Critique of Ahmad Faraz’s poetry launched
By Jonaid Iqbal
ISLAMABAD: Dard Ashob, a critique of Ahmad Faraz’s poetry, was launched under the auspices of literary organisation Imkan at the National Language Authority (NLA) on Thursday.
The book has been written by Sadia Tahir, a teacher of Islamic University’s Urdu department.
There are six essays in this handsome book that explores Ahmad Faraz’s poetry, his early years romanticism, together with many aspect of his life. His views on political matters also received a good deal of focus.
Prominent among those present in the meeting were NLA Chairman Iftikhar Arif, the Islamic University Rector Prof Fateh Mohamad Malik, Dr Anwar Hussain Siddiqui, Dr Abdul Aziz Sahir, literary critic, Qaisarah Alvi, Warden at the IIU Women Campus, poets Asghar Abid and Anjum Khaleeq.
They praised Sadia Tahir, the author of the critique, for making an auspicious beginning in this literary genre.
However, Shibli Faraz, the eminent poet’s son, came there to provide the connecting thread between the launch of the literary criticism, and the subject of the book.
Iftikhar Arif said, “Pakistan was not able to attract many serious literary critics as all of them chose to stay in India after the birth of this country”.
The subject of poor literary Urdu criticism was brought up by Dr Sahir who thought that present day criticism focused on parroting the ideas of eminent personalities without any effort made at critical analysis of the poet or his work.
Author Sadia Tahir used her faculty to critically analyse Faraz’s second poetical collection and to establish that the poet might be a romantic, but he was equally outspoken in his criticism of politics.
There was a reference to a natia poem that Faraz had written. This produced anger and ultimately landed Faraz in jail. Prof Fateh Mohammad Malik corrected the record. He said there was nothing wrong in that naat in terms of reverence for the holy Prophet (PBUH). The poem only sought to realise the large view of human creativity within a dialogue with the holy Prophet (PBUH).
Source: Dawn
Date:2/19/2010
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