COLUMN: MY HEART AND GHALIB - I

Prelude: I have been trying to write my lived experience of a heart attack for over a month now. But words didn’t flow. Published 15 Jan, 2023 06:59am
COLUMN: BEDIL AND GHALIB

COLUMN: BEDIL AND GHALIB

Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib began and concluded his first collection of Urdu poetry — his Divan published in 1816 — with a Published 13 Nov, 2022 08:08am
COLUMN: TRAVELS IN TURKEY — II

COLUMN: TRAVELS IN TURKEY — II

We warmed up quickly to the charming brother. He mentioned the sama [meditation ceremony] of the whirling dervishes that happened Published 11 Sep, 2022 05:54am
COLUMN: TRAVELS IN TURKEY — I

COLUMN: TRAVELS IN TURKEY — I

I keep thinking of the youth with the two little rabbits, sitting by the side of the frenzied path on the boardwalk. The two... Published 31 Jul, 2022 11:52am
COLUMN: POETICS AND POLITICS

COLUMN: POETICS AND POLITICS

The Progressive-Marxist Writers’ Movement in Urdu of the 1930s had created space for ‘revolutionary poetry’.... Updated 29 May, 2022 10:20am
COLUMN: THE BIRDS OF URDU POETRY

COLUMN: THE BIRDS OF URDU POETRY

A long time ago — perhaps in the 1970s — I observed my father, Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, leafing through... Updated 17 Apr, 2022 04:00pm
COLUMN: THE LAUNCH OF SHABKHOON

COLUMN: THE LAUNCH OF SHABKHOON

The first issue of Shabkhoon, dated June 1966, was launched in April. My mother’s moral and financial support had... Updated 21 Feb, 2022 08:49am
COLUMN: ON RETURNING HOME

COLUMN: ON RETURNING HOME

I’ve been cleaning out closets; dusting bookshelves packed with love. Every book in this big room, every artefact, photograph... Published 02 Jan, 2022 09:22am
COLUMN: DOMAINS OF TRANSLATION

COLUMN: DOMAINS OF TRANSLATION

What is the Urdu for ‘fiddle dee dee’, or the English for ‘Sarra rara rara’? Are those words really English... Updated 15 Nov, 2021 11:13am