Royal spread:The ‘Khwan Nemat-e-Asafia’ lists 15 types of biryanis such as Biryani Rumi, Biryani Mahboobi, Biryani Nargis, Biryani Hazar Afreen.
The world knows them for fabulous jewels and splendid palaces. But not many know that the erstwhile Hyderabad rulers had a weakness for a rich diet as well.
Sample this: Biryani Dulhan, Yeqni Palou Shirazi, Khorma Murgh, Qhalia Chamkura, Kabab Gul Khatai. A ‘shahi’ spread any which way. If your mouth is doing a tango, you are not to be blamed.
Now, one can try out these dishes. Urdu daily Siasat has stumbled upon a dog-eared copy containing a list of 680 formulae used by the royal kitchenette of the 6{+t}{+h}Nizam, Mir Mahboob Ali Khan (1866 – 1911). The newspaper plans to publish the recipes in Urdu and English on art paper shortly. The book, titled Matbaqe Asafia, is expected to hit the market in the next two months.
“It will be in time for Ramzan, the month of fasting,” Siasat ’s Editor Zahed Ali Khan says.
Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are. A look at the recipes and the ingredients that go into making these sumptuous dishes give an inkling of the royal taste — cuisine that is never clichéd. Every formula differs from the other in the set of instructions and ingredients.
The ‘Khwan Nemat-e-Asafia’ lists 15 different types of biryanis such as Biryani Rumi, Biryani Mahboobi, Biryani Nargis, Biryani Hazar Afreen. As the name suggests, the ‘Dulhan Biryani’ is highly decorated with a fried banana in covering of ‘warq’ (silver foil).
Besides, there are 18 kinds of pulav , 16 of khichidi , 48 of do-pyaza , 21 variants of khorma , 45 of kabab and 29 types of naan . Besides, there are 25 varieties of chutneys (condiments) and 33 types of achaar . Apart from an assortment of spices and dry fruits, the ingredients also include a generous sprinkle of perfumes and sandal.
But some of the formulas could be a recipe for sickness, given the heavy doze of ‘pure ghee’ suggested. There are also some recipes, which, if tried now could land one in trouble. For instance, the book contains formulas for cooking animals which now attract provisions of the Wildlife Act. “But we don’t propose to include such recipes since they are banned now”, Mr. Khan says.
So gourmets, get ready for a royal repast.
Come Ramzan and the Siasat daily plans to publish a list of 680 formulae used by the royal kitchenette of the sixth Nizam, Mir Mahboob Ali Khan
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by J.S. Ifthekhar / Hyderabad – May 13th, 2013
In ‘Muslim Women Speak: Of Dreams and Shackles‘, activist-scholar Jamil tries to find these women’s real voices, instead of just presenting them as victims.
Fatima reads her Quran when her alcoholic father goes out for his daily jaunt. In public, the 15-year-old ‘woman’ can always be seen clad in a burqa. Does that make Fatima a devout Muslim or a victim first? She regrets having to drop out of school and take on the extra job of zari making. She quarrels with her mother about it. Is that a suggestion of Fatima’s latent feminism?
Ghazala Jamil’s analytically robust account of Muslim women is infused with voices of young women wrestling with Jamil across various workshops. They are trying to gain control over the narrative of their own lives from the oppressive and hegemonic stereotypes of women as victims. Worse even, the notion that Muslim women are victims of a special kind.
Chiselled over 10 chapters, the development worker, activist and scholar in Ghazala Jamil together fight her battles with scholarship on multiple fronts. As the cover from Baaraan Ijlal’s installation Birdbox suggests, the project tries to uncover and unshackle young Muslim women in discovering their real voices aside from their popular representation of them as victims.
First, Jamil takes on Indian feminists. She criticises their inability to imagine the experience of womanhood in the grips of minoritisation and marginality. By imposing an imaginary ‘universality’, they subsume religious, sensual, intolerant, para-civilised and violent specificities, to conceptualise an ‘Indian sisterhood’. Such broadstroke feminism, she observes, subsequently fails to account for communally charged alienation of Muslims in India.
From there, she directs her attention to methodological failures in academia, journalism and activism. They continually subject Muslims to quantitative enquiries, failing to unravel the qualitative complexities and multiplicities of Muslim lives. This is evident in the obvious lack of theoretical insights into Muslim lives.
This, she charges, is symptomatic of a global malady that tends to imagine Muslims worldwide as a singular category, indolently conflating religion with civilization.
