Tag Archives: Aligarh Muslim University (AMU)

Asloob Ahmad Ansari obituary

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

NEW DELHI / Aligarh, UTTAR PRADESH  :

Asloob Ahmad Ansari knew Urdu and Persian, and learned Arabic in later years
Asloob Ahmad Ansari knew Urdu and Persian, and learned Arabic in later years

My former teacher Asloob Ahmad Ansari, who has died aged 91, was a professor of English at Aligarh Muslim University, northern India, and a distinguished literary critic and editor.

Born in Delhi and brought up in Saharanpur, a city in Uttar Pradesh, Asloob was the son of Sana Ahmad, a member of a land-owning family who worked in a post office, and his wife, Zarifa Khatoon; his four siblings were all to migrate to Pakistan after partition in 1947.

Asloob was educated at a government school in Delhi, and then at Aligarh Muslim University, where he joined the English department as a lecturer in 1946. He retired in 1985, having headed the department for some 20 years. Asloob also obtained a BA from Oxford University (1956-58), where he began a lifelong friendship with his tutor, FW Bateson.

Shakespeare and William Blake were Asloob’s lifelong passions: he regularly attended the World Shakespeare Conference at Stratford-upon-Avon, and launched and edited two journals in English specialising in Shakespeare and Blake scholarship. He persuaded critics including FR Leavis, Wilson Knight, Kenneth Muir and Laurence Lerner to write for the Aligarh Journal of English Studies, which he started in 1976. He continued his editorial work even after retirement, in 1987, when he launched the Aligarh Critical Miscellany.

Asloob knew Urdu and Persian and edited Naqd-o–Nazar, a journal in Urdu that paid special attention to the poets Ghalib and Iqbal. He won many prizes for his contribution to Urdu literature, including the Sahitya Akademi award from India’s National Academy of Letters, the President of Pakistan award, the Ghalib award and the Mir Taqi Mir award.

Asloob always spoke very softly in the classroom, but was disciplined and hard-working, and never very keen on socialising. A diabetic for most of his life, he followed a strict diet and walked many miles each morning and evening. He also played badminton to keep fit.

A devout Muslim, he recited the Qur’an daily and rarely missed his prayers. To understand the Qur’an better, he learnt Arabic in his old age by hiring a private tutor.

In 1951, Asloob married Talat Ara. She survives him, together with their two daughters, Iffat and Roshan, and three grandchildren.

source: http://www.theguardian.com / The Guardian / Home> Education> Other Lives> India / by Mohammad Asim Siddiqui / July 07th, 2016

‘The scooter was my Boeing’

Leaders, Sports, World Opinion, , , , , , , , , , ,

Aligarh, UTTAR PRADESH / NEW DELHI :

ZafarIqbalMPOs25oct2018

Zafar Iqbal, former India hockey captain, shares his memories of what may have been his first ‘vehicle’ and what actually was

Like most people at that time, I also learnt to use a cycle. The first vehicle I ‘owned’ was a bicycle that was presented to us (the Indian hockey team) in 1980 for winning the Olympic gold at Moscow. I was so happy. But when I went to claim my prize, I discovered the cycle had no accessories. I was asked to pay for the accessories, which I politely declined. I returned home without my prize, but the same year I bought a scooter.

The acquisition of the scooter is an interesting story. It was a Bajaj which I grabbed without having gone through the process of bookings. The waiting period was more than a year. It so happened that we were playing a tournament (Scindia Gold Cup) in Gwalior and one gentleman from the organising committee wanted to sell his scooter. The demand was huge and one had to shell out double the original price. I haggled and struck a decent deal. It was a greenish colour and the scooter was driven home to Delhi from Gwalior, by a mechanic. I remember the registration number to this day: GPW 737. I was employed with Indian Airlines (now Air India) and this scooter was my Boeing (737).

My best memory of the scooter was, by the grace of God, the fact that I never suffered a fall or an accident. For ₹20, I could fill up the tank. It would last me for ages really. I drove the scooter for five years, using it to travel for practice at the National Stadium, or taking my wife to the Karim’s near Jama Masjid. Shanti Path was a great place to drive around. I have also driven to Aligarh on it.

In 1985, I purchased a Maruti Suzuki. The car was a luxury. It served me well before I shifted to an Innova Crysta (automatic) recently. I also drive a Mahindra Thar now, exclusively for my golfing trips to the Noida Golf Club every morning.

Driving is no more a pleasure in Delhi. But I can’t take public transport either, because they are too crowded. At some point, it was fun travelling by bus from my home in Vasant Vihar to the Indian Airlines office at Parliament Street. I remember the route number (640) too. Sometimes people, hockey lovers who would have seen me in action at the Shivaji Stadium, would recognise me.

I felt sad when last year I had to dismantle my dear Bajaj scooter. Maybe I could have had it painted and preserved it as a souvenir. It is a memory now, but a pleasant one of my early years of driving.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style> Motoring / by Vijay Lokapally / October 23rd, 2018