XMCplNewsRSSPortal: Put up the details w/ refs

2026-04-30T06:06:57Z

Put up the details w/ refs

New page

{{Short description|Indian Urdu language poet, author, critic, and theorist (1935–2020)}}
{{About|the Indian Urdu poet|the Bangladeshi Bengali poet|Shamsur Rahman (poet)}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = Shamsur Rahman Faruqi
| image = Shamsur Rahman Farooqi.jpg
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_name = Shamsur Rahman Faruqi
| birth_date = 30 September 1935
| birth_place = [[Pratapgarh district, Uttar Pradesh|Pratapgarh]], [[United Provinces of British India|United Provinces]], [[British India]]<br> (now in [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]])
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=y|2020|12|25|1935|09|30}}
| death_place = [[Allahabad]], [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]]
| resting_place = Ashok Nagar, Allahabad, beside his wife
| nationality = [[India]]n
| other_names =
| language = [[Urdu]]
| known_for =
| notable_works = {{hlist|''Sher-e-Shor Angez''|''The Sun that Rose from the Earth''|''The Mirror of Beauty''}}
| awards = {{Unbulleted list|[[Sahitya Akademi Award]] (1986)|[[Saraswati Samman]] (1996)|[[Padma Shri]] (2009)}}
| alma_mater = [[Allahabad University]]
| occupation = [[Poet]], [[critic]]
}}

'''Shamsur Rahman Faruqi''' (30 September 1935 – 25 December 2020) was an Indian [[Urdu language]] [[poet]], author, [[critic]], and [[theorist]]. He is known for ushering [[Literary modernism|modernism]] to [[Urdu literature]]. He formulated fresh models of literary appreciation that combined Western principles of literary criticism and subsequently applied them to [[Urdu literature]] after adapting them to address literary aesthetics native to [[Arabic]], [[Persian literature|Persian]], and [[Urdu]]. Some of his notable works included ''Sher-e-Shor Angez'' (1996), ''Ka’i Chand The Sar-e Asman'' (2006), ''The Mirror of Beauty'' (2013), and ''The Sun that Rose from the Earth'' (2014). He was also the editor and publisher of the Urdu literary magazine ''[[Shabkhoon]].''

Faruqi received the [[Padma Shri]], India's fourth highest civilian honor in 2009. He was also a recipient of the [[Saraswati Samman]], an Indian literary award, for his work ''Sher-e-Shor Angez'' in 1996, and the [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] in 1986 for ''Tanqidi Afkar.''

==Early life and education==
Faruqi was born on 30 September 1935 in [[Pratapgarh district, Uttar Pradesh|Pratapgarh]], in present day [[Uttar Pradesh]] and was raised in [[Azamgarh district|Azamgarh]] and [[Gorakhpur]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Kumar|first=Nikhil|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi: The literary life of a translator|url=https://caravanmagazine.in/literature/dastan-e-shamsur-literary-life-translator|access-date=27 December 2020|website=The Caravan|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=25 December 2020|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, noted Urdu poet-critic and Padma Shri awardee, passes away at 85 |url=https://www.firstpost.com/art-and-culture/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-noted-urdu-poet-critic-and-padma-shri-awardee-passes-away-at-85-9146051.html|access-date=26 December 2020|website=Firstpost}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite web|date=2020-12-26|title='Ushered in the trend of modernism in Urdu' Noted writer, poet dies|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/ushered-in-the-trend-of-modernism-in-urdu-noted-writer-poet-shamsur-rahman-faruqi-dies-7120472/|access-date=2020-12-27|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref> He studied at Wellesley High School in Azamgarh and graduated from the Government Jubilee High School in Gorakhpur in 1949.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|title=Farewell Shamsur Rahman Faruqi: The Sun That Set in the Earth|url=https://thewire.in/books/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-urdu-literature-obituary|access-date=2020-12-28|website=The Wire}}</ref> He finished his intermediate education in 1951 from Mian George Islamia Inter College in Gorakhpur.<ref name=":6" />