Further, she tries to situate her work on intimate aspirations by trying to tease out a backdrop of national imaginary that forms an alternative to western imperialism. Following Gopal Guru’s arguments, Ghazala Jamil goes on to assert that theory making is a social responsibility. It restores agency to those deemed powerless and therefore is emancipatory, transformative and a political project in articulating an identity.
Jamil disavows the very notion of authentic knowledge and instead chooses to take recourse to Donna Haraway’s “situated knowledge”. She argues that the “worth of being an insider or outsider may be judged in its ability to deliver”. Thus, she adopts a novel method of engaging in workshops with her interlocutors where they play an active part in generating knowledge about their own lives.
In doing so, Jamila manages to excavate her interlocutors’ views on what they imagine as taking action or acts of agency. Within such a field of agency, silence, hesitation, tears and inaction begin to speak as loud as words do. She exposes her readers to a world of experience beyond words; adding rich denseness of experiences or marginality.
It is from this vantage point that Ghazala Jamil begins to delve into the dreams and aspirations, the shame and humiliation of young Muslim women in India. For instance, criticising quantitative studies that reduce aspirations to solely that of socio-economic status, Jamil attempts to broaden the horizon of aspirations to include educational status and career goals of young Muslim women.
The study also goes on to examine the simultaneously impeding and encouraging influence of faith and family attitude, gender roles, intimate relationships, socio-cultural and political milestones on aspirations of these young women.
Yet the cumulative effect of communalism and poverty infected patriarchy is that daughters often tend to grow up motherless. They seek motherly affection and protection in their marriages. This often does not fructify under the effect of communal violence that collides into their lives long after an incident itself.
Arpita Phukan Biswas holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay.
source: http://www.theprint.in / The Print / Home> Page Turner> Afterword / by Arpita Phukan Biswas / August 12th, 2018
Come Ramzan and the Siasat daily plans to publish a list of 680 formulae used by the royal kitchenette of the 6 Nizam, Mir Mahboob Ali Khan
The world knows them for fabulous jewels and splendid palaces. But not many know that the erstwhile Hyderabad rulers had a weakness for a rich diet as well.
Sample this: Biryani Dulhan, Yeqni Palou Shirazi, Khorma Murgh, Qhalia Chamkura, Kabab Gul Khatai. A ‘shahi’ spread any which way. If your mouth is doing a tango, you are not to be blamed.
Now, one can try out these dishes. Urdu daily Siasat has stumbled upon a dog-eared copy containing a list of 680 formulae used by the royal kitchenette of the 6 Nizam, Mir Mahboob Ali Khan (1866 – 1911). The newspaper plans to publish the recipes in Urdu and English on art paper shortly.
The book, titled Matbaqe Asafia, is expected to hit the market in the next two months.
“It will be in time for Ramzan, the month of fasting,” Siasat’s Editor Zahed Ali Khan says.
Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are. A look at the recipes and the ingredients that go into making these sumptuous dishes give an inkling of the royal taste — cuisinethat is never clichéd. Every formula differs from the other in the set of instructions and ingredients.
The ‘Khwan Nemat-e-Asafia’ lists 15 different types of biryanis such as Biryani Rumi, Biryani Mahboobi, Biryani Nargis, Biryani Hazar Afreen. As the name suggests, the ‘Dulhan Biryani’ is highly decorated with a fried banana in covering of ‘warq’ (silver foil).
Besides, there are 18 kinds of pulav, 16 of khichidi, 48 of do-pyaza, 21 variants of khorma, 45 of kabab and 29 types of naan. Besides, there are 25 varieties of chutneys (condiments) and 33 types of achaar. Apart from an assortment of spices and dry fruits, the ingredients also include a generous sprinkle of perfumes and sandal.
Piece of advice
But some of the formulas could be a recipe for sickness, given the heavy doze of ‘pure ghee’ suggested. There are also some recipes, which, if tried now could land one in trouble. For instance, the book contains formulas for cooking animals which now attract provisions of the Wildlife Act.
“But we don’t propose to include such recipes since they are banned now”, Mr. Khan says.
So gourmets, get ready for a royal repast.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by J.S. Ifthekhar / Hyderabad – May 13th, 2013
His poetry reflected his passionate love for his country and his goal of total freedom from the British rule.
B.R. Ambedkar with Maulana Hasrat Mohani at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s reception in 1949.
On our 72nd Independence day, let us remember the freedom fighter, revolutionary, the poet, the maulana, and the Krishna bhakt: Maulana Hasrat Mohani and celebrate the diversity of India in all its glory.
If the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the United States was fuelled by ‘We shall overcome’, in India that honour would go to ‘Inqilaab Zindabad’ coined by Hasrat Mohani (1875 – 1951). It became the chant of Indian revolutionaries.
