Category Archives: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Depicting various hues of life with Urdu poetry: A dying art

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Image Courtesy: Nohar Patrika
Image Courtesy: Nohar Patrika

“Quidquid Latine dictum sit altum videtur” (“Whatever is said in Latin seems profound”), they say, and the language’s sonorous tones aren’t confined to religion, but law and medicine too. In the South Asian millieu, Urdu has the same position with its assimilative nature and its courtly pedigree giving it refinement as well as ability to express elaborate, sophisticated concepts. Its poetry is the vanguard.

And once we avoid the trap of confining Urdu poetry to its romantic aspect — though that is the area where it is fairly prolific and popular — we find that, like any other long-standing literary tradition, it also spans a wide expanse of life beyond love and longing, and in a variety of styles.

In fact, there are few issues of the human condition or for the natural world that Urdu poets have not covered in the few centuries the language has existed so far, beyond the usually known motifs of the pining lover, the cupbearer or the tavern, the flame and the moth, and so on. Let us see something new.

Take the sky and Jaleel Manikpuri, in an eloquent negation of man-made borders and divisions, writes: “Main kis sar-zameen ki qadr karun/Asmaan saath saath chalta hai”, and on wind, Nawaz Deobandi brings out its misuse as agency for human depredations: “Yeh jala diya, yeh bujha diya, yeh kaam kisi aur ka hai/Na hawa kisi ke saath thi, na hawa kisi ke khilaaf hai.”

Image Courtesy: SantaBanta.com
Image Courtesy: SantaBanta.com

Other human emotions and traits also figure. On wisdom, Allama Iqbal says: “Guzar ja aql se aage, ke ye noor/Chirag-e-raah hai, manzil nahi hai”, Saqib Lakhnavi on the “pleasure” of difficulty, observes: “Bu-e-gul kaliyon mein rahi thi magar reh na saki/Main to kaanton mein raha aur pareshan na huya” and Shad Azimabadi, on “sharafat” (integrity), says: “Gulon ne khaaron ke cherhne par siva khamoshi ke dam na mara/Shareef uljhe agar kisi se, to phir sharafat kahan rahegi.”

Likewise, there are many more, and let’s take up a few more unexpected topics and issues, with an attempt to give “shaairs”, who are not well known outside committed connoisseurs or scholars, their place in the sun — as far as possible.

What could be a better topic to begin with than “hamdardi”, or empathy, with Ameer Meenai telling us: “Khanjar chale kisi par tadapte ham hai ‘Ameer’/Saare jahan ka dard hamare jigar mein hai”, or “himmat”, which conveys more than courage, as Pandit Brij Narayan Chakbast brings out the difference between its possessors and others: “Ahl-e-himmat manzil maqsood tak aa bhi gaye/Bandahe taqdeer qismat ka gila karte rahe.”

Or take human breath, which Arzoo Lakhnavi advises: “Ae saans! Na aa ke dil mein hai zakhm/Thes abhi hai jab hawa lagti hai” and Fani Badayuni looks on offered medicine with some trepidation: “Fani! Davaye dard jigar zahar to nahi/Kyun haath kaanpta hai mere charah-saaz ka.”

On advice, Bebak Shahjahanpuri wryly holds: “Kami wafaa mein agar ho to voh jafaa na kare/Salah dete hai kya kya salaah kar mujhe” and for effort, who can better Mirza Ghalib himself, making good use of shared religious imagery, with: “Kuch farz hai sab ko mile ek sa jawaab/Aao na, ham bhi sair karen Koh-e-Toor ki.”

Akbar Allahbadi makes a definitive stand on human nature with: “Tarkeeb-o-taklif lakh karo fitrat kahi chupti hai, Akbar/Jo mitti hai voh mitti hai, jo sona hai who sona hai”, while Bahadur Shah Zafar, the emperor of poets more than subjects, has some frank advice on on”s good and bad points: “Na thi haal ki jab hame apni khabar, rahe dekhte auron ke aib-o-hunar/Padi aapni buraiyon pe jo nazar, to nigaah mein koi bura na raha.”

But despite all, love however can crop up — though in various unexpected guises — and Jigar Moradabadi likens it to a story being told to some eager listeners with: “Koi hadd hi nahi shahd mohabbat ke fasaane ki/Sunta ja raha hai, jisko jitna yaad hota hai.”

On the other hand, Maulana Hasrat Mohani, whose ghazal of a former romance that still pricks the heart (“Chupke chupke raat din..”) has never been bettered, gives tassavur or imagination a new spin with, “Tassavur mein bhi in ke kuch ajab aalam nikalta hai/Isi par to meri hairaniyon ka dam nikalta hai” and Asr Lakhnavi tries the same with dreams: “Gulon ki god mein jaise naseem aake machal jaaye/Isi andaaz se in par khumaar aankhon mein khvaab aaya.”

