Urdu literature ( ur, , ) is literature in the

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

, especially the verse forms of the ''

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 ...

'' غزل 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 ...

'' نظم, it has expanded into other styles of writing, including that of the short story, or ''afsana'' افسانہ . Urdu literature is mostly popular in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, where Urdu is the national language and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where it is a recognized language. It is also widely understood in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

and has a moderate amount of popularity in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

Origin

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).

. Urdu literature originated some time around the 14th century in present-day

North India North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...

among the sophisticated gentry of the courts. The continuing traditions of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

and patronisations of foreign culture centuries earlier by Muslim rulers, usually of Turkic or Afghan descent, marked their influence on the Urdu language given that both cultural heritages were strongly present throughout Urdu territory. The Urdu language, with a vocabulary almost evenly split between

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

-derived

Prakrit The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...

and

Arabo Arabo ( hy, Արաբօ, 1863–1893), born Arakel Mkhitarian, was an Armenian fedayi of the late 19th century. Arabo was born in the village of Kurter or Korter ( or ) in the region of Sasun in the Bitlis vilayet. Arabo studied at the Arakel ...

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

words, was a reflection of this cultural amalgamation.

Religious period (1350-1590)

Literary composition in Urdu first started in the

Deccan The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by the ...

in the 14th century. An early form of Urdu was first introduced in the Deccan by the soldiers of

Alauddin Khalji Alaud-Dīn Khaljī, also called Alauddin Khilji or Alauddin Ghilji (), born Ali Gurshasp, was an emperor of the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate in the Indian subcontinent. Alauddin instituted a number of significant administrativ ...

who raided the Deccan from 1294 to 1311. In 1326,

Muhammad bin Tughluq Muhammad bin Tughluq (1290 – 20 March 1351) was the eighteenth Sultan of Delhi. He reigned from February 1325 until his death in 1351. The sultan was the eldest son of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, founder of the Tughlaq dynasty. In 1321, the youn ...

shifted his capital from Delhi to the Deccan and in 1347 Zafar Khan, his governor in the Deccan, declared independence establishing the

Bahmani Sultanate The Bahmani Sultanate, or Deccan, was a Persianate Sunni Muslim Indian Kingdom located in the Deccan region. It was the first independent Muslim kingdom of the Deccan,

and took the title of

Ala-ud-Din Bahman Shah Ala-ud-Din Hasan Bahman Shah (; died 10 February 1358) whose original name was Zafar Khan, was the founder of the Bahmani Sultanate. His original name was Zafar Khan titled with "Alauddin Bahman Shah Sultan – Founder of the Bahmani Dynasty" ...

. The Bahmani sultans cultivated the use of Urdu in the kingdom as opposed to Persian which was the court language of the

Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).

. This dialect, which up to 1375 had no difference with Delhi Urdu, was influenced by local languages like

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...

and

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

came to be known as

Dakhini Deccani (also known as Deccani Urdu and Deccani Hindi). https://knowledgehubadda.blogspot.com/2022/02/blog-post_74.html? m=1 or Dakni, Dakhni, Dakhini, Dakkhani and Dakkani (, ''dekanī'' or , ''dakhanī''), is a variety of Hindustani spoken ...

. The works composed during this period are mostly Dakhini prose and poetry on religious themes. Important writers of this period include

Bande Nawaz Muhammad bin Yusuf Al-Hussaini (7 August 1321 − 10 November 1422), commonly known as Banda Nawaz Gaisu Daraz, was a Hanafi Maturidi scholar and Sufi saint from India of the Chishti Order. Gaisu Daraz was a disciple and then successor of Sufi ...

whose ''Miraj ul Asiquin'', a Sufi tract is one of the earliest Urdu prose. Other important writers included Shah Miranji and his son Shah Buran.

Urdu in the Deccan (1590-1730)

Qutub Shahi poets (1590-1687)

Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah (4 April 156511 January 1612) was the fifth sultan of the Qutb Shahi dynasty of Golkonda and founded the city of Hyderabad, in South-central India and built its architectural centerpiece, the Charminar. He was an able adm ...

