Majaz: Difference between revisions

'''Asrar-ul-Haq''' (19 October 1911 – 5 December 1955), better known as '''Majaz Lakhnawi''', was an Indian [[Urdu]] poet. He was known for his romantic and revolutionary poetry. He composed ''[[ghazal]]s'' and ''[[nazm]]s'' in [[Urdu language|Urdu]]. He was the maternal uncle of poet and screenplay writer [[Javed Akhtar]].<ref name=BS>{{cite news|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/a-poet-for-all-times-majaz-lakhnavi-column-bookends-114060100190_1.html |title=A poet for all times: Majaj Lakhnavi|author=IANS|date=1 June 2014|newspaper=Business Standard (newspaper)|access-date=29 October 2021}}</ref>

Majaz was born on 19 October 1911 at [[Rudauli]] in [[Barabanki district]] of what is now [[Uttar Pradesh]].<ref name=Dawn/>{{sfn|Coppola|1981|p=48}} His family were a branch of a land-owning gentry family, but were not wealthy. His brother [[Ansar Harvani]] was a journalist and he had two older sisters, namely Safia and [[Hamida Salim|Hamida]].{{efn|[[Hamida Salim|Hamida]] wrote an account of her family titled ''Hum Paanch Thay'' (We Were Five).{{sfn|Jalil|2014}}}} Safia was the wife of  poet [[Jan Nisar Akhtar]]. Thus, Majaz was the maternal uncle of [[Javed Akhtar]].{{sfn|Jalil|2014}} Majaz suffered from a hearing impairment even as a child, and probably for this reason, he tended to be somewhat difficult, with erratic behavior; he was moody and also a loner.<ref name=Dawn/> He had the habit of staying awake all night and doing most of his work then; as a result, his earned the nickname "Jaggan Bhaiyya" ("awake brother" in Hindi). According to a major newspaper of the region, "With hindsight one could deduce that he had the marks of a bipolar mental disorder that became more pronounced as he grew older and his life began to fall apart".<ref name=Dawn/>

Majaz completed school in [[Agra]] in 1929, and enrolled in St. John's Intermediate College. Almost immediately, his father was transferred to [[Aligarh]], and the family moved again, leaving Majaz in a hostel. The young Majaz was given a cash allowance for the first time in his life, and freedom from his mother's adoring but eagle surveillance.<ref name=Dawn/> He behaved like any teenager of his age, neglected his studies, spent his time and money the way he liked, and failed his exams. Yet, his time was spent not on games or in disreputable activities, but in attending ''[[mushaira]]s'' (poetry symposia) and music concerts. It was at this time that he came in contact with both senior and upcoming poets of Agra, including [[Fani Badayuni]], [[Ale Ahmad Suroor]] and Jazbi. With difficulty, Majaz finally cleared his intermediate exams in 1931, and rejoined his parents in Aligarh, where his father got him enrolled for BA at [[Aligarh Muslim University]],<ref name=Dawn/> his subjects being philosophy, economics and Urdu. He graduated in 1936, again taking a year more than he should have.<ref name=MT>{{cite news|url=http://muslimstoday.in/asrar-ul-haq-majaz-a-journey-of-love-hope-and-nationalism/ |title=Asrar-ul-Haq Majaj - A Journey of Love, Hope and Nationalism|newspaper=Muslims Today (newspaper)|author=Inam Abidi|date=12 December 2011|access-date=30 October 2021}}</ref>

The years that Majaz spent in [[Aligarh Muslim University]] (AMU) coincided with the presence there of many important poets and writers of Urdu. AMU was indeed a nursery of literary talent during those years. Here he came in contact with the [[Progressive Writers' Movement]] under K. M. Ashraf and [[Abdul Aleem (professor)|Abdul Aleem]].{{sfn|Coppola|1981|p=48}} Majaz lived and wrote in times which were exceptionally vibrant for poetry; poets such as [[Faiz Ahmed Faiz]], [[Fani Badayuni]], Jazbi, [[Makhdoom Mohiuddin|Makhdoom]], [[Sahir Ludhianvi]] and [[Ali Sardar Jafri]] were among his peers.<ref name=Dawn/><ref name=MT/> They were not merely his contemporaries but close friends as well. Others such as [[Josh Malihabadi|Josh]] and [[Firaq Gorakhpuri|Firaq]] knew him well. His first diwan, ''Ahang'', is dedicated to Faiz and Jazbi whom he calls his “dil-o-jigar,” and to Sardar Jafri and Makhdoom, who are “mere dast-o-bazu.” Faiz wrote a thoughtful prelude to ''Ahang''.<ref name=Dawn>{{cite news|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1024394/column-the-lonely-poet-majaz |title=The lonely poet: Majaz|author=Mehr Afshan Farooqi|newspaper=Dawn (newspaper)|date=14 July 2013|access-date=28 October 2021}}</ref>

Due to his heavy drinking, he had a tragic death. On the night of his death, according to a newspaper, "Majaj's friends took him to a tavern in Lalbagh where they all drank on the rooftop. One by one they all left leaving Majaj alone in the cold winter night. The next morning he was rushed to the hospital where doctors diagnosed a brain haemorrhage and pneumonia".<ref name=MT/> Majaj died that night.

* {{Cite journal|last=Coppola|first=Carlo|date=1981|title=Asrarul Haq Majaz: The Progressive Poet as Revolutionary Romantic|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23330208|journal=Indian Literature|volume=24|issue=4|pages=46–62|issn=0019-5804}}

* {{Cite book|last=Jalil|first=Rakhshanda|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e_2HngEACAAJ&newbks=0|title=Liking Progress, Loving Change: A Literary History of the Progressive Writers' Movement in Urdu|date=2014|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-809673-3|language=en}}