There are much more, specially on the overarching issues of life and death, and love which may cause and also transcend them, but the habit of quoting an apt Urdu couplet on any occasion — on the pattern of a Biblical or Shakespearean reference — is dying out. Learn the language or use one the sites offering transliterated versions, but don’t let it happen. (IANS)

source: http://www.indianewengland.com / India New England / Home> News> Entertainment> Leisure / by Vikas Datta / July 22nd, 2018

Why I converted to Islam and buried my Hindu identity: Dalit Camera founder

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, , ,

TAMIL NADU  :

Periyar had suggested Ambedkar convert to Islam. After years of research, I too found Islam to be the only religion in India that could annihilate the caste system.

Raees Mohammed at a Dalit Camera event | Photo: Baidurya
Raees Mohammed at a Dalit Camera event | Photo: Baidurya

I learned one thing in my eight years’ experience with the Dalit movement through Dalit Camera assignments, and my research on caste for the last 14 years. Babasaheb Ambedkar was right when he said that leaving Hinduism is the only way to fight caste.

Dalit Camera is a digital platform that documents voices of Dalits, Adivasis, Bahujans, and minorities through a website and a YouTube channel by the same name.

Following his footsteps, I chose to leave Hinduism and embrace Islam on 30 January 2020 in Kodungallur, a historical town in Kerala’s Thrissur district. Kodungallur is where the first Indian mosque was built. I am now Raees Mohammed.

The date is significant. It is the day when the first Hindutva terrorist Nathuram Godse assassinated Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. It is also the day when our beloved brother Rohith Vemula, who fought against caste discrimination in Hinduism, was born.

 A religion for emancipation

In my childhood, as a devotee of Lord Ayyappa, I had been to Kodungallur six times. It is also where CPI-ML (undivided) Kerala state secretary Najmal Babu embraced Islam in 2015. Rationalist Thanthai Periyar (father) had said that if one wanted to annihilate caste in 15 minutes and live with self-respect, then Islam is the only solution. Periyar had also suggested to Babasaheb Ambedkar to choose Islam as a religion for emancipation.

In my years of research, I too found Islam to be the only religion in India with the strength to annihilate the caste system.

The anti-caste movement  has been the longest ongoing socio-cultural movement in India. The main demand is to consider ‘untouchables’ as equal citizens in Hindu society, and to be located under the ambit of the Constitution rather than Hindu religion. But I was curious why this easy solution to annihilate caste via Islam has never been even a reference point in Dalit movement and Dalit literature.

Fight for equality

In January, I was invited to Kodungallur to address a gathering on the dangers of fascism, and against the proposed National Register of Citizens, the National Population Register, and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.

Muslims are battling for their citizenship rights in Narendra Modi’s India today. But theirs is a battle different from the struggle of Dalits. The former is for justice and citizenship. The latter is for something as basic as self-respect, to be treated as an equal human being. In that sense, Dalits have it much worse.

This is when I embraced Islam and buried my Hindu identity as Ravichandran Bathran. I do not want to refer to my Hindu name because if you dive deep, all Hindu names only indirectly refer to caste, and I don’t want this Raees Mohammed to carry the old baggage. The name is not the real problem. After all, my parents named me with so much love. But the problem comes when the Hindu society attaches that name to a caste and instils a stereotype of the hereditary occupation of scavenging. My father was treated badly because the Hindu society said he did a job that was considered filthy. This is hypocrisy of the highest order. First, you enforce a traditional occupation on some groups, treat their members badly, and then blame the people rather than the caste system.

My parents chose a Sanskrit name, an unusual practice among my relatives, who always chose names that are easily identified with Chakkiliyars or untouchables. But like my parents, I too experienced unequal treatment.

My education and earnings did not change my identity, and never will. But we are fed with this lie by none other than the Dalit movements.

My father worked as a sanitary worker and my mother was a sweeper in a local school. For the last 15 years, I worked to address the discrimination and untouchability faced by my parents and tens of thousands like them because of their work — sanitation workers/sweepers/scavengers.

We belong to Chakkiliyar/Arunthathiyar caste in Tamil Nadu, who are called, especially by fellow untouchables, as migrants or outsiders. The reason being that Arunthathiyars’ first language is close to Telugu. During my research in undivided Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir, and Karnataka, I found that in all these states, the sanitation workers were addressed as outsiders. It doesn’t matter whether they had migrated from other states. Interestingly, in all south Indian states, except in undivided Andhra Pradesh, sanitation workers speak Telugu. In Andhra Pradesh, they speak Hindi and a dialect closer to Odiya.

Scavengers and sweepers are not allowed inside the homes of upper-caste Hindus. Even the toilets are constructed outside the homes. Indian sociologists and anthropologists have a problematic understanding of caste and Indian homes, where Dalits have a separate entrance (as is visible from most buildings). Things are changing slowly in rural areas.

On the contrary, mosques have toilets within their premises. A toilet is not considered unholy. This is where I fell in love with mosques. I do not find any good reason why Dalits should continue to carry Hinduism on their shoulders.

Who’s a Dalit?

Many people request me to drop the word ‘Dalit’ form Dalit Camera. Dalit is not a term to refer to the physical body of untouchables, it’s a revolutionary concept that Dalit Panthers conceived of. Now, I don’t have a caste. But being part of Dalit Camera is a sign of solidarity I show to Dalit Panthers, and to my beloved Muslim brothers and sisters.

