Asrar-ul-Haq (19 October 1911 – 5 December 1955), better known as Majaz Lakhnawi, was an Indian

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' ghazals'' and ''

nazm ''Nazm'' () is a major part of Urdu and Sindhi poetry that is normally written in rhymed verse and also in modern prose-style poems. is a significant genre of Urdu and Sindhi poetry; the other one is known as ''ghazal'' (). is significantly ...

s'' in

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Javed Akhtar and Indian-American psychoanalyst

Salman Akhtar Salman Akhtar (born 31 July 1946) is an Indian-American psychoanalyst practicing in the United States. He is an author and Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. Biography Salman Akhtar was bo ...

Early life and education

Majaz was born on 19 October 1911 at

Rudauli Rudauli is a town, tehsil and a municipal board in Faizabad district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Rudauli is 50 km west of the district headquarters Ayodhya. Geography Rudauli is located at . It has an average elevation of 105&nb ...

Ayodhya district Faizabad district, officially Ayodhya district, is one of the 75 districts of Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city of Ayodhya, which is believed to be the birth place of Hindu deity Rama, is the administrative headquarters of the district. ...

of what is now

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

. His family were a branch of a land-owning gentry family, but were not wealthy. His brother

Ansar Harvani Ansar Harvani is an Indian politician. Harwani opposed the partition of India. He was elected to the Lok Sabha, lower house of the Parliament of India from Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh as a member of the Indian National Congress The Indian N ...

was a journalist and he had two older sisters, namely Safia and Hamida. Safia was the wife of poet

Jan Nisar Akhtar Jan Nisar Akhtar (18 February 1914 – 19 August 1976) was an Indian poet of Urdu ghazals and nazms, and a part of the Progressive Writers' Movement, who was also a lyricist for Bollywood. He was son of Muztar Khairabadi and great grandson ...

. Thus, Majaz was the maternal uncle of Javed Akhtar. 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. 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". Majaz's father, Seraj-ul-Haq, was a university graduate at a time when this was rare; he joined government service, serving in the middle ranks of the registration department, and finally reached the rank of Assistant Registrar. He was posted mainly in

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 ...

, but since his aged parents needed attention, he kept his wife and children in the ancestral house at Rudauli, which is not far from

, and he would visit them about twice a month. Thus, Majaz grew up mainly in Rudauli and received his basic education there. In the late 1920s, his father was transferred to

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra i ...

. Since his parents were no more, and since Agra was too far from Rudauli for frequent visits, Seraj-ul-haq decided to take his wife and children with him. Majaz completed school in

in 1929, and enrolled in St. John's Intermediate College. Almost immediately, his father was transferred to

Aligarh Aligarh (; formerly known as Allygarh, and Kol) is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Aligarh district, and lies northwest of state capital Lucknow and approximately southeast of the cap ...

, 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. 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 ''Mushaira'' ( ur, , Mušā'ira) is a poetic symposium. It is an event (called '' mehfil'', Mushairi) where poets gather to perform their works. A mushaira is part of the Culture of North India, Pakistan and the Deccan, particularly among the ...

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 Shaukat Ali Khan (1879 - 27 August 1941), better known as Fani Badayuni (his takhallus), was an Indian Urdu poet. Early life He was schooled at Government High School and graduated from Bareilly College in 1901, studied law at Aligarh Muslim U ...

, 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, his subjects being philosophy, economics and Urdu. He graduated in 1936, again taking a year more than he should have.

Career

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. Majaz lived and wrote in times which were exceptionally vibrant for poetry; poets such as

Faiz Ahmed 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 ...

, Jazbi, Makhdoom,

Sahir Ludhianvi Abdul Hayee (8 March 1921 – 25 October 1980), popularly known by his pen name (takhallus) Sahir Ludhianvi, was an Indian poet and film song lyricist who wrote primarily in Urdu in addition to Hindi. His work influenced Indian cinema, i ...

Ismat Chughtai Ismat Chughtai (21 August 1915 – 24 October 1991) was an Indian Urdu novelist, short story writer, liberal humanist and filmmaker. Beginning in the 1930s, she wrote extensively on themes including female sexuality and femininity, middle-class ...