He received his [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree from Maharana Pratap College in Gorakhpur and his [[Master of Arts]] (MA) degree in English literature from [[Allahabad University]] in 1955.<ref name="Columbia">{{cite web|title=Shamsur Rehman Faruqi – The master critic|url=http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00fwp/srf/txt_kazimi.html|access-date=25 August 2012|work=[[Dawn (newspaper)|Daily Dawn]]-11 July 2004)|publisher=columbia.edu}}</ref><ref name=":5" /> He pursued a doctorate in English symbolism and French literature with the poet [[Harivansh Rai Bachchan]] as his supervisor but dropped out after a disagreement with Bachchan.<ref name=":5" />

==Career==
Faruqi began his writing career in 1960.<ref name="Columbia" /> He founded the Urdu literary magazine ''[[Shabkhoon]]'' in 1966 and was its editor and publisher for more than four decades.<ref>{{cite book|author=Amaresh Datta|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zB4n3MVozbUC&pg=PA1899|title=Encyclopedia of Indian Literature|publisher=Sahitya Akademi|year=1988|isbn=978-81-260-1194-0|page=1899|access-date=10 May 2015}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> He was a visiting professor at the South Asia Regional Studies Center at the [[University of Pennsylvania]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|last=Bilal|first=Maaz Bin|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi (1935–2020): Why this death leaves a permanent patch of darkness in literature|url=https://scroll.in/article/982332/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-1935-2020-why-this-death-leaves-a-permanent-patch-of-darkness-in-literature|access-date=27 December 2020|website=Scroll.in|date=26 December 2020 |language=en-US}}</ref> He was additionally employed by the [[Indian Postal Service]] until his retirement as a [[Postmaster General]] and a member of the Postal Services Board in 1994.<ref name="Columbia" />

An expert in classical [[Prosody (poetry)|prosody]] and ''‘ilm-e bayan'' (the science of poetic discourse), he contributed to modern literary discourse with a profundity rarely seen in contemporary Urdu critics.<ref name="Columbia"/> He was described as "the century's most iconic figure in the realm of Urdu literature".<ref>{{Cite web|date=25 December 2020|title=Urdu poet and critic Shamsur Rahman Faruqi dies of Covid-19 at 85|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/art-and-culture/urdu-poet-and-critic-shamsur-rahman-faruqi-dies-of-covid-19-at-85/story-bNSSavzmqYwJkFtzykV7rN.html|access-date=26 December 2020|website=Hindustan Times|language=en}}</ref> Some of his notable works included ''Tafheem-e-Ghalib,'' a commentary on Urdu poet [[Mirza Ghalib]]'', Sher-e-Shor Angez,'' a four-volume study of the 18th-century poet [[Mir Taqi Mir]] ''and Kai Chand Thay Sar-e-Asmaan.''

Faruqi is noted for ushering in [[Literary modernism|modernism]] into Urdu literature through his works.<ref name=":5" /> He formulated fresh models of literary appreciation while Observing western principles of literary criticism, and subsequently applied them to [[Urdu literature]] after adapting them to address literary aesthetics native to [[Arabic]], [[Persian literature|Persian]], and [[Urdu]].<ref name="Columbia" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name="urdu">{{cite web|title=A Conversation with Shamsur Rahman Faruqi by Prem Kumar Nazar|url=http://www.urdustudies.com/pdf/13/10premConvers.pdf|access-date=13 September 2012|publisher=UrduStudies.com}}</ref> Through his works, he wrote about the Indian-Muslim way of life through the 18th and 19th centuries.<ref name=":1" /> As a progressive himself, he spoke against the [[burqa]], [[hijab]], and skull cap worn by conservatives, while continuing to emphasize the need for minority communities to express their own identity within democracies.<ref name=":1" /> He considered himself to be an outsider in the Urdu literary establishment, challenging the position of incumbent progressive writers for stifling other writers.<ref name=":1" /> He also emphasized the need for language to be a binding force for culture and communities and expressed his concerns that language had been reduced to a tool of identity. He said in an interview, "It is sad that language has become a tool of ownership and hegemony; not the thread that binds people together."<ref name=":3"/> His magazine, ''[[Shabkhoon]]'' ({{Translation|'' Ambush at Night''}}) between 1966 and 2006, aimed at publishing [[Modernist literature|modernist Urdu literature]] and authors aiming to break the hegemony of the incumbent progressives.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" />

