KARACHI, Nov 16: To recognise and acknowledge noted poet and columnist Jamiluddin Aali’s 50-year association with the Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu and his invaluable services as a poet and researcher, an event was organised by the Anjuman and the Federal Urdu University at the university’s Abdul Qadeer Khan auditorium on Wednesday.

Eminent critic Dr Farman Fatehpuri, who presided over the event, lauded the efforts of the organisers and told the audience, who had come in a big number, that he had known Jamiluddin Aali for more than 50 years. He said there was a reason Aali sahib had particularly earned a name for himself in the genre of doha in Urdu poetry. He claimed the metres that Aali employed to write the doha were not driven from Sanskrit or Hindi, but they were of local origin. Giving technical examples, he said a good poet created his/her own metrical compositions with little or no change to the original formation. He added that Urdu poetry would have been poorer if Aali hadn’t written the dohas.

Mr Aali thanked all those who took part in the programme and said it was a nice trend to pay tribute to living (zinda) writers and poets. He advised those who had arranged the function that such programmes should be put up for other distinguished writers and critics, such as Mr Fatehpuri. When Aali sahib ended his brief speech, the host of the event, Azfar Rizvi, requested him to present his poetry using his typical tarannum. Aali sahib obliged and uttered a few couplets, the first of which was:

Dharti se aakash punhanchtey dhanak ne kia bal khaey Koee dekhey koee sochey sub ka mann lahraey (In the journey from soil to firmament, the rainbow changed shapesThose who gaze and those who ponder, all feel entranced) Poet and playwright Amjad Islam Amjad (who had specially flown in from Lahore to take part in the event) said though Aali sahib’s association with the Anjuman had spanned a half a century, he had known him for 46 years. Going back in time he said he first came to know of him when in Oriental College Lahore someone inquired as to who’d written the following couplet:

Kuch na tha bajuz kaar-i-muhabbat ik umr Wo jo bigra hai to ab kaam kaee yaad aaey (For long, life was nothing but the pursuit of love Now that s/he’s livid, I must run the forgotten errands) And one of his teachers told him that it was Aali’s.

Mr Amjad then informed the gathering about a trip abroad in which Aali sahib had accompanied him in the ‘70s. He quoted a friend’s sentence “Not to know Aali sahib is a tragedy, but to know him is a greater tragedy”.

Explaining it he said when Aali committed himself to a task he took it to a passionate extreme and made even his friends lose sleep over it. Touching on his ability as a poet, he said since Aali sahib presented his verses in tarannum, it served as a two-edged sword and he wasn’t given his due in the realm of literature.

Vice-Chancellor of the University of Karachi Dr Pirzada Qasim said it was a blessing that Aali sahib existed amongst us. He argued that conscious societies (zinda muashrey) always praised, and paid tribute to, their bright people. Aali sahib’s multifaceted achievements in the fields of literature, journalism, culture and politics was a result of his commitment to whatever he did. He lamented that ours was turning into an anti-knowledge society and we were on the verge of intellectual bankruptcy. He said fiscal deficitscould be recovered by getting dollars but intellectual deficit couldn’t, which affected generations.

IBA Director Dr Ishrat Husain said there were four important aspects of Jamiluddin Aali’s life and work (1) poetry – national songs, dohas, etc (2) his efforts for the Writers Guild (3) politics (4) endeavours in establishing the Urdu University.

Dr Fatima Hasan said Aali sahib had enriched Urdu literature with his dohas. She asserted that the poet was devoid of any kind of hypocrisy and his personality and poetry couldn’t be separated.

Dr Zafar Iqbal said through his columns Aali sahib had changed many people’s outlook on life, and with his consistent love for his country and patriotic poetry he kept spreading the message of love.

Dr Qamarul Haq likened Maulvi Abdul Haq and Aali to Iqbal and Jinnah (one saw the dream, the other helped it materialise).

Dr Mumtaz Ahmed Khan read out Fateh Mohammad Malik’s paper because the latter being unwell couldn’t come from Islamabad.

According to Mr Malik, Aali’s poetry was a combination of patriotic, national and universal thoughts.

Rakhsana Saba presented her tribute to Aali sahib in verse.