Though Mohani is remembered today for his romantic ghazal Chupke chupke raat din, his poetry reflected his passionate love for his country and his goal of total freedom from the British rule. He along with Ram Prasad Bismil got the proposal for Poorna Swaraj (complete Independence) accepted by the Indian National Congress in 1921.
Rasm e jafa kaamyaab dekhiye kab tak rahe,
Hubb e watan mast e khwaab dekhiye kab tak rahe,
Daulat e Hindostan qabzah e aghyar mein
Be adad o be hisaab dekhiye kab tak rahe!
(How long will tyranny succeed, let us see
Till when will freedom be a dream*, let us see
Hindustan’s riches are in the clutches of plunderers
Till When will this continue, let us see.)
[*dream here alludes to awakening of Indians from their slumber]
Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a very complex but extremely interesting personality. He was born in a zamindar family in Mohan near Unnao (Uttar Pradesh) in 1875, and was named Fazlul Hasan. ‘Hasrat’ (longing) was his nom de plume or ‘takhallus’ and Mohani as he hailed from the village Mohan. His early education was in his village and he matriculated from Government High School, Fatehpur. He went on to join the Mohammedan Anglo Oriental College, Aligarh (now Aligarh Muslim University).
Hasrat Mohani was a very active participant in the freedom struggle and was jailed many times. A lot of his poetry is composed during his imprisonment.
Hasrat Mohan was an ardent supporter of Bal Gangadhar Tilak and when he died, the poet penned these lines:
Jab tak wo rahe dunyaa meN raha ham sab ke diloN par zor unka
ab rah ke bahisht meN nizd-i-khuda huro’N pe kareNge raj Tilak –
(As long as he stayed in this world he ruled our hearts
Now in Paradise, closer to God, the houris will be his court.)
Although Hasrat was a romantic poet, he was an active member of the Indian NationalCongress, the Muslim League and the Communist Party of India.
One of his popular verses is:
Gandhi ki tarah baith ke kaate’nge kyun charkh
Lenin ki tarah de’nge duniya ko hila hum
Why should we sit and spin yarn on the ‘charkha’
Like Lenin we will shake the world.
The revolutionary was also a romantic poet and today no ghazal mehfil is complete without a rendition of his evergreen couplet:
“Chupke Chupke raat din aansoo bahana yaad hai
Ham ko ab tak aashiqii kaa vo zamaanaa yaad hai”
(Shedding tears in silence, day and night, I remember
Those days of being in love, I still remember.)
His appeal across nations can be judged from these two stamps by India and Pakistan.
We often talk about his role in the Independence Movement, and his romantic ghazals but rarely do we talk of his devotion to Shri Krishna. According to Prof C.M. Naim, he wrote his first poem on Krishna in Urdu, when he was in Pune during Janmashthami in 1923.
Hasrat Mohani also wrote many verses in praise of Shri Krishna in Bhasha. He visited Brindaban as many times as he went for Hajj to Mecca (11 times) such was his devotion to Shri Krishna.
So while on the one hand, he wrote:
Mose cheR karat nandlāl
lie Thāre abīr gulāl
DhīTh bha’ī jin kī barjorī
auran par rang Dāl-Dāl
ham-huN jo de’ī lipTā’e-ke Hasrat
sārī ye chalbal nikāl
Nandlal keeps teasing me without end;
There he lurks, ready to pour colors on me.
Having safely sprayed others so many times,
He is now set in his bullying ways.
But what if I should embrace him, Hasrat,
Then squeeze him dry of his fancy tricks?
( verse and translation C M Naim’s article ‘the Maulana who loved Krishna )
On the other hand, he wrote innumerable naats and munajats in praise of Prophet Mohammed.
Khyaal e yaar ko dil se mita do Yaa Rasool Allah
Khird ko apna diwaana bana do Yaa Rasool Allah
Remove all thoughts of any other than you O Allah’s Prophet
Make my intellect, crazy for you O Allah’s Prophet
(The answer can be found in his Sufi leaning and learning. Sufism is the path of Bhakti, which has bound Hindus and Muslims together in a syncretic culture, which we call Ganga Jamuni.)
He was a disciple of Hazrat Shah Abdur Razzaq Farangi Mahalli in the Qadria Sufi Order. Sufism believes in losing oneself in the Beloved to achieve salvation and the love of Radha Krishna is a beautiful example of the same.