Faruqi also translated many of his works into English. His 2013 novel, ''The Mirror of Beauty,'' was a translation of ''Kai Chand The Sar-e Asman,'' his 2006 Urdu novel. The book chronicled the life of [[Wazir Khanum]], mother of late-19th-century Indian Urdu poet [[Daagh Dehlvi]], and was set in that time's Delhi.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|date=25 December 2020|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, noted Urdu poet-critic and Padma Shri awardee, passes away at 85 |url=https://www.firstpost.com/art-and-culture/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-noted-urdu-poet-critic-and-padma-shri-awardee-passes-away-at-85-9146051.html|access-date=27 December 2020|website=Firstpost}}</ref><ref name="openthemagazine.com">{{cite web|title=The Last Ustad – OPEN Magazine|url=http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/books/the-last-ustad|website=OPEN Magazine|date=21 October 2014 }}</ref> The book was shortlisted for the [[DSC Prize for South Asian Literature]].<ref name=":3" /> His 2014 novel, ''The Sun That Rose from the Earth'', detailed the thriving Urdu literature scene in the Indian cities of Delhi and [[Lucknow]] of the 18th and 19th centuries, and resilience amidst the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]]. There is no doubt that he was an iconoclast who was sometimes termed as TS Eliot of Urdu Literature.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Khalid Bin Umar|first=Khalid Bin Umar|date=1 January 2021|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi – T.S Eliot of Urdu Literature'|url=http://heritagetimes.in/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-t-s-eliot-of-urdu-literature/}}
/</ref>

=== Dastaangoi ===
In addition to his contributions to [[Urdu literature]], Faruqi is credited with the revival of the [[Dastangoi]], a 16th-century [[Urdu language|Urdu]] [[oral storytelling]] art form.<ref name="indianexpress">{{cite news|title=Walk Back In Time: Experience life in Nizamuddin Basti, the traditional way |url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/walk-back-in-time-experience-life-in-nizamuddin-basti-the-traditional-way/1037722/|access-date=18 December 2012|newspaper=[[The Indian Express]]|date=29 November 2012}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> The art form reached its [[wikt: zenith|zenith]] in the Indian sub-continent in the 19th century and is said to have died with the death of [[Mir Baqar Ali]] in 1928. Working with his nephew, the writer, and director [[Mahmood Farooqui]], Faruqi helped to modernize the format and led its revival in the 21st century.<ref>{{cite news|last=Husain|first=Intizar|date=25 December 2011|title=COLUMN: Dastan and dastan goi for the modern audience|newspaper=[[Dawn (newspaper)|Dawn]]|url=http://x.dawn.com/2011/12/25/column-dastan-and-dastangoi-for-the-modern-audience/|url-status=dead|access-date=7 November 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20131107151321/http://x.dawn.com/2011/12/25/column-dastan-and-dastangoi-for-the-modern-audience/|archive-date=7 November 2013}}</ref> Starting in 2004, Farooqui and his Dastangoi group performed in India, Pakistan, and the United States.<ref name="frontline">{{cite news|last=Sayeed|first=Vikram Ahmed|date=14 January 2011|title=Return of dastangoi|newspaper=[[Frontline (magazine)|Frontline]]|url=http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2801/stories/20110114280109800.htm|access-date=18 December 2012}}</ref><ref name="Dawn">{{cite news|last=Ahmed|first=Shoaib|date=6 December 2012|title=Indian storytellers bring Dastangoi to Alhamra|newspaper=[[Dawn (newspaper)|Dawn]]|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/769264/indian-storytellers-bring-dastangoi-to-alhamra-2|access-date=18 December 2012}}</ref>

=== Translations ===
In 2011, Faruqi translated four urdu-language books from [[Ibn-e-Safi]]'s ''[[Jasoosi Dunya]]'' series into English, which were published by Blaft Publications.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sarma |first=Deepika |date=2011-07-14 |title=Murder on their minds |url=http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/article2226910.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160112033014/http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/article2226910.ece |archive-date=2016-01-12 |access-date=2024-11-19 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref>