, the fifth sultan of the Qutb Shahi dynasty of Golkonda and founder of the city of Hyderabad, was a royal poet and prolific writer in Persian and Dakhini. Other poets included Wajhi and Gavvasi. In 1655, Ibn e Nishati wrote ''Phul ban'', a romance in 1300 lines. ''Qissa o bairam e Gul andman'' written by Tab’i is an important work of the period. Written in 1670, it is nearly 2700 lines long.

Adil Shahi poets (1590-1688)

Ibrahim Adil Shah II Ibrahim Adil Shah II (1570 – 12 September 1627) was king of the Sultanate of Bijapur and a member of the Adil Shahi dynasty. Under his reign the dynasty had its greatest period as he extended its frontier as far south as Mysore. He was ...

was another royal poet who was also a patron of art and literature. His Kitab-e-Navras (Book of Nine Rasas) in Dakhani is a collection of 59 poems and 17 couplets. Other important poets included Rustami, Nusrati, and Mirza.

Urdu in Deccan under Mughal Rule (1687-1730)

The most important Urdu writer of this period was

Wali Mohammed Wali Wali Muhammad Wali (1667–1707), also known as Wali Dakhani, Wali Gujarati, and Wali Aurangabadi, was a classical Urdu poet from India. He is considered by many scholars to be the father of Urdu poetry, being the first established poet to have ...

18th century

First Urdu period in Delhi (1730-1830)

In the 18th century, the three most important forms of Urdu poetry were ''

'', the ''

qasida The qaṣīda (also spelled ''qaṣīdah''; is originally an Arabic word , plural ''qaṣā’id'', ; that was passed to some other languages such as fa, قصیده or , ''chakameh'', and tr, kaside) is an ancient Arabic word and form of writin ...

,'' and the '' masnavi''.

Shaikh Zahuruddin Hatim Shaikh Zahuruddin Hatim also known by the pen names of Shah Hatim or Hatim was an Urdu poet and an early exponent of the Delhi school of Urdu poetry. He lived in Delhi during the reign of Muhammad Shah. Career Hatim was born to Fatuddin in Delhi ...

was an important poet in Delhi during this period. His major works include two volumes of poetry, ''Diwan'' and ''Diwanzada''. Urdu poetry was dominated by

Mazhar The ''mazhar'' ( ar, مزهر; plural ''mazāhar'', مزاهر) is a large, heavy tambourine used in Arabic music. The mazhar's frame is generally made out of wood. Its single head is considerably thicker than that of the '' riq'', its smaller ...

Sauda Sauda ''()'' is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sauda, where most of the population lives. Other villages in the municipality include Saudasjøen and Amdal. Despite being i ...

Mir ''Mir'' (russian: Мир, ; ) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to&n ...

, and Dard, who later came to be known as “the Four Pillars of Urdu Poetry”. Another major figure was

Mir Hasan Mir Hasan ( fa, ميرحسن, also Romanized as Mīr Ḩasan) is a village in Jalalvand Rural District, Firuzabad District, Kermanshah County, Kermanshah Province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also c ...

, known for his masnavis, the most famous being ''Sihar-ul-Bayan,'' often referred to as ''Masnavi e Mir Hasan''. Other important poets of this period include Mas'hafi,

Insha The Arabic word insha ( ar, انشا) means "construction", or "creation". It has been used in this sense in classical Arabic literature such as the Quran. Over time it acquired the meaning of composition, especially denoting the prose composition ...

and Nazeer.

19th century

Poetry

Urdu poetry in Lucknow

During the nineteenth century, the centre of Urdu literature shifted from Delhi as most literary men migrated to other parts of India like

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

Patna Patna ( ), historically known as Pataliputra, is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Patna had a population of 2.35 million, making it the 19th largest city in India. ...

, and

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 ...

. The Lucknow court emerged as the centre of Urdu poetry as it received poets from Delhi with much enthusiasm. Chief among these poets were Khaliq, Zamir, Aatish, and Nasikh. Other poets included Anis and Dabir.