We can find the answer in the “Iintroductory note to Divan 7) where he refers to the god Krishna as Hazrat Srī Krishna ‘Alaihi-Rahma and claims that in doing so he is follow- ing the path of his spiritual mentors, particularly Hazrat Sayyad Abdur Razzaq Bansawi, whom he mentions.”
Hasrat’s poetry written near Makkah for pilgrimage:
ek khalish hoti hai mehsoos rag o jaan ke qareeb
Aan pahunche hai magar manzil e jaana’n ke qareeb
(A strange pain near my jugular vein I can feel
I have reached my destination near my Beloved)
The music we hear comes from one source, it’s just that we are unable to hear beyond the first few notes. Let’s pause and listen today. To my heart, to your heart and our beloved nation’s heart. I am sure they all want the same thing: peace, prosperity and glory of our great nation where we can live without fear and hatred.
Rana Safvi is an author, historian, blogger and is engaged in documenting of India’s Syncretic past.
source: http://www.newscentral24x7.com / News Central 24×7 / Home / by Rana Safvi / August 15th, 2018
The king’s notes: The Yaddasht-i-Ahkam-i-Muqaddas with Aurangzeb’s imperial instructions. | Photo Credit: G. Ramakrishna
1.5 lakh indelible ink documents preserved in Hyderabad
Think Mughals and you think of Delhi and Agra. But few know that it is Hyderabadthat houses the largest collection of written communications of their reign.
The Telangana Archives and Research Institute holds a whopping 1.55 lakh documents — all on handmade paper — including 5,000 from the period of Shah Jahan (1628-1658) and another 1.5 lakh of Aurangzeb (1658-1707). No other archive in the country, not even the National Archives in New Delhi, boasts of such a collection: it gives a graphic picture of the mansabdari system, military administration and revenue machinery of the Mughals in the Deccan. Written in Persian in Shikasta script, cursive style, the documents are linked and arranged in chronological order — date, month and regnal year-wise.
Slew of orders
The documents include Farman (order of the emperor), Nishan (order of a member of the royal family), Yaddasht-i-Ahkam-i-Muqaddas (memorandum containing imperial orders), Parwana (orders issued by higher authorities), Siyaha-Huzur (proceedings of the provincial court), Roznamcha-i-Waqai (daily news report), Qabzul Wasil (bill payments) and Arz-o-Chihra (documents on personnel and horses).
Aurangzeb spent 13 years as the subedar of Deccan during the reign of Shah Jahan and had vast experience in political and other matters. Even after he ascended the throne on July 25, 1658, he continued to focus on the Deccan to check the activities of his rebellious son Mohammed Akbar and on conquering Bijapur and Golconda, which he did in 1687.
According to State Archives director Zareena Parveen, the accountant-general of the erstwhile Hyderabad State, Syed Muhibuddin, went to Aurangabad (the headquarters of the Mughals) for an inspection in 1916 when he discovered a large number of old documents lying in the vaults of Fort Ark.
He took keen interest in preserving them and reported the matter to Daftar-i-Diwani, the administrative wing of Hyderabad State, headed by the superintendent Syed Khurshid Ali. Steps were taken to shift them to Daftar-i-Diwani, which eventually became State Archives. The paper, made by Chinese professionals, has withstood the vagaries of time. The papers remain intact even after water seeped into the archives a few years ago. “In fact they became brighter as it washed away the acidic material that covered the indelible ink used by the Mughals,” said Ms. Parveen.
An expert in Persian herself, Ms. Parveen arranged the documents chronologically, deciphering the contents, and put them in non-acidic dockets.
The documents reveal Aurangzeb’s administrative skills. The Yaddasht-i-Ahkam-i-Muqaddas shows reports on recommendations of pay hikes for staff sent to the emperor, who also had spies to report on negligence, and actions against the government.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad> Sunday Special / by M. Rajeev / Hyderabad – August 11th, 2018
A two-day meet to revitalise the Indian Association of Muslim Social Scientists (IAMSS) under the theme “Role of Social Scientists in Global Changing Scenario with Special Reference to India” was organised by faculty of social sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, in collaboration with the Institute of Objective Studies, New Delhi, on June 20-21, 2018 at Aligarh.
Prof. Shamim Ahmad Ansari, dean, faculty of social sciences
The programme began with a welcome address by Prof. Shamim Ahmad Ansari, dean, faculty of social sciences and convener of the meet. He emphasised the pivotal role of social scientists in articulating issues and challenges and suggesting intervention strategies to cope with the situation and find amicable solutions.