For us, Babasaheb Ambedkar’s image itself is enough. It conveys his ideology and idea of justice.

So, Dalits and Muslims have a battle to fight. The fight of Muslims is constitutional  in nature, but the fight of Dalits is social, which is more difficult. Many Dalits still do not know that they are being treated unequally because of Hinduism. It’s for this reason Dalits are not aware that they too might find themselves without citizenship one day.

Raees Mohammed, formerly known as Ravichandran Bathran, is the founder of Dalit Camera  @dalitcamera . Views are personal.

source: http://www.theprint.in  / The Print / Home> Opinion / b y Raees Mohammed / February 05th, 2020

An ode to khada dupatta

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, World Opinion, , , , , ,

Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

This ubiquitous garment owes its origin to the 17th century with the techniques changing over the years

KhadaDupataMPOs02feb2020

Hyderabad Based photographer Soumyajit Basu is known for his keen eye for intricate creations. This time he took up capturing the ‘Khada Dupatta’ which are the first choice of any true blue Hyderabadi ladies. He captured the beauty of the work with his models Afreen and Mehak and makeup done by Ayesha.

Originating in the 17th century, craftsman from Turkey and Persia were invited to India by Mughal Empress Noor Jehan and passed on the secret art of crafting to the nobles and their descendants. Later, the begums of Nizams of Deccan adapted the original Mughal style, especially in the form of khada dupattas which became the traditional attire of Mughal ladies.

Though this was a culture that was more defined in the later half of Asaf Jahi dynasty in Hyderabad, the montage gallery at Chowmahalla Palace, exhibits the royal dresses of Nizams Begums which include khada dupatta. The gallery also displays a tableau on the life of the begums. Quite a few don the khada dupattas — a four-piece ensemble that includes a trailing dupatta, one such khada dupatta adorned with intricate zari work weighs a whopping 17 kg.

The dress comprises of churidaar, a veil/dupatta which is six-yards in length, a kurta where the dupatta falls straight due to its heavy weight. This is accompanied by heavy jewellery which compliments the dress embroidered with zari and other work to give it a rich look. The dupatta is the largest part of the outfit and is made of tissue material.

Today, however, brides opt for net and even Banarasi dupattas since tissue does not fall gracefully. The colours preferred are usually golden yellow/ red and green. The silk tissue is hand-crushed and reduced to the width of a half metre. The border is adorned with handiwork of dabka, beads, mirrors, kundan and tikkis.

Golden trimmings on both sides of the borders give an antique touch to the royal ensemble. Front and back panels are embellished by handmade borders which are adorned with zardosi embroidery. Due to this, it has now become a traditional dress for all Muslim brides in Hyderabad.

SoumyajitBasuMPOs02feb2020

The culture still exists in Hyderabad today, more largely among Hyderabadi Muslims. The improvisation has been a gradual process. “So as a fashion and portrait photographer, it was necessary to visit the fashion history of the City of Nizams, as even today khada dupatta makes many ladies stand out when paired with right accessories,” says Soumyajit Basu.

source: http://www.telanganatoday.com / Telangana Today / Home> Lifestyle> Fashion / by Madhuri Dasagrandhi / January 27th, 2020

Guardians of the Urdu art of calligraphy wait for Telangana government to fulfil its promises

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, , , , , , , , , ,

Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

In contrast, speaking or writing in Urdu today is often deemed as ‘anti-national’ by multiple sections of the Indian society.

Calligraphy artist Mohd Abdu Gaffar with his students at the Idara-e-Adabiyat-e-Urdu; (left) A close up of his sheet (Photo | S Senbagapandiyan, EPS)
Calligraphy artist Mohd Abdu Gaffar with his students at the Idara-e-Adabiyat-e-Urdu; (left) A close up of his sheet (Photo | S Senbagapandiyan, EPS)

Hyderabad :

Seated on a wooden stool, under a tinted glass chandelier, Mohammed Abdul Gaffar peered over a handmade paper on which he made a slow swish with a reed pen dipped in black ink.

Standing before him, was a group of burqa-clad women, who mirrored the movement of the reed. Over the next 15 minutes, the single stroke on Gaffar’s paper transformed first, into an Urdu alphabet, and then took the form of a decorative Urdu calligraphy verse.

“Calligraphy teaches you patience. It fills one up with peace of mind and also helps in developing your personality,” said Gaffar, a calligraphy artist and teacher.

Gaffar teaches at the Idara-e-Adabiyat-e-Urdu, India’s oldest Urdu calligraphy school — established in 1938, under the patronage of the then-Nizam, Osman Ali Khan Bahadur.

When the school was established, the socio-political scenario of Hyderabad was entirely different: Urdu was the official language of erstwhile Hyderabad State, and its various applications, including calligraphy, found its patronage in the administrative quarters.