Second Urdu period in Delhi

The second quarter of the nineteenth century saw the revival of Urdu poetry in Delhi in the Mughal court. Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Mughal Emperor, was himself a poet and a patron of poetry. Chief poets who flourished under his patronage includes

Zauq Sheikh Muhammad Ibrahim Zauq (1790–1854) was an Urdu poet and scholar of literature, poetry and religion. He wrote poetry under the pen name "Zauq", and was appointed poet laureate of the Mughal Court in Delhi just at the age of 19. Later h ...

Ghalib ) , birth_date = , birth_place = Kala Mahal, Agra, Maratha Confederacy , death_date = , death_place = Gali Qasim Jaan, Ballimaran, Chandni Chowk, Delhi, British India , occupation = Poet , language ...

, Azurda, and Momin. Some of Momin’s pupils in poetry such as Shefta and Mir Hussain Taskin became distinguished poets themselves.

New movement

The fall of the Mughal empire and kingdom of Awadh after the

Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against Company rule in India, the rule of the East India Company, British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the The Crown, British ...

and the contact with English language started a new movement in Urdu literature. The flag bearers of this new movement were

Syed Ahmad Khan Sir Syed Ahmad Khan KCSI (17 October 1817 – 27 March 1898; also Sayyid Ahmad Khan) was an Indian Muslim reformer, philosopher, and educationist in nineteenth-century British India. Though initially espousing Hindu-Muslim unity, h ...

Muhammad Husain Azad Muhammad Husain Azad ( ur, — ; 5 May 1830 – 22 January 1910) was a scholar and an Urdu writer who wrote both prose and poetry, but he is mostly remembered for his prose. His best known work is Aab-e-Hayat ("Elixir of Life").

, and

Altaf Hussain Hali Altaf Hussain Hali ( – ; 1837 – 31 December 1914), also known as Maulana Khawaja Hali, was an Urdu poet and writer. Early life He was born in Panipat to Aizad Baksh and was a descendant of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari. He was in the care of his ...

. This period saw the rise of prose, criticism, and drama in Urdu literature. Writers and poets began to explore new subjects and themes and experiment with new forms. Altaf Hussain Hali was a prolific poet who left a vast amount of work behind. His major poetic works include ''Masnavis'', ''Musaddas e Hali'', ''Shikwa e Hind,'' and ''Qasida e Ghyasia''. He also wrote ''marsias'' or elegies on the deaths of Ghalib, Hakim Mahmud Khan, and Sir Syed. Suroor Jahanabadi was another exponent of the new movement in Urdu poetry. He wrote patriotic poems like ''Khak-i-Watan'' (The Dust of the Motherland), ''Urus-i-Hubbi-Watan'' (The Bride of the Love of the Country), and ''Madar-i-Hind'' (Mother India). His historical and religious poems include ''Padmani'', ''Padmani-ki-Chita'' (Funeral Pyre of Padmani), and ''Sitaji-ki-Giria-o-Zari'' (The Laments of Sita).

Prose

, better known for his poetry, also wrote a considerable amount of Urdu prose during his lifetime which includes his collection of letters and three short pamphlets entitled ''Lataif-i-Ghalib'', ''Tegh-i-Tez,'' and ''Nama-i-Ghalib''. His letters, autobiographical in nature, were collected and published in two volumes as ''Urdu-i-Mualla'' (the Royal Urdu) and ''Ud-i-Hindi'' (Fragrant Stick of India).

Fort William College writers

Until the nineteenth century,

was the official language of the court and culture and all correspondence was carried out in Persian. The development of Urdu prose for practical purposes can be traced back to the establishment of the

Fort William College Fort William College (also known as the College of Fort William) was an academy of oriental studies and a centre of learning, founded on 18 August 1800 by Lord Wellesley, then Governor-General of British India, located within the Fort William c ...