Dr. Mohammad Manzoor Alam, Chairman, IOS and President, IAMSS
Prof. Z. M. Khan, Secretary General, IOS, in his introductory remark, emphasised the obligation of Muslim social scientists and requested youngsters to come forward and contribute at least a little to the uplift of the Muslim community.
The first business session comprised a lecture by Prof. Irfan Habib, Professor Emeritus, deptt. of history, AMU, on the “Role of Social Sciences and Importance of Values in Human Development”. He spoke about economic and educational issues related to Muslims. He also dwelt upon discrimination and madaris.
The second business session on “Contemporary National Scenario in Relation to Muslim Social Scientists” started with a lecture by Prof. Afzal Wani, faculty of law, GGSIP University, Delhi. He stressed the need to expand the search for knowledge. He focused on the importance of human being in their intellectual capability and qualities mentioned in the holy Quran.
Prof. Abdul Ali, former professor of Islamic Studies, AMU, while discussing the role of Muslim social scientists pointed out that failure of Muslims could be explained by a knowledge deficit. He cantered his lecture around various examples from the holy Quran and its implications in different fields.
Prof. Shoeb Abdullah, former professor, dept. of teachers’ training and non-formal education, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, dwelt upon the fact that there was a need to revisit the educational system, policies and resources. He added that the next important issue was making the young generations aware about the existing policies and opportunities and giving them a roadmap to move on.
On day 2 the sessions were on “Challenges and Strategies: Role of Indian Association of Muslim Social Scientists”; “Media’s Role in Making Societal Regulations” which held the undivided attention of the participants.
Later part of the day a 13 point resolution was adapted to enrol new members in the association, conduct medical and legal awareness camp, form committees to analyse constitutional safeguards, improve education in madarsas, study history and historiography and so on.
source: http://www.twocircles.net / TwoCircles.net / Home> Education> Indian Muslim / by TCN News / August 10th, 2018
In 1859, Delhi’s most famous poet, Mirza Asad Ullah Ghalib, was asked what Delhi was like these days. He replied: “My friend, what a question to ask! Five things kept Delhi alive—the Fort, the Chandni Chauk, the daily crowds at the Jama Masjid, the weekly walk to the Jumna bridge, and the yearly fair of the flower men. None of these survives, so how could Delhi survive?” Ghalib’s despondency notwithstanding, the fair celebrating the monsoon, known as the Phulwalon ki sair or the Sair-e gulfaroshan, started again soon after the turmoil of the Revolt had died down and has survived until the present day.…
What makes the Phulwalon ki sair such a fascinating topic for the exploration of monsoon feelings is the density and variety of commentary it brought forth over the last two hundred years. These sources range from colonial reports to the no less matter-of-fact newsletters from the Mughal court. They include memoirs and essays recalling the world lost in 1857, and texts which depicted contemporary experiences up to the present day. Songs and poems were often included in other texts, but we also have a printed poem from 1876, which praises the joys of the Phulwalon ki sair and was probably meant to be performed during the festival. Together they present a rich image from which we can reconstruct many of the basic facts of the festival, such as who the people were who went to Mehrauli and what they did there. But the sources go further. They allow us an insight into the meaning different participants ascribed to the festival, and even into their emotions. Together they help us understand why Ghalib deemed the festival so important, not only for the identity but for the very survival of Delhi.
Procession with flower fans and musicians playing nafiri trumpets and drums. Illustration by an unknown artist in Mirza Hairat Dihlavi’s Phulwalon ki Sair, 1889.…
The earliest references to the processions can be found in the newsletters from the royal court for 1830. Akbar Shah and his entourage moved to Mehrauli in late July and instructed the flower-sellers to get the pankhas ready for the ceremony at Qutb ud-Din’s dargah. Every day, “His Majesty went to the jharnawith the ladies. He sat in the barahdari, enjoyed the view of the jharna and the bathing of the ladies. They sat on the swing and sang.” Akbar Shah also enjoyed sitting on the platform above the gate of his palace, from where he could watch the bustle of the bazaar and the performance of acrobats. It is from there that he watched the procession of the flower-sellers and the fair, for which numerous crowds of people had gathered.
…
Fazl ud-Din described the traditional references to shringararasa, the clouds, the peacocks, and the koyals, the lushness of the hills and trees that had recovered their greenery, the flowers that burst into bloom, the mangoes and jamuns which were so abundant that they fell from the trees before people could pluck them. This revelry brought together the nobility and the common people, Fazl ud-Din pointed out, the rich and the poor, the owners of shops and the bazaris: no one was left behind in the empty city of Delhi. All the houses were decorated and the food was rich and plenty, while the rain continued to drizzle softly. The emotional experience was mediated through the senses of sight, of touch and of taste, but equally important were the sounds of the festival, the calling out of the shopkeepers, the songs of the ladies, and the musicians accompanying the processions, mainly nafiri trumpets, shahnais and a large variety of drums. Other texts also invoked the presence of an entire naubat, travelling on an open platform.