“Back then, proficiency in Urdu calligraphy was a necessity for those aspiring government jobs,” said Rafiuddin Qadri, son of the school’s founder, Syed Mohiuddin Qadri Zore. Even candidates trying for police and army jobs needed to be skilled in Urdu calligraphy, Qadri added.

In contrast, speaking or writing in Urdu today is often deemed as ‘anti-national’ by multiple sections of the Indian society.

Case in point, in 2016, Urdu publishers were asked to declare the ‘fealty’ of the content of their works. In that context, Gaffar said that Urdu calligraphy has just now been restricted to being an art form.

From 2002 to 2014, Gaffar fought for the inclusion of Urdu calligraphy in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh government’s school curriculum.

With the formation of Telangana State, where Urdu is the second official language, his fight saw a success and calligraphy was included in school curriculum.

However, teachers for Urdu calligraphy are yet to be appointed by the government. This in spite of several reminders by not just Gaffar but also the ministry of human resource development.
“By not implementing its own order, the government is denying teaching jobs to many,” said Gaffar.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Hyderabad / by Aihik Sur / Express News Service /  August 25th, 2019

The Aam Admi’s Mughal Feast

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, , ,

Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA  :

A food historian goes beyond the tables of badshahs and sahibs to decode what the common man ate in the Mughal and post-Mughal colonial India. And it’s not starkly different from what we eat today

Shubra Chatterji channeled her research into Mughlai food for commoners for a recent talk at a food conference. Pic/ Ashish Raje

Shubra Chatterji channeled her research into Mughlai food for commoners for a recent talk at a food conference. Pic/ Ashish Raje

When we think Mughlai food, we think rich eats ranging from galouti kebabs to biryani and korma. Television producer, director, writer, and founder of food blog Historywali, Shubra Chatterji travelled the length and breadth of the country, shooting people in their homes to trace and document the food habits of people during the Mughal era.

“If you eat a particular food, it says something about where you come from, your ancestry, who you are. The Mughal period spanned 1530 to 1857, with the last 100 years being considered as the post-Mughal era, after the emergence of the East India Company, along with the Dutch, Portugese and French colonists. Over the next couple of centuries, a lot of new foods came to India, including potato, tomato and chilli, which are now a staple in Indian homes,” says Chatterji, adding, “This was also a period when documentation was on a high due to what was recorded as part of court documentation.”

But, most Mughal texts focus on royal life, and foods whenever mentioned, only illustrate elaborate feasts and the workings of imperial kitchens. “There was always a connection to royalty. We didn’t have any recipes used by commoners,” she adds. Chatterji says that by the late 1800s, women began to turn to education and that was the start of literary texts surrounding food. “This is when we so we see the emergence of recipe books.”

Folk art, including Warli paintings, show deer being hunted. Poems, especially by Ghalib, describe shami kebabs

Folk art, including Warli paintings, show deer being hunted. Poems, especially by Ghalib, describe shami kebabs

At a two-day conference organised by the Kama Institute of Oriental Studies in Kala Ghoda, Chatterji presented a paper that focussed on the sources to study the common man’s diet in the Mughal period. First, she researched prominent Mughal chronicles, Baburnama and Ain E Akbari. She found scant descriptions that helped her make a start. “The main diet of the people then comprised eggplant, fish and rice. Rice was cooked on one day and eaten the next; similar to Pakhala in Odisha today. Khichdi was also important, and finds mention in several texts, especially for the military troops, who survived on it instead of meat.”

Travellers’ accounts were another clue. And art, with illustrations of dishes and utensils. “A painting in the Victoria and Albert museum depicts a poor pilgrim in Ajmer being given food, with boondi and kachori clearly visible in the picture. We also find different fruits, like pomegranate, in inlay work in architecture; and folk art, including Warli paintings, show deer being hunted. Poems, especially by Ghalib, describe shami kebabs. There was food for feasting and fasting, and the latter didn’t use tomatoes,” she shares.

The biggest misnomer is that the Mughal diet was predominantly non-vegetarian. There are entire sections in the Ain E Akbari, dedicated to vegetarian recipes made for days of abstinence, with Akbar banning the consumption of beef during the time. Also, their food was very delicately prepared and not heavily spiced.

Chatterji adds that we continue to consume a lot of what they ate back then, but preparation methods have changed.

The nutritious khichdi was an important food and finds mention in several texts
The nutritious khichdi was an important food and finds mention in several texts

And, we’ve added potato, tomato, onion to our diet.

While pepper was used to spice foods, we now use more chilli. They also ate the humble dal-chawal, but an even simpler preparation. ” We are now slowly discovering the benefits of original methods and moving back to basics.

Over the last five years, the food conversation has surrounded heirloom family recipes.

The common man didn’t have much back then, there was abject poverty. The poor were very poor, and their food was not elaborate. They ate maacher jhol bhaat (fish-curry-rice).

And food wasn’t a conversation starter like it is now.”

source: http://www.mid-day.com / Mid-Day / Home> Lifestyle News> Sunday Mid Day News / by Ela Das, Mumbai / January 26th, 2020

Abid Hassan Safrani, freedom fighter who gave Jai Hind slogan

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Freedom Fighters (under research project), Leaders, World Opinion, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

Abid Hassan, born in Hyderabad in 1912, hailed from a patriotic family.