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

in 1800 which was founded to instruct British officers of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

in Indian vernacular languages. John Gilchrist, the head of the college, was author of many Hindustani works such as ''Oriental Linguist, an Introduction to the Language of Hindustani'' and ''Hindustani Grammar''. He gathered a group of Indian scholars at the college who went on to write books for the use of fresh officers and also created a standard prose for Urdu and Hindi. The chief among these scholars were Mir Amman Dehelvi, Mir Sher Ali Jaafri, Mir Bahadur Ali Husaini, Sayid Haidar Bakhsh, Kazim Ali Jawan, Nihalchand, Hafizuddin Ahmad, Ikram Ali Khan, Lallujilal, Beni Narayan, and Mirza Ali Lutf.

Aligarh movement

Syed Ahmed Khan Sir Syed Ahmad Khan KCSI (17 October 1817 – 27 March 1898; also Sayyid Ahmad Khan) was an Indian Muslim reformer, philosopher, and educationist in nineteenth-century British India. Though initially espousing Hindu-Muslim unity, he ...

, the leading figure of the

Aligarh Movement The Aligarh Movement was the push to establish a modern system of Western–style scientific education for the Muslim population of British India, during the later decades of the 19th century. The movement's name derives from the fact that i ...

, was also a voracious writer and journalist who wrote various books from theological to historical subjects. His major theological work, ''Al-Khutbat al-Ahmadiya fi'l Arab wa'I Sirat al-Muhammadiya'' (A Series of Essays on the Life of

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...

and Subjects Subsidiary Therein), was published in 1876. He made significant contributions to Urdu journalism through his journals and periodicals, ''

Tehzeeb-ul-Akhlaq Tehzeeb-ul-Ikhlaq () is a journal established by the Muslim reformer Sir Syed Ahmad Khan in 1871. The journal published alternative Muslim perspectives, written in plain language. It gave voice to the publisher's religious, social, and reforming ...

'' and the ''

Aligarh Institute Gazette The ''Aligarh Institute Gazette'' () was the first multilingual journal of India, introduced, edited, and published in 1866 by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan which was read widely across the country. Theodore Beck later became its editor. History In ...

''. The Aligarh movement produced a band of literary enthusiasts who had a far-reaching influence on Urdu literature. The chief among them were

Shibli Nomani Shibli Nomani ( ur, – ; 3 June 1857 – 18 November 1914) was an Islamic scholar from the Indian subcontinent during the British Raj. He was born at Bindwal in Azamgarh district of present-day Uttar Pradesh.Zakaullah Dehlvi Maulvi Mohammad Zakaullah or Munshi Zakaullah (20 April 1832–7 November 1910) was a British Indian Urdu writer and translator. He wrote ''Tarikh-e-Hindustan'', a fourteen-volume compilation of Indian history in Urdu. Early life and education ...

who wrote on history,

Chiragh Ali Moulví Cherágh Ali (1844-1895) (also spelled Chirágh) was an Indian Muslim scholar of the late 19th century. As a colleague of Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan he made a contribution to the school of Muslim Modernists and presented reformative thinking ...

Mohsin-ul-Mulk Nawab Mohsin-ul-Mulk, Munir Nawaz Jang, also known as Syed Mehdi Ali ( ur, ﻧﻭﺍﺏ ﻣﺤﺴن ‌الملک, منير نواز جنگ, ﺳﻴﺩ ﻣﻫﺩﻯ ﻋﻠﻰ) (born 9 December 1837 — 16 October 1907), was an Indian Musli ...

, and Waqar-ul-Mulk who wrote on literature.

Shibli Nomani Shibli Nomani ( ur, – ; 3 June 1857 – 18 November 1914) was an Islamic scholar from the Indian subcontinent during the British Raj. He was born at Bindwal in Azamgarh district of present-day Uttar Pradesh.Sirat-un-Nabi ''Sirat al-Nabi'' ( ur, سیرت النبی) is a 7-volume seerah book, or biography of the Islamic prophet Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and ...