In Fazl ud-Din’s account, the emotions came to a culmination during the procession, which moved to the temple of Jogmaya on the first day and to the dargah of Qutb Sahib on the second day. The procession was led by the royal musketeers, followed by different professional groups. At the centre, right next to the elephants of the princes, were the flower-sellers and their pankhas, ornamented with a thousand flowers:
Look how packed the street is! People are falling over each other. A sweet drizzle is falling, and a cool wind is blowing. The bleating sound of the nafiris blares loudly. The pleasant forest and the crowd of people! In the evening the pankhas reach the royal palace with a lot of commotion.
…
By the beginning of the twentieth century, the tone of the writings changed. The new generation of authors no longer had a personal experience or even memory of the festival, even before it was discontinued after the first non-cooperation movement. In 1906, we find one Saiyid Bunyad Husain from Aligarh College, writing an article for the ladies’ magazine Khatun. He praised the Phulwalon ki sair as an extraordinary festival without equal, except perhaps for one festival, which takes place every year in Paris, but his knowledge is sketchy. He mused about possible origins of the festival: as it symbolised luxury and pleasure, ‘aish o ‘ishrat, he rules out the later Mughals, as theirs was a period of decline, and finally settled on Muhammad Shah as the probable initiator, as he was known for being inclined to sensual pleasures.
…
The festival at Mehrauli lost its specific anchoring in a time and place and became a symbol for a world that had been lost. The emotions that matter were no longer those of the participants in the procession and the revelries, but the communion of sentiment created between the author and his readers. This changed the tone.
…
A Symbol of National Unity
Nostalgia might have had a critical potential, but a nostalgia that was looking back to the last days of the Mughals and was geared towards a critique not only of colonialism but of modernity seemed increasingly out of tune, certainly with Jawaharlal Nehru’s vision of what independent India would stand for. And still, it was Nehru who in 1961 suggested the revival of the festival, which had been stopped in 1921. He called together a group of influential citizens and public figures from Delhi, who inaugurated the first festival after independence in 1962. What had changed?
The beginning of the 1960s was the period when the new nation increasingly faced the challenges of poverty, internal disruptions and conflicts, between religious communities but also between language groups and states. In this situation “emotional integration,” a felicitous phrase created by Nehru, became the rallying cry:
Political integration has already taken place to some extent, but what I am after is something much deeper than that—an emotional integration of the Indian people, so that we might be welded into one, and made into one strong national unit, maintaining at the same time all our wonderful diversity.
As a festival that was jointly celebrated by Hindus and Muslims, which had already been read as a symbol of Delhi’s tolerance and cosmopolitanism, the Phulwalon ki sair offered vast symbolic potential, and has been patronised by almost all prime ministers since Nehru. Many are the presidents of the republic who have come to deliver speeches at its inaugural function or at least sent messages of support, while the administrative elite of Delhi has always been involved in the planning of the festival and many have participated in some function or other during its three days.
Left: A flower fan carried in the Phulwalon ki sair. Right: Children of qawwals at Quutb Sahib.
The festival, especially during its heyday in the nineteenth century, was an intensive experience for those who participated, involving all the senses at the same time. The eyes saw the beauty of the blossoms and the greenery of the forest, the alluring sight of the ladies and courtesans displaying their fineries and frolicking around the jharnaand the lakes, the decoration of the bazaars, the lights in the evening and the fireworks. The ears heard the calls of the birds associated with the monsoon, the koyal and the peacock foremost among them, but also the songs of the ladies, the blaring of the nafiris and the resounding drums. The skin felt the relief of the cooling drizzle of rain, the embrace of the beloved, the closeness of other bodies during the procession; the tongue relished the abundance of mangoes and the delicacies prepared in the bazaar; the nose took in the smell of rain on the scorched earth, the perfume of the flowers, and the aroma of the food.
…
Looking at the procession over a time span of almost two hundred years also brings out the close relation of emotions and politics—even in this case, which at first sight involved nothing more than coming together to enjoy the rainy season. The Phulwalon ki sairalways was (also) a political statement, though these of course changed through time.
The Washington, DC,-based Association of Indian Muslims of America honoured veteran South Asian American journalist Aziz Haniffa with the “Excellence in Leadership” award on Saturday.