Abid Hasan Safrani/COURTESY INDIANMUSLIMLEGENDS.BLOGSPOT.IN
Abid Hasan Safrani/COURTESY INDIANMUSLIMLEGENDS.BLOGSPOT.IN

Hyderabad :

This is the story of Abid Hassan Safrani who, not many may know, was not just the trusted lieutenant of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, but the Hyderabadi who had coined the magical slogan JAI HIND.

I have had the privilege of translating into English the Telugu book on the life of Netaji Bose by the late Ch. Acharya at the behest of the Freedom Fighters Association.

The following are excerpts from the book. Kindly read on:

“JAI HIND ”. No slogan had ever cast a greater spell on the nation than this. It had welded the people of this country of diverse languages, cultures, and faiths during the freedom struggle and filled them with a strong sense of patriotism. It continues to do so even now.

The man who coined this stirring slogan was Major Abid Hassan Safrani of Hyderabad, a close aide of   Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

It was adopted as the national slogan at Free India Centre’s first meeting in Berlin in November 1941. Then, it became a popular form of address and greeting.

Safrani was with Bose when he undertook the death-defying undersea journey from Germany to the Far East. Safrani recalled how calm and composed was Bose when enemy ships rained bombs on the submarine. Unmindful, he dictated notes to Safrani on the future course of his action.

Sisir Kumar, the nephew of Bose, gave more details of the adventure in his book, ‘INA in India Today’.

Abid Hassan, born in Hyderabad in 1912, hailed from a patriotic family. After graduating in engineering with distinction, he went to Berlin for higher studies.

Attracted by Bose’s freedom movement, he joined the Indian National Army. Recognising his leadership qualities, Bose gave Safrani ample scope to grow to his full potential.

Safrani could fluently speak several languages like English, German, French, Arabic, Persian, Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu, Telugu, and Punjabi. This enabled him to build excellent rapport with officers and men of the INA. Major Safrani headed the Gandhi Brigade in the INA. It consisted of men of exceptional courage and valour.

When they eventually surrendered to the British army at Imphal in North East India, top British officers could not help marvel at the bravery of Safrani and his men. He was imprisoned and put in solitary confinement with not even a window to allow light.

He mentioned this in a letter to his mother, Hassans had firm roots in nationalism. Abid’s father, Jaffer Hassan, was dean in Osmania University , and mother, Begum Amir Hassan, a staunch Gandhian. They inculcated patriotic feelings in their sons, Badrul Hassan and Abid Hassan, at a tender age.

All of them were very close to Mahatma Gandhi and used to visit his Sabarmati ashram. Fanatics threatened to kill them and throw their bodies into the Musi. Gandhi would send his secretary, Pyarelal, to railway station whenever the Hassans visited him. Badrul Hassan edited Gandhi’s “Young India” in 1925.

He remained a true Gandhian until his death in 1973. He wore khadi and led a spartan life in a small room.

Abid Hassan Safrani also imbibed these traits.

Begum Safrani was a unique personality who lived a full life(1870-1970). She gave away everything for the freedom of the country, including her paternal property. She was a close friend of Sarojini Naidu and was affectionately called ‘amma Jaan’ by Gandhi, Nehru, Netaji and Abul Kalam Azad.

“Abid Manzil”, their residence in Troop Bazaar, stands as mute testimony to the burning of foreign cloth in 1920 at the behest of Gandhi. In his book, Sisir Kumar Bose gave a graphic account of the escapades of Subhash Chandra Bose and Abid Hassan Safrani such as the submarine journey from Germany to Asia and the INA’s triumphal march through the forests of Imphal.

After the Second World War, Safrani was jailed for six years. Begum Amir Hassan, who did not expect anything in return for the services of the family, was much worried that her son might be sentenced to death in the Red Fort trial. Several INA men were shot dead for participating in the liberation movement. She met Gandhi, Nehru and Sarojini Naidu to plead for her son’s life.

Safrani got a last-minute reprieve after Prime Minister Nehru and Governor-General, Lord Mountbatten, intervened. Nehru had earlier visited a prison in Singapore where INA members were lodged. He spotted a man sitting aloof and asked if he was Safrani from Hyderabad . The man greeted him with “Jai Hind” and nodded ‘yes’.

After his release, an ailing Safrani returned to his “Dhoop Chaon” residence in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad and recuperated under the care of his loving mother and friends like Bankat Chandra, Elizabeth, and C.S. Vasu. He took up radio sales for a living, but with little success. He wrote a civil services examination and qualified for foreign service. He was personally interviewed by Jawaharlal Nehru .

He had served in Indian missions in a number of countries like Egypt, Iraq, Turkey, Senegal, Zambia, Ivory Coast. Safrani was Indian Ambassador to Iraq when Jordan King Hashmath-e-Faizal, was killed in an army coup in 1957. The government drew heavy flak in Parliament for his absence in Baghdad at the crucial movement. Nehru defended Safrani. Safrani loved agriculture and raised a horticultural farm in Golconda . It was his practice to visit Netaji’s hometown, Calcutta, in January every year carrying fruit grown on his farm.