'', Sirat an-Nu'man, Al-Farooq, Al-Ma'mun, Al-Ghazali, (a biography of Imam

Al-Ghazali Al-Ghazali ( – 19 December 1111; ), full name (), and known in Persian-speaking countries as Imam Muhammad-i Ghazali (Persian: امام محمد غزالی) or in Medieval Europe by the Latinized as Algazelus or Algazel, was a Persian polymat ...

), Mawlana Rumi (a biography of

Mawlana Rumi Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī ( fa, جلال‌الدین محمد رومی), also known as Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Balkhī (), Mevlânâ/Mawlānā ( fa, مولانا, lit= our master) and Mevlevî/Mawlawī ( fa, مولوی, lit= my ma ...

), and Aurangzeb Alamgir Par Ek Nazar, a book on the life of Mughal emperor

Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...

. He also wrote the first travelogue in Urdu, ''Safar Nama e Rome-o-Misr-o-Sham,'' which is an account of his travels abroad. ''Tarikh-e-Hindustan'', a fourteen-volume compilation of Indian history in Urdu written by

Zakaullah Dehlvi Maulvi Mohammad Zakaullah or Munshi Zakaullah (20 April 1832–7 November 1910) was a British Indian Urdu writer and translator. He wrote ''Tarikh-e-Hindustan'', a fourteen-volume compilation of Indian history in Urdu. Early life and education ...

, was an monumental achievement of this period. Apart from poetry,

also made significant contributions to Urdu prose. ''Hayat-i Saadi'', a biography of Saadi, ''Hayat-i Javed'', a biography of Syed Ahmad Khan, and '' Yadgar-e-Ghalib'', a biography and criticism on

, are some of his most important works in prose.

Urdu novel

In 1869,

Nazir Ahmad Dehlvi Maulvi Nazir Ahmad Dehlvi, also known as Deputy Nazir Ahmad, was an Urdu novel writer, social and religious reformer, and orator. Even if today’s he’s best known for his novels, he wrote over 30 books on subjects such as law, logic, ethics ...

published '' Mirat-ul-Uroos'', the first original novel in Urdu. It served as Nazir’s form of conduct literature about marriage. He also wrote ''Binat-un-Nash'' and ''Toba tun Nasoh'' during this period, both of which are conduct books designed to instill moral virtues.

laid the foundation of historical novels in Urdu with ''Qisas ul-hind'' and ''Darbār-e akbarī''. His'' Aab-e hayat,'' which is a history of Urdu poetry from Wali to Ghalib, is regarded as the first chronological history of Urdu poetry. Ratan Nath Dhar Sarshar introduced proper fiction and touch of realism in Urdu novels with his serialised novel '' Fasana-e-Azad'' which was influenced by

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of Wester ...

. His other notable novels are ''Sair-i-Kohsar'' and ''Jam-i-Sarshar''. He also wrote articles and short stories for the humorous journal, Awadh Punch. Influenced by the historical romances of

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...

Abdul Halim Sharar Abdul Halim Sharar ( ur, ; 4 September 1860 – 1 December 1926) was an Indian author, playwright, essayist and historian from Lucknow. He left behind, in all, hundred and two books. He often wrote about the Islamic past and extolled virtues l ...

introduced historical elements in his own works such as ''Malikul Azia Vārjina''.

Mirza Hadi Ruswa Mirza Muhammad Hadi Ruswa (1857 – 21 October 1931) was an Indian Urdu poet and writer of fiction, plays, and treatises (mainly on religion, philosophy, and astronomy). He served on the Nawab of Awadh's advisory board on language matters for ...

was a poet and writer, best remembered for his

Umrao Jaan Ada ''Umrao Jaan Ada'' ( ur, ) is an Urdu novel by Mirza Hadi Ruswa (1857–1931), first published in 1899. It is considered the first Urdu novel by many

, published at the end of the nineteenth century.

Drama

Drama in Urdu was introduced in the 19th century through the production of ''

Inder Sabha ''Inder Sabha'' (Urdu: اِندر سبها) is an Urdu play and opera written by Agha Hasan Amanat, and first staged in 1853. It is regarded as the first complete Urdu stage play ever written. The play was translated into German in the 1880s as a ...

