An Urdu poet and translator

July 3, 2015Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Educationmpositiveone@gmail.com

KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOUR: Qaiser Shameem ^{_{Urdu poet}}

Qaiser Shameem recites a poem from his collection. Picture by Gopal Senapati

His poetry is about life, society, relationships and his experiences. Those who read him feel that he evokes sentiments that are lost in everyday life. Qaiser Shameem writes in Urdu, the language in which he can express himself best. Living in one corner of Shibpur, Shameem’s works are recognised nationally and outside the country as well. He was invited as chief guest at an international shayari sammelan organised in London in 2006.

In 2013, Shameem was part of a team selected by the Department of Urdu in Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi for translating selected Rabindranath Tagore’s works into Urdu. “We had to attend a five-day workshop and each writer was assigned a certain poem, novel or short story by Tagore to be translated into Urdu. I translated his poem, Jatri,” said Shameem.

Qaiser has always been involved with various literary activities. When he was a boy, he liked to study. Qaiser Shameem was born as Abdul Qayyum Khan in Angus in Hooghly district. He was the eldest among his siblings. His father worked in a factory, but the young Shameem always told him that he wanted to study. Since 1951, Shameem’s poetry, short stories and critical essays have been published in almost every Urdu magazine and journal in the country. Shameem was also a bright student. He passed the High Madrasa examinations with a first class and was a topper in the board in 1953.

Since he wanted to study further, Shameem had to shift to Howrah, closer to Calcutta for better opportunities. He took admission in Central Calcutta College, better known today as Moulana Azad College. “I had to give tuitions to students to earn a living. I had to send money back home to run the household and also run my own expenses here,” said Shameem. While studying and teaching, Shameem was also writing, attending literary meetings and doing other things. “I was a regular at the Progressive Writers’ Association, where I had met Subhas Mukhopadhyay and Pervez Sahidi and other well-known writers,” said Shameem.

After college, Shameem took up teaching Urdu in a number of schools in Howrah and Calcutta. He was also a professor at the Urdu department of Calcutta University from where he retired. He now teaches at his college, Maulana Azad College. Shameem was also the co-editor of two magazines, Azad Hind and Howrah Times.

From 2002 to 2005, he was the joint secretary of Paschim Banga Urdu Academy.

Shameem’s collection of poetry have been published as books like Saton ka Samandar (1971), Saans ki Dhar (1997) and Pahar Kaatte Huye published in 1998. Tridhara published in 1996 was Shameem’s collection of Hindi poetry. “I always believed that words and literature are a stronger medium than any other form of expression,” he said.

While writing, Shameem has also established Writers’ Association in Howrah in 1966. “The plan was to have a cultural exchange between Urdu writers and writers of other languages. I wanted to start a group where all writers would get an opportunity,” said Shameem.

Other than Tagore, Shameem has also translated the works of Kazi Nazrul Islam and Mahasweta Devi.

MORE ABOUT SHAMEEM