==Awards==
He received the [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] in 1986 for his book ''Tanqidi Afkar'', which focuses on modern theories of poetry appreciation.<ref name=":5" /> He was awarded the [[Saraswati Samman]], an Indian literary award, for his work ''Sher-e-Shor Angez'', a four-volume study of the 18th-century poet [[Mir Taqi Mir]], in 1996.<ref name="Columbia"/><ref name=":3"/> He was awarded the [[Padma Shri]], India's fourth highest civilian honor, in 2009.<ref name="Padma Awards">{{cite web | url=http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf | title=Padma Awards | publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India | date=2015 | access-date=21 July 2015 | archive-date=15 October 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015193758/http://mha.nic.in/sites/upload_files/mha/files/LST-PDAWD-2013.pdf | url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Faruqi met his future wife, Jamila Hashmi when she was a student in Allahabad pursuing her master's degree in English literature. She later set up and ran two girls' schools focused on the economically marginalized.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Soofi|first=Mayank Austen|date=15 November 2014|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi: Darcy was a 'damn sexist'|url=https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/n6UCQZrqyozgLHV0W1IFAL/Shamsur-Rahman-Faruqi-Darcy-was-a-damn-sexist.html|access-date=27 December 2020|website=mint|language=en}}</ref> The couple had two daughters.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bilal|first=Maaz Bin|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi (1935–2020): Why this death leaves a permanent patch of darkness in literature|url=https://scroll.in/article/982332/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-1935-2020-why-this-death-leaves-a-permanent-patch-of-darkness-in-literature|access-date=27 December 2020|website=Scroll.in|date=26 December 2020 |language=en-US}}</ref> Jamila died in 2007 of complications from hip replacement surgery.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=25 December 2020|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi (1935–2020) 'Link uniting old, new cultures': Tributes pour in for literary icon|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-1935-2020-link-uniting-old-new-cultures-tributes-pour-in-for-literary-icon/story-SyX9zpLh1a9sMEXu1bGiRK.html|access-date=27 December 2020|website=Hindustan Times|language=en}}</ref> Reflecting on the role played by his wife in advancing his career, Faruqi acknowledged that without her influence he would not have been able to invest his efforts in his magazine and stated that in consequence, "my struggle to become a writer of my kind would never have ended."<ref name=":2" />

He died on 25 December 2020 in [[Allahabad]] due to complications from [[COVID-19]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|date=26 December 2020|title=Noted writer, poet Shamsur Rahman Faruqi passes away|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/ushered-in-the-trend-of-modernism-in-urdu-noted-writer-poet-shamsur-rahman-faruqi-dies-7120372/|access-date=26 December 2020|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref> It was announced that he would be buried in the [[Ashok Nagar, Allahabad|Ashok Nagar]] cemetery in Allahabad.<ref name=":1"/>

==Bibliography==
* ''Sher, Ghair Sher, Aur Nasr'', (1973)<ref name="Columbia" />
* ''The Secret Mirror'', (in English, 1981)<ref name="Columbia" />
* ''Ghalib Afsaney Ki Himayat Mein'', (1989)<ref name="Columbia" />
*''Tafheem-e-Ghalib''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Tafheem-e-Ghalib by Shamsur Rahman Faruqi|url=https://www.rekhta.org/ebooks/tafheem-e-ghalib-shamsur-rahman-faruqi-ebooks|access-date=27 December 2020|website=Rekhta|language=en}}</ref>
*''Tanqidi Afqar'' (1982)<ref name=":5" />
* ''Sher-e Shor Angez'' (in 3 volumes, 1991–93)<ref name="Columbia"/>
* ''Mir Taqi Mir 1722–1810'' (Collected works with commentary and explanation)<ref name="Columbia"/>
* ''Urdu Ka Ibtedai Zamana'' (2001)<ref name="Columbia"/>
* ''Ganj-i-Sokhta'' (poetry)<ref name="Columbia"/>
* ''Sawar Aur Doosray Afsanay'' (2001)<ref name="Columbia"/>
* ''Kai Chand Thay Sar-e-Asmaan'' (2006)<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/6435134|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi's "The Mirror of Beauty": Striking a Discordant Note|first=Waqas|last=Khwaja}}</ref>
*''The Mirror of Beauty'' (2013)<ref name=":3" />
*''The Sun that Rose from the Earth'' (2014)<ref name=":3" />
* ''Ajab Sehar Bayan Tha'' (2018) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Hamarey Liye Manto Sahab'' (2013) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Khurshid ka Saman e Safar'' (2016) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Tanqidi Mamlat'' (2018) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Majlis e Afaq'' main Parwana Saan (Collection of Poetry- 2018) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Sorat o Ma'ani e Sukhan'' (2010, 2021) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Sahiri Shahi Sahib e Qarani —Dastan Ameer Hamza ka Mutalea - Dastan Dunya -2'', Vol. 5 (2020) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi
* ''Afsaney ki Nai Himayat Main'' (2021) Published by M R Publications, New Delhi