'' written by

Agha Hasan Amanat Agha Hasan Amanat ("آغا حسن "امانت, b. 1815, d. 1858) was an Urdu poet, writer and playwright of the nineteenth century from the Indian city of Lucknow. He was affiliated with the court of Wajid Ali Shah, the princely ruler of Awadh. ...

, and first staged in 1853. It was a musical comedy with a thin plot line and was modelled after the European

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

20th century

Prose

Age of Premchand

Premchand emerged on the literary scene in the early 1890s and soon became probably the most significant writer and novelist in the history of Urdu literature. He also wrote in Hindi. He wrote on the themes of religious and social reforms in ''Isare-e-Muabid'' and ''Hum Khurma-O Hum Swab'', on the predicament of a prostitute in ''

Bazaar-e-Husn , hi, सेवासदन , image = , author = Munshi Premchand , illustrator = , cover_artist = , country = British India , language = Hindustani , genre = Novel , publisher = , release_d ...

'', the problems of the farmers in ''Gosha-e Aafiat,'' and the problems of the middle class and women in '' Nirmala''. Premchand was also the first writer to introduce European-style short stories in Urdu. His first collection of short stories, ''Soz-e- Watan'', published in 1907, was banned by the British government. Other major writers during this period include Sudarshan, Mohammad Mehdi Taskeen, Qazi Abdul Gaffar, Majnun Gorakhpuri,

Niaz Fatehpuri Niaz Fatehpuri (1884–1966) was the pen name of Niyaz Muhammed Khan, a Pakistani Urdu poet, writer, and polemicist. He was also the founder and editor of ''Nigar''. In 1962, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the President of India for "Literat ...

, Krishan Prasad Kaul, and L.M. Ahmed.

Progressive Writers’ Movement

In the 1930s, the short story became the leading prose genre in Urdu due to the influx of western influences especially the English, French, and Russian. The publication of ''

Angarey Angarey or Angaaray (translated alternatively as "Embers" or "Burning Coals") is a collection of nine short stories and a one act play in Urdu by Sajjad Zaheer, Rashid Jahan, Mahmud-uz-Zafar and Ahmed Ali first published in 1932 and general ...

'', a short story collection by

Sajjad Zaheer Syed Sajjad Zaheer ( ur, ) (5 November 1899 – 13 September 1973) was an Indian Urdu writer, Marxist ideologue and radical revolutionary who worked in both India and Pakistan. In the pre-independence era, he was a member of the Communist ...

Rashid Jahan Rashid Jahan (25 August 1905 – 29 July 1952) was an Indian writer and medical doctor known for her Urdu literature and trenchant social commentaries. She wrote short stories and plays and contributed to ''Angarey'' (1932), a collection of ...

, Mahmud-uz-Zafar, and Ahmed Ali in 1932 marked the beginning of the

Progressive Writers' Movement The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or ''Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind'' (( ur, ) or ''Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh'' (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगति� ...

that went on to substantially influence the content of Urdu literature for the next two decades.

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 ...

was an important progressive novelist and short story writer who wrote extensively on femininity. Her major works include the collection of short stories ''Kaliyan'' and ''Chotein''. She is best remembered for her short story '' Lihaaf'' published in 1942.

Krishan Chander Krishan Chander (23 November 1914 – 8 March 1977) was an Indian Urdu and Hindi writer of short stories and novels. Some of his works have also been translated in English. He was a prolific writer, penning over 20 novels, 30 collections o ...

realistically portrayed life in his novel and stories such as ''Ek Gadhe ki Sargushisht'', ''Shikast'', ''Zindagi ke Mor Par'', ''Hum Waishi Hain'', ''Anna Datta'', ''Kalu Bhangi'', and ''Paude''. Another leading writer of this period was

Saadat Hasan Manto Saadat Hasan Manto (; Punjabi, ur, , ; 11 May 1912 – 18 January 1955) was a Pakistani writer, playwright and author born in Ludhiana, who was active in British India and later, after the 1947 partition of India, in Pakistan. Writing ma ...

who wrote elaborately drawn stories like ''Khol do'', ''

Toba Tek Singh Toba Tek Singh ( pnb, , ur, ) is a city and capital of Toba Tek Singh District in the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is surrounded by cities of Gojra, Kamalia, Rajana, Pir Mahal and Shorkot. History The city and district is named af ...

