Ali Sikandar (6 April 1890 – 9 September 1960), known by his

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

as Jigar Moradabadi, was an Indian Urdu poet and ''

ghazal The ''ghazal'' ( ar, غَزَل, bn, গজল, Hindi-Urdu: /, fa, غزل, az, qəzəl, tr, gazel, tm, gazal, uz, gʻazal, gu, ગઝલ) is a form of amatory poem or ode, originating in Arabic poetry. A ghazal may be understood as a ...

'' writer. He received the

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

in 1958 for his poetry collection "Atish-e-Gul", and was the second poet (after

Mohammad Iqbal Sir Muhammad Iqbal ( ur, ; 9 November 187721 April 1938), was a South Asian Muslim writer, philosopher, Quote: "In Persian, ... he published six volumes of mainly long poems between 1915 and 1936, ... more or less complete works on philoso ...

) to be awarded an honorary

D.Litt. Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

by the

Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University (abbreviated as AMU) is a Public University, public Central University (India), central university in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan as the Muhammadan Anglo-Orie ...

Biography

He received oriental education in Arabic, Persian and Urdu in

Moradabad Moradabad () is a city, commissionary and municipal corporation in Moradabad district of Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Moradabad is situated on the banks of the Ramganga river, at a distance of from the national capital, New Delhi and 344 ...

, and started to work as a travelling salesman. Jigar moved to Gonda, near

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

, where he befriended

Asghar Gondvi Asghar Husain Asghar (1884–1936) popularly known by his pen name Asghar Gondvi, born in 1884 in Gorakhpur. Gondvi's father lived in the district of Gorakhpur Gorakhpur is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, along the banks of ...

. He died on 9 September 1960 in Gonda.

Legacy

His Sufi Poem ''Yeh Hai Maikada'' Was Sung By Many Sufi Singers Like

Sabri Brothers The Sabri Brothers ( Punjabi, ) were a musical band from Pakistan who were performers of Sufi qawwali music and were closely connected to the Chishti Order. They are considered as one of the greatest Sufi qawwali singers of all times. The Sabr ...

Aziz Mian Aziz Mian Qawwal ( ur, عزیز میاں قوال) (17 April 1942 – 6 December 2000) was a Pakistani traditional qawwal famous for singing ghazals in his own style of qawwali and is considered one of the greatest qawwals in South Asia. He ...

, Munni Begum &

Attaullah Khan Esakhelvi Attaullah Khan Niazi, SI PP (Urdu, Pashto: ) (born 19 August 1951), known professionally as Attaullah Khan Esakhelvi also known as Lala (meaning "elder brother" in Pashto and Punjabi), is a Pakistani musician from Isakhel, Mianwali, Punjab. ...

Acclaim

Jigar Moradabadi belonged to the classical school of

writing and was a mentor to

Majrooh Sultanpuri Asrar ul Hassan Khan (1 October 1919 − 24 May 2000), better known as Majrooh Sultanpuri, was an Indian Urdu poet and lyricist in India's Hindi language film industry. He wrote Hindustani lyrics for numerous Hindi film soundtracks. He was ...

, who became a prominent lyricist in the Indian film industry and penned many popular songs in Urdu. Jigar was only the second poet in the history of

to be awarded an honorary D.Litt., the first was

Muhammad Iqbal Sir Muhammad Iqbal ( ur, ; 9 November 187721 April 1938), was a South Asian Muslim writer, philosopher, Quote: "In Persian, ... he published six volumes of mainly long poems between 1915 and 1936, ... more or less complete works on philoso ...

Faiz Ahmad Faiz Faiz Ahmad ''Faiz'' (13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984; Urdu, Punjabi: فیض احمد فیض) was a Pakistani poet, and author of Urdu and Punjabi literature. Faiz was one of the most celebrated Pakistani Urdu writers of his time. Out ...

, the distinguished Urdu poet and academic, regarded Jigar Moradabadi as a master craftsman in his field.

Jigar Fest - 2018

Progressive Foundation organized three days Jigar Fest at Moradabad in 2018, to celebrate Jigar's Birthday. Day 1 - Mushayra by

Rahat Indori Rahat Indori, born as Rahat Qureshi, (1 January 1950 – 11 August 2020) was an Indian Bollywood lyricist and Urdu poet. He was also a former professor of Urdu language and a painter. Prior to this he was a pedagogist of Urdu literature at DAVV ...

, Wasim Barelvi etc.
Day 2 - Kawwali Nights by Chand Qadri
Day 3 - Musical Night by Sheeba Alam

References

External links