That was his way of remembering his mentor, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. He used to recall with moist eyes those memorable years with Bose. He died in 1984 but immortalized himself with the soul-stirring slogan he coined: Jai Hind. It would keep the Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and others together for centuries and strengthen national integration. He was an ideal Shia and a noble Sufi saint.

Safrani memorial school in Golconda, run by his wife, Suraya, seeks to instill in the minds of young pupils the lofty ideals, values and principles dear to her husband.

Dasu Kesava Rao is a senior journalist who worked for The Hindu, among other newspapers

source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> Featured News / by Safoora / January 26th, 2020

How a housewife began anti-CAA protests in Lucknow

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, ,

Lucknow, UTTAR PRADESH :

CAA22jan2020

Lucknow:

It was a 35-year-old housewife who triggered off the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)  protests at the Clock Tower in Lucknow.

Qausar Imran, 35, was watching the Shaheen Bagh protests on the TV on Thursday night and while discussing the issue with her husband over dinner, her husband told her that the women in  Shaheen Bagh were very much like her.

“I thought that I should also do something like this and my husband supported me. That night, my  three children, aged six, eight and 13, and my niece who is 24 sat up with me all night making  posters,” said Qausar, who has received formal schooling only till class 5.

A resident of Turiaganj, Qausar had never attended a protest or a meeting even with other women  in the locality.

On Friday morning, the 35-year-old housewife and her children went from door-to-door, asking women to initiate a protest on the lines of Shaheen Bagh.

“We had made posters which read ‘we reject CAA, no NRC’ and ‘we are Indians’ and we came here after Friday prayers, around 2:30pm. We decided to start the protest even though barely 15 women including children had turned up. We hid the posters under our burqa and the moment we took the posters out, the cops came running,” said Safia, the 24-year-old niece of Qausar.

“I told them that they can tape my mouth and or beat me up but I will not move from the spot. When they told me that I had no permission to protest, I said that I was not creating any ruckus.  The electricity supply was snapped in the area that night, but even my youngest child did not cry or ask to go home. We sat there undeterred. Now,  I feel overwhelmed by sheer number of women sitting with us,” said Qausar.

Since Friday night, the numbers started swelling and there are now hundreds of women and children at the Clock Tower.

“There are now men and women from non-Muslim families who have joined us. People are coming to serve tea and snacks and some are even bringing food for us. The police are trying to move us, but the women seem stronger than men this time,” she said on Monday morning.

College-going boys and girls are bringing more posters that are being displayed at the protest site and media coverage is also increasing by the day.

source: http://www.english.manoramaonline.com / OnManorama / Home> Women> She News / by IANS / January 21st, 2020

Reverted Muslim Amir is building a mosque in Hyderabad

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, , , , , , , , ,

HARYANA :

BabriMasjidMPOs19jan2020

Hyderabad:

Mohammed Amir (formerly Balbir Singh), who was once an active Sangh leader and the one that climbed the dome to destruct Babri Masjid, now builds and protects mosques across India. He is building a mosque in Hafez Baba Nagar, Hyderabad.

After participation in destruction of Babri Masjid and later accepting Islam he has decided to build and renovate 100 mosques. He also pledged to protect mosques. With this in mind, he has completed the construction of 91 mosques, and more than 59 are under construction. This mosque which is being constructing in Hyderabad is his 59th which has named ‘Masjid-e-Rahimiya.’

Mohammed Amir said that last year, on December 6 he had laid the foundation of Masjid-e-Rahimiya near Balapur road in Hafez Baba Nagar.  Since then the construction work has been going on. The local people have already begun to say prayers at a temporary shade. The mosque is being constructed with ground plus 6 floors on a 3200 sq yd land which also includes a madarsa (religious school) for those who have embraced Islam, he added.

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Narrating the reason behind his drive to construct the mosques he said  as a karsevak involved in the destruction of Babri Masjid, when he reached home after the demolition he was given a hero’s welcome fby the public. But his family’s reaction shocked him. His secular family denounced his actions as a result of which he was feeling guilty. Later, when he fell sick and began having physiological issues he decided to consult with a Maulana.

He went to the Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui in Muzaffarnagar in UP and explained to him about what he does. He also sought forgiveness for what he had done. The Maulana explained to him the Islamic values through the Quranic verses. At that time he realized what he had done was sinfully wrong. On June 1, 1993 he accepted Islam sitting before  Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui. He also decided to build and protect 100 mosques.  With this aim he has built 91 Mosques in this 26 years and 59 were under construction.

Mohammed Amir built the first mosque in Haryana with and named it Masjid-e-Madina in 1994. In the next three months he laid foundation of another mosque in Haryana. Almost all of the mosque’s foundations were laid on December 6. He also built one of the most famous and popular mosques in Mendu near Hathra in UP, he noted.