'', ''Mozelle'', and '' Thanda Gosht''.}

Special contributors

Amir Khusro Abu'l Hasan Yamīn ud-Dīn Khusrau (1253–1325 AD), better known as Amīr Khusrau was an Indo-Persian culture, Indo-Persian Sufi singer, musician, poet and scholar who lived under the Delhi Sultanate. He is an iconic figure in the cultural his ...

exercised great influence on the initial growth of not only Urdu literature, but the language itself (which only truly took shape as distinguished from both Persian and proto-

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

around the 14th century). He is credited with the systematization of northern Indian classical music, including

Hindustani music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sita ...

, and he wrote works both in Persian and Hindavi. While the couplets that come down from him are representative of a latter-

Hindi bereft of Arabo-Persian vocabulary, his influence on court viziers and writers must have been transcendental, for a century after his death

Quli Qutub Shah Sultan Quli Qutb-ul-Mulk, more often though less correctly referred to in English as Quli Qutb Shah (1485–1543), was the founder of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, which ruled the Sultanate of Golconda in southern India from 1518 to 1687. Of Turkmen ...

was speaking a language that might be considered to be Urdu. Sultan Muhammed Quli Qutb Shah was a scholar in Persian and Arabic. He also wrote poetry in Telugu language, Persian language and Urdu language. His poetry has been compiled into Dewan or volume entitled "Kulliyat-e-Quli Qutub Shah." Muhammed Quli Qutub Shah had the distinction of being the first Saheb-e-dewan Urdu poet and is credited with introducing a new sensibility into prevailing genres of Persian/Urdu poetry. It is said that the Urdu language acquired the status of a literary language due to his contributions. He died in the year 1611.

Sayyid Shamsullah Qadri ''Shamsul Morakheen' Allama Hakeem Sayyid Shamsullah Qadri'' (24 November 1885 – 22 October 1953) born in Hyderabad Deccan and was an author, writer, editor-in-chief, Honorary Member of 'Societe de I' Histoire de I'Inde Francaise and member ...

is considered as the first researcher of Deccaniyat. some of the works of Allama Hakeem Sayyid Shamsullah Qadri are Salateen e Muabber 1929, Urdu-i-qadim 1930, Tareekh E Maleebaar, Mowarrikheen E Hind, Tahfat al Mujahidin 1931, Imadiya, Nizam Ut Tawareekh, Tareekh Zuban Urdu-Urdu-E-Qadeem, Tareekh Zuban Urdu Al Musamma Ba Urdu-E-Qadeem, Tareekh Zuban Urdu Yaani Urdu-E-Qadeem, Tarikh Vol III, Asaarul Karaam, Tarikh Shijrah Asifiya, Ahleyaar, Pracina malabar