Mr. Haniffa, a Sri Lankan American and Executive Editor of India Abroad, was recognised for his “Outstanding Leadership and Contribution to the Community and Indian American Journalism.”
The award was presented at an inter-faith celebration hosted by AIMA at the Turkish Community Center in Lanham, MD, on June 23.
In his speech accepting the award, Mr. Haniffa lauded the efforts of AIMA to a difference in the lives of the poor and needy in India, especially those of women and girl children in the areas of education and human development, leading to their overall empowerment.
source: http://www.sundaytimes.lk / The Sunday Times / Home / Sunday Times 2
News Editor of Siasat Urdu Daily, Mr. Amer Ali Khan applauded the efforts of EFA Foundation Raichur in fields of Medical and Education. He announced to donate Re. 1 lakh to the foundation.
Addressing the decennial celebrations of EFA Foundation at Raichur, he told that in order to break the concentration of Muslims, former Hyderabad State was divided into three parts. He told that by managing the Zakat amount, the Muslims can come out of the fear and inferiority complex.
On the occasion of decennial celebration of the foundation, he was presenting his key note address at Rangamandir Auditorium, Station Road, Raichur. Mr. Mohammed Shabbir, Chairman of the Foundation presided over the meeting.
Continuing his address, Mr. Amer Ali Khan told that the merger of former Hyderabad State in Indian Union was a painful incident. Under an organized conspiracy, Muslim concentration areas were trifurcated into three States. Muslims took 60 years to come out of this situation. they had 40% representation in government service before independence which has now been reduced to 1%.
Muslims were appeased by glorified statements. Right from Kashmir to Kanya Kumari and Gujarat to Assam, Muslims are downtrodden. For the educational and economic backwardness of the Muslims, community itself is responsible along with the rulers. Various committees have declared that Muslims are backward than the other communities. There is a need to organize the Muslims through careful planning which will certainly yield fruitful results.
Citing the success of EFA foundation, Mr. Amer Ali Khan told that the plant which was planted 10 years back has now grown into a strong tree. Now the time has come for the Muslims to come forward for the development of the community. He pointed out that every major work has a small beginning.
He applauded the yeomen service of EFA foundation in feeding the patients in hospitals. He advised the Muslims of India to follow the example of EFA foundation. He told them to devise a formula for pooling up Zakat amounts and its proper distribution which would be helpful in eradicating poverty.
He lamented on the huge rates of dropouts of Muslim students. He advised the students to select appropriate professional courses and prove their talents.
Referring to the Muslim population in Raichur, he said that if every Muslim contributes Re. 1 per day, a huge amount could be collected in the area which has 40% Muslim concentration.
Citing the budget allocation of TS Govt., he pointed out that for 55 lakh SCs, Govt. allocated Rs. 15000 crore whereas for 50 lakh Muslims only Rs. 2000 crore has been allotted.
He predicted that the General Elections of 2019 will play a major role in the politics of this country. He advised the Muslims not to cast their votes in favour of communal parties. We hope that ‘good days’ are ahead for us.
At the beginning of the function, Mr. Haris Siddiqui introduced Mr. Amer Ali Khan to the audience and said that he has inherited journalistic talents. In the young age, he is shouldering important responsibilities of the largest Urdu Daily of the country.
Mr. Syed Minhaj-ul-Hasan highlighted the welfare activities of the foundation. He said that for the past 900 days, poor and orphan people are being fed. 300 poor Muslims were helped for surgical operations. Orphans are being adopted by the foundation. Ramadan kits are distributed to the poor persons.
Mr. Aslam Pasha told that he joined the foundation impressed by its welfare activities. Mr. Tajamul Husain appealed to the people to extend their cooperation. Mr. Mazhar Husain and others addressed the gathering.
Mr. Azhar Makhsoosi who feeds poor persons in Hyderabad was felicitated in the function. Mr. Ashraf Ali, Asian Power Lifting Champion. Mr. Mohammed Kaif Mullah, SSLC State Topper of Karnataka, Mr. Rafat Taskeen, 7 year old multi vehicle rider, Mohammed Abdul Wasif, founder of Fatima Old Age Home, Hyderabad were felicitated in the function.
–Siasat News
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> Hyderabad / by Siasat News / July 16th, 2018
MAN ON A MISSION: Mohammed Asif Iqbal in his Sector V office. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya
New Town:
A 41-year-old man who didn’t let blindness come in the way of his achieving academic and career goals has now set his mind on fighting bureaucracy to make reserved parking for people with disabilities the norm in public places.