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He built mosques mostly in the North and North-eastern states. He ia also brining about awareness and teachings about the Islam and running a mardassa for the reverted Muslims. He said that wherever he is building a mosque he and his family shift to that particular area and begin offering teachings of Islam.

source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> Babri Masjid / by Mohammed Hussain / December 07th, 2019

A master’s hand that scripts poetry in ink

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, , , , , , , , ,

Kolkata, WEST BENGAL :

Lives of others

Mohammad Usman Ghani busy with work in his Belgachhia home that doubles as his workstation. / Picture by Subhendu Chaki
Mohammad Usman Ghani busy with work in his Belgachhia home that doubles as his workstation. /
Picture by Subhendu Chaki

Mohammad Usman Ghani hurries out of a crowded, narrow lane of Belgachhia Children’s Park area, a Muslim locality next to Belgachhia Urdu High School. He greets me warmly and guides me to his house in the lane. “Garib ka ghar hai,” he says apologetically, more than once.

The small room I am ushered into is occupied almost entirely by a double bed, which is his workplace. On it lie books and sheaves of paper in little piles, and a batch of wooden pens with wooden or metal nibs. A showcase stands against one wall and a desktop computer is wedged into a corner. Outside, small children shout and play, sometimes making a quick entry into the room, then a quicker exit.

As one approaches Ghani’s locality, one can see a few anti-CAA and anti-NRC posters.

Amidst all this bustle, Ghani, 38, sits quietly on his bed, his skullcap-covered head bent over a piece of paper that is filling up with beautiful Urdu lettering. Ghani is a calligrapher. The Urdu script, with its curves and swirls, is in itself quite lyrical. Urdu calligraphy, its more concentrated, cursive and complex form, is at its best like distilled poetry.

Ghani was drawn to this centuries-old art from a very early age. He was moved by its beauty. It is a very fine, elaborate and demanding art, he explains, in which every dot, dash or curl, if decorative, is also part of the lettering, and in a master’s hand they come together to fuse into an exquisite design. An ordinary name becomes a work of art.

“I was born here,” says Ghani. He first studied at the corporation school in the area, then went on to study at Mohammad Jan High School in Burrabazar. He studied for his master’s degree at Hyderabad Maulana Azad National Urdu University, passing out in 2008.

But after school, he had first enrolled at Urdu Academy in Calcutta to learn calligraphy along with graphic design. He teaches calligraphy at the academy now.

At home, he works on books, banners and signboards, but also on stone plaques for masjids or for homes, quite often with excerpts of The Quran in them. Calligraphy is central, sometimes literally, to Islamic architecture. “The gates of Taj Mahal are framed with calligraphy,” reminds Ghani.

But that is Arabic, he says. To understand the idea of Urdu calligraphy, one also has to understand the idea of Arabic calligraphy. Ghani practises both.

“A calligrapher is called a katib in Urdu. The wooden nib of the pen is called a sarkanda or a klich,” he says. They can be reed pens too. “The point is called a noqta. The curve is called a dayra,” Ghani adds. “Everything has a name,” he smiles. “How many can I name?” The elaborate terminology of calligraphy also explains how intricate the art is.

The artist M.F. Husain had trained in calligraphy, he reminds.

Arabic calligraphy, from which Urdu calligraphy evolved, was authored in the 10th century by Ibn Muqla, a Persian high official who later became a vizier in Baghdad, explains Ghani. He designed six styles. “Or fonts,” says Ghani.

Urdu calligraphy was formalised between 1330 and 1405, after Islam reached parts of India, in the Nashtaliq font by Khwaja Mir Ali Tabrezi. Urdu, the language too, was developing then from Khariboli, a north Indian dialect that had borrowed heavily from Persian words. “Urdu calligraphy uses eight fonts,” says Ghani.

Ghani cannot express enough gratitude to his two masters, ustads, Ghulam Murtaza and Wasey Ahmed.

To illustrate the differences between Arabic and Urdu further, Ghani brings out a pen and dips it in the special ink. Previously the ink would be manufactured by the calligrapher himself by burning wood, but now it can be bought. “For Urdu calligraphy, the pen has to be held at 63 degrees. For Arabic, at 75 degrees. In Urdu, the dayra is circular or oval. In Arabic, it is differently shaped.”

He offers to rewrite an Urdu phrase calligraphically and chooses a heading of a book of which he had composed the title in calligraphy.

“But Urdu is the language of love, of poetry,” he says. He begins to write on another piece of paper Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s ghazal: “Gulon mein rang bhare, baad-e-naubahaar chale/Chale bhii aao ki gulshan kaa karobaar chale… (May the flowers fill up with colours, may the early spring breeze start blowing again/ Please come back, so that the garden can resume its business again…).”

I later discover that the song was written when Faiz, a Communist, was thrown into prison in Pakistan in the 1950s for his political views. The ghazal, sung by Mehdi Hassan, was also used by Vishal Bharadwaj in his searing 2014 film on Kashmir, Haider.

But Ghani, since he is using calligraphy, selects only the first two lines, and transforms them into a sher, a couplet, and a love poem. For him, it is about the intense longing for the beloved.