, and

Ali Sardar Jafri Ali Sardar Jafri (29 November 1913 – 1 August 2000) was an Indian writer of Urdu language. He was also a poet, critic and film lyricist. Biography Early life and education Ali Sardar Jafri was born in Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh, where he sp ...

were among his peers. They were not merely his contemporaries but close friends as well. Others such as Josh and 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''. Majaz abandoned his MA in Aligarh due to financial reasons and moved to

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

where he worked as sub-editor for the journal, ''Awaaz'' (Call). Here he became actively involved with the Delhi branch of the Progressive Writers' Association run by

Shahid Ahmad Dehlvi Shahid Ahmad Dehlvi (Urdu: ‎; Shāhid Aḥmad Dihlavī; 22 May 1906 – 27 May 1967) was a Pakistani author, editor and translator. He was conferred with the Pride of Performance award for his literary services by the Government of Pak ...

. He also worked for the

All India Radio All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...

for a year before moving to

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

. In Bombay, he worked in the Department of Information for the Government of Bombay. In 1937, he returned to Lucknow and along with Jafri and

Sibte Hassan Syed Sibt-e-Hasan (Urdu: سید سبط حسن) (31 July 1916 – 20 April 1986) was an eminent scholar, journalist and political activist of Pakistan. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of Socialism and Marxism in Pakistan, as well as the mo ...

founded the literary magazine, ''Parcham'' (Flag) which ran only for a single issue. In Lucknow, he also worked on the editorial staff of journals like ''Halqa-e-Adab'' (Circle of Literature) and in ''Naya Adab'' (New Literature) along with Jafri and

Death

Majaz died on 5 December 1955, while the first Students' Urdu Convention was underway in Lucknow. His condolence meeting was held on 7 December 1955 in the Rifah-e-Aam Hall and was attended by poets and writers from all over India. Due to his heavy drinking, he had a tragic death. On the night of his death, according to a newspaper, "Majaz's friends took him to a tavern in Lalbagh where they all drank on the rooftop. One by one they all left leaving Majaz alone in the cold winter night. The next morning he was rushed to the hospital where doctors diagnosed a brain hemorrhage and pneumonia". Majaz died that night. He was buried in a cemetery in Lucknow. His grave bears a verse from one of his ghazals written in 1945:

And after this there is morn and the new morning Majaz
With me ends the eve of sorrows of Lucknow.

Major works

Majaz's collection of poems include: * ''Ahang'' (Melody) - 1938 * ''Shab-e-tar'' (Dark Night) - 1945 * ''Saaz-e-Nau'' (New Musical Instruments) - 1949 * ''Tarana'' (anthem) of Aligarh Muslim University

Legacy

* In memory of the poet a book launch of, ''Majaz Aur Uski Shaayeri'', edited by

was held in collaboration with

The Nehru Centre, London The Nehru Centre, London is a cultural centre located at the South Audley Street, London. Its goal is to promote cultural exchange between India and the United Kingdom. The Nehru Centre was founded in 1992. Since its inception it has striven to ...

and Aligarh Muslim University Alumni Association (UK). The programme included video clippings on Majaz including comments by Hamida Salim (Majaz's sister) and

(Majaaz's friend and contemporary poet), a speech by Parvaiz Alam (broadcaster and dramatist), a lecture Majaz – Teen Daayeron ka Shayer by Akhtar, and Kalam-e-Majaz sung by Nasser Harvani and Majaz's nephew from New Delhi. * A dastangoi based on Majaz's life and poetry was performed by

Ankit Chadha Ankit Chadha (21 December 1987 – 9 May 2018) was an Indian writer, story-teller, oral narrative performance artist, researcher and educator. He specialized in research-based narratives performed in the centuries-old Dastangoi form of storyte ...

and Himanshu Bajpai This narrative introduces the audience to Majaz, his childhood, his fame at AMU, his days in Delhi, his love, his poetry and most importantly his vagabondism. The story was told through accounts of the poet's relatives, friends and acquaintances. *'' Majaz: Ae Gham-e-Dil Kya Karun'', is a 2017 Indian biographical film directed by Ravindra Singh about Majaz. *A poem by Majaz is now the anthem for Aligarh Muslim University.

Notes

References

Cited sources

* *

External links

Biography of Majaz
at Aligarians.com
Asrar-ul-Haq Majaz – A Journey of Love, Hope and Nationalism

Listen and Explore Majaz
at SahityaStudio {{Authority control 20th-century Indian Muslims Urdu-language poets from India Rudaulvi, Majaz People from Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh Writers from Lucknow Aligarh Muslim University alumni 1911 births 1955 deaths 20th-century Indian poets Indian male poets 20th-century Indian male writers