==See also==
*[[List of Urdu language poets]]
*[[List of Urdu language writers]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*[https://caravanmagazine.in/literature/dastan-e-shamsur-literary-life-translator Dastan-e-Shamsur Rahman Faruqi: Life of a Writer]. A profile in ''[[The Caravan]]'' by Nikhil Kumar
* {{cite web|date=27 June 2013|title=Paradise of Rectitude|url=http://www.caravanmagazine.in/reviews-essays/paradise-rectitude}} Anjum Hasan in ''[[The Caravan]]'' on ''The Mirror of Beauty''
* {{Cite journal|last=George|first=Rajni|date=21 October 2014|title=The Last Ustad|url=https://openthemagazine.com/lounge/books/the-last-ustad/|journal=[[Open (Indian magazine)|Open Magazine]]}} Profile
* {{Cite news|last=Soofi|first=Mayank Austen|date=15 November 2014|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi: Darcy was a 'damn sexist'|url=http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/n6UCQZrqyozgLHV0W1IFAL/Shamsur-Rahman-Faruqi-Darcy-was-a-damn-sexist.html |newspaper=[[Mint (newspaper)|Mint]]}} Interview
* {{Cite news|last=Khalid Bin Umar|first=Khalid Bin Umar|date=1 January 2021|title=Shamsur Rahman Faruqi – T.S Eliot of Urdu Literature'|url=http://heritagetimes.in/shamsur-rahman-faruqi-t-s-eliot-of-urdu-literature/}}
* {{Cite news|last=Urdu Article|first=Khalid Bin Umar|date=28 December 2020|title=Alvida Shamsur Rahman Faruqi'|url=https://tawarikhkhwani.com/ur/alvida-shamsur-rahman-faruqi//}}
*[http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00urduhindilinks/srffest/index.html An informal festschrift in honor of Shamsur Rahman Faruqi]

==External links==
* {{Official website|http://www.shamsurrahmanfaruqi.com/ }}
* [http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00fwp/srf/index.html Work in English]
* [http://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/17/a-conversation-with-literary-critic-and-novelist-shamsur-rahman-faruqi/?smid=fb-share "A Conversation with Literary Critic and Novelist Shamsur Rahman Faruqi", ''New York Times'']
* [https://www.rekhta.org/poets/shamsur-rahman-faruqi Shamsur Rahman Faruqi's profile on Rekhta]

{{Saraswati Samman}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Faruqi, Shamsur Rahman}}
[[Category:1935 births]]
[[Category:2020 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in India]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian Muslims]]
[[Category:Indian civil servants]]
[[Category:Academic staff of Jamia Millia Islamia]]
[[Category:Linguists of Urdu]]
[[Category:Poets from Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Urdu]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Saraswati Samman Award]]
[[Category:University of Allahabad alumni]]
[[Category:Urdu-language Indian writers]]
[[Category:Urdu-language non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:Urdu-language Indian poets]]
[[Category:People from Pratapgarh district, Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Urdu–English translators]]

Shamsur Rahman Faruqi - Revision history

XMCplNewsRSSPortal: Put up the details w/ refs