Of course, the computer has changed calligraphy. Not too many calligraphers are to be found easily. “But the computer cannot do what the hand can do,” says Ghani. His work on books now mostly mean writing the title of the book in Urdu calligraphy. The rest of the text is composed on the computer.

“The keywords are composed by handwritten calligraphy,” says Ghani. Same for wedding cards, where the names of the bride and groom are written calligraphically; the rest is computer-generated. “The two are never the same,” stresses Ghani.

To supplement his income, he works at the computer himself. He, too, makes wedding cards, with the calligraphy done by hand and the rest written on the computer. He accepts orders for other kinds of commercial writing as well.

At Urdu Academy, about 25 students are enrolled in the calligraphy class, but about 12-13 attend classes. “The government should do something about promoting Urdu and Urdu calligraphy. Not only Urdu, for all other Indian languages like Bengali,” he says.

He says that once, especially in the Mughal court, many Hindus knew Urdu. Many Muslim women have contributed to enriching calligraphy.

But all these seem so far away. Now Ghani has to rush to meet someone for work. He promises to find me an Urdu book that he had handwritten himself, with calligraphy.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com  / The Telegraph, online edition / Home> West Bengal / by Chandrima S. Bhattacharya in Calcutta / December 23rd, 2019

Sarileru Neekevvaru Musician Nakash Aziz is on singing spree

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, , , ,

Moodibidru (Mangaluru), KARNATAKA  / Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA :

HIGHLIGHTS

From maestro AR Rahman to latest music sensation Anirudh Ravichander, Nakash worked with almost every composer in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Bengali and…

Sarileru Neekevvaru Musician Nakash Aziz is on singing spree

In a very short span of time and after a lot of patience and struggle, playback singer and composer Nakash Aziz has become so popular that almost every other composer wants him to croon for at least one song in their album.

Nakash began his career as a playback singer in 2010, with ‘Suno Aisha’, a song from ‘Aisha’ movie. Much before this, he worked as a composer for many jingles and devotional albums. He comes from a family of singers and no wonder he sings so beautifully.

His name is still new to many. But once they explore, many will be surprised to know that to most of the hit songs from Bollywood in the recent times, Nakash lent his voice.

“It is my father, from whom I have learnt music. He inspires me a lot and so do others in my family. I owe the credit to him. Also, I must say that I get inspired from nature and Mumbai, the city where in live in,” says Nakash, who was born in Moodabidiri, a small town on the outskirts of Mangalore.

Besides releasing his new single called ‘Superstar’, the singing sensation sang ‘Dumm Dumm’ in ‘Darbar’ and ‘Dang Dang’ in ‘Sarileru Nekevaru’. Both these songs have become instant chartbusters and Nakash is super happy about it.

“Rajinikanth sir is the most down to the earth person I have ever met. I consider myself to have been very lucky enough to meet and work with this amazing person for Darbar. Also, talking about Dang Dang from Sarileru Nekevaru, this is my first song for Mahesh Babu and I am huge Tamannaah fan. So this song was also very special for me. I thank Anirudh and Devi Sri Prasad for having me on board. I really have to reveal my working experience with DSP. He is power house of energy and can make anything sound melodious and beautiful,” says the youngster.

Starting his career with Bollywood, Nakash has become busy in south and has back to back projects in hand. Happy with the number of songs he has been singing in Telugu and Tamil, he says, “I love south industry a lot. Also, I grew up listening to Tamil songs and always, as a kid, I hoped to be part of this huge industry. Now I am singing in other south languages and working with wonderful artistes.”

Music industry is that field where a lot of changes take place. Could be the trend or even a new singer coming up every other day, the changes cannot be predicted. In such a profession and film industry especially, sustaining for a long time is not so easy. When asked about how far he agrees with it, Nakash said that it all depends on who you are as a person. “Every day is a new day. All that you have to do is get up and do what you love. I love cinema and music. In case I fail, I take it as a lesson and try not to give up. Some major changes have taken place in sound and the technology. Things have become experimental and it needs nothing but belief,” he added.

In this current generation, where people are mad about social media and wake up to looking at what is happening on various platforms, Nakash makes sure he stays away from it. It is surprising because many youngsters of his age are addicted to social media.

“I browse the internet just to know where the world is going. I use YouTube a lot as that is where I listen to a lot of songs and watch singles. I share news about my upcoming projects and other stuff on Instagram. Literally, that’s just for professional purpose. I do not open Twitter and Facebook. Social media is okay only when you make the right use of it. Otherwise, it is nothing but a useless way of passing time,” believes Nakash.

Talking about what he does when he is free or feels bored, Nakash says that the best and favourite way of keeping himself busy is composing and listening to music. Another thing that he loves doing the most is making friends, travelling and interacting with people.

“I love listening and telling stories. I can spend hours doing either of them. So I am looking forward to tell them to others and I am working on it. Soon, I will be announcing about it,” says this singing sensation who has a long way to go.

source: http://www.thehansindia.com / The Hans India / Home> Featured> Sunday Hans / by Bhawana Tanmayi / Hans News Service / January 11th, 2020