Mohammed Asif Iqbal, an associate director of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Calcutta, has been meeting whoever he thinks can be of help as part of a campaign he started two years ago and won’t give up on.
Asif had visited Mamata Banerjee’s residence in Kalighat in August last year, although he didn’t get to meet her. He left a letter addressed to the chief minister with a police officer in her security detail and is still waiting for a response.
A few months before that, Asif had met the Trinamul MP and Harvard professor Sugata Bose to give voice to what he feels is the right of every person with disability.
In a letter to the chief minister after Asif met him, Bose said the young man “makes a compelling case for dedicated handicapped parking in public places, as is the norm in most advanced cities and towns”.
Metro has a copy each of Asif’s letter to Mamata and the one in which Bose appears to back his initiative.
“Ramps are built to make a building or compound disabled-friendly. But dedicated parking slots sound like a foreign concept to most people. There are VIP parking slots everywhere, though,” Asif said.
The trigger for his mission was a visit to the headquarters of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation in April 2016. “I was to meet someone there and my driver was unable to find a place to park the vehicle anywhere nearby. I was forced to walk more than a kilometre through New Market to reach the civic headquarters. I realised that day what a big problem this is, more so for someone with a disability,” he recounted.
Asif was born in Bhagalpur, Bihar, with impaired vision that kept deteriorating as he grew. He lost his sight completely before he was 16. “I was then living with my uncle in the US, where people with blindness and other disabilities don’t usually face the problems that they would encounter in India,” he said.
It was after Asif returned to India after completing school in Oregano – he was in the US for around a decade – that he realised how disabled-friendly public amenities there make life easier for such people.
“There are clear guidelines that have to be followed without exception. A minimum number of parking slots – it varies according to the size of the parking area – are reserved for persons with disabilities. Obstructions are removed and the access ways are well lit. Clear signage, along with Braille equivalents, line public areas,” Asif said.
Back home, he feels disturbed that little thought is given to how people with disabilities go about their lives. “Stations like Howrah and Sealdah that are used by lakhs of people every day don’t have accessible parking for anyone with a disability,” he said. “Imagine a person with crutches having to get off a car and walk 200 steps before he reaches a ramp or a lift,” Asif said.
While the architecture of some of the older buildings is a challenge, what pains Asif is that “there is hardly any discussion on the topic in Calcutta, which prides itself on being a city with a heart”.
Prejudices and roadblocks are not new to Asif, though. After failing to clear an annual school examination in Bhagalpur, he remembers some teachers saying he did not have a future.
On his return from the US, he again studied in India and became the first blind commerce graduate from St Xavier’s College. He was denied admission to some MBA coaching institutes because the courses were purportedly “not designed for people like me”. Asif did not give up and earned an MBA degree from Symbiosis, Pune.
A PIL he filed in 2000 was instrumental in creating reservation for people with disabilities in the IIMs.
If anything frustrates him, it is how his mission has unfolded so far. “I believe the chief minister has yet to see my letter. It must have been buried under a heap of files. The moment she sees it, I think I will get an audience with her,” Asif said.
He is not unfamiliar with how government projects are implemented in India and the time it takes to get something done. As an employee of PwC India, he is involved in digital accessibility initiatives with the Centre and state governments. He has assisted in making the Aadhaar project inclusive and the process of filing online income tax returns more disabled-friendly.
Asif has already prepared a concept note for the parking project that he hopes will work out in Bengal someday. According to him, such a project requires multiple stakeholders like the municipal corporation, the police and the ministry of social welfare.
Quest and South City malls have a few slots reserved for wheelchair users in their parking lots, but Asif envisions something more comprehensive.
Rights activist Sayomdeb Mukherjee, who uses a wheelchair, said apathy was the root of the problem. “Our roads, footpaths, buildings – the entire ecosystem lacks an effort to bring people with disabilities into the mainstream. Barrier-free architecture is a distant dream and parking lots are just an extension of the challenge,” he said.
Sayomdeb said he was in talks with the police to introduce stickers to identify cars belonging to people with disabilities so that they get parking in public places like the airport, railway stations, government offices and malls.
For Asif, the use of technology makes up for the things that blindness has denied him. Sitting in his glass cabin at the Sector V office of PwC, Asif works on a laptop with voice-recognition software and replies to messages on his iPhone using an artificial intelligence app.
It’s often hard to tell, especially for someone who doesn’t know, that Asif cannot see. But he sees the future for people with disabilities, and he will play a role in it for sure.
source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph,Calcutta,India / Home> Calcutta / by Debraj Mitra / August 05th, 2018