Dāstāngoi (epics) داستان گوئی

Urdu literature was generally composed more of poetry than of prose. The prose component of Urdu literature was mainly restricted to the ancient form of epic stories called dāstān (). These long stories have complicated plots that deal with magical and otherwise fantastic creatures and events. The genre originated in the Middle East and was disseminated by folk storytellers. It was assimilated by individual authors. Dastan plots are based both on folklore and classical literary subjects. Dastan was particularly popular in Urdu literature, typologically close to other narrative genres in Eastern literatures, such as Persian masnawi, Punjabi qissa, Sindhi waqayati bait, etc., and also reminiscent of the European novel. The oldest known Urdu dastans are '' Dastan-i-Amir Hamza'', recorded in the early seventeenth century, and ''Bustan-i Khayal'' (''The Garden of Imagination'' or ''The Garden of Khayal'') by Mir Taqi Khayal (d. 1760). Most of the narrative dastans were recorded in the early nineteenth century, representing the inclusion of 'wandering' motifs borrowed from the folklore of the Middle East, central Asia and northern India. These include ''Bagh-o-Bahar'' (''The Garden and Spring'') by Mir Amman, ''Mazhab-i-Ishq'' (''The Religion of Love'') by Nihalchand Lahori, ''Araish-i-Mahfil'' (''The Adornment of the Assembly'') by Hyderbakhsh Hyderi, and ''Gulzar-i-Chin'' (''The Flower Bed of Chin'') by Khalil Ali Khan Ashq. Other famous Urdu dastans include ''Nau Tarz-i Murassa‘'' by Husain ‘Atā Khān Tahsīn, ''Nau Ā'īn-i Hindī'' (''Qissa-i Malik Mahmūd Gīti-Afroz'') by Mihr Chand Khatrī, ''Jazb-i ‘ishq'' by Shāh Husain Haqīqat, ''Nau Tarz-i Murassa‘'' by Muhammad Hādī (a.k.a. Mirzā Mughal Ghāfil), and ''Talism Hoshruba'' by Muhammad Husain Azad.

(Tazkiras) (To Narrate) تذکیرہ

Tazkiras, are compilations of literary memoirs that include verses and maxims of the great poets along with biographical information and commentaries on their styles. They are often a collection of names with a line or two of information about each poet, followed by specifics about his composition. Some of these tazkiras give biographical details, and a little idea of the style or poetical power is transmitted. Even the large anthologies do not systematically review an author's work. Most of them have the names in alphabetical order, but one or two are ordered by historical chronology. The majority quote only lyrics, and the quotations are usually chosen randomly.

Poetry شاعری

Urdu poetry (), reached its peak in the 19th century. The most well-developed form of poetry is the

, known for its quality and quantity within the Urdu tradition.

Sonnets

Urdu poets influenced by English and other European-language poetry began writing sonnets in Urdu in the early 20th century. Azmatullah Khan (1887-1923) is believed to have introduced this format to Urdu poetry. Other renowned Urdu poets who wrote sonnets are Akhtar Junagarhi,

Akhtar Sheerani Akhtar Shirani (born Muhammad Dawood Khan; 4 May 1905 – 9 September 1948; also spelled Sheerani or Sherani), was an Urdu poet. He is considered to be one of the leading romantic poets of Urdu language. Early life and career Akhtar Shairan ...

Noon Meem Rashid Nazar Muhammad Rashed ( ur, ), (1 August 1910 – 9 October 1975) commonly known as Noon Meem Rashed ( ur, ) or N.M. Rashed, was a Pakistani poet of modern Urdu poetry.Mehr Lal Soni Zia Fatehabadi Mehr or Mihr may refer to: Persian names * Mehr, an alternative name for Mithra, a Zoroastrian divinity * Mehr (month), the seventh month of the year and the sixteenth day of the month of the Iranian and Zoroastrian calendars * Mehr's day, or ...

Salaam Machhalishahari Salaam Machhalishahari (1921-1972), or Salam Machhali Sheri, was an Indian Urdu-language poet. Biography Machhalishahari was born in Machhali Shahar, a city in District Jaunpur district, Jaunpur of Uttar Pradesh, on 1 July 1921. He was fluent ...

and

Wazir Agha Wazir Agha ( ur, ) was a Pakistani Urdu language writer, poet, critic and essayist. He has written many poetry and prose books. He was also editor and publisher of the literary magazine "Auraq" for many decades. He introduced many theories in U ...

Novels

Initially, Urdu novels focused on urban social life, eventually widening in scope to include rural social life. They also covered the changing times under the progressive writing movement inspired by Sajjad Zaheer. However, the

partition of India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...

had a great impact on the novel, bringing up questions of identity and migration as can be seen in the major works of Abdullah Hussain and Quratul Ain Haider. Towards the end of the last century the novel took a serious turn towards the contemporary life and realities of the young generations of India. The most significant novels of the current generation of Indian novelists in Urdu, which demonstrate a new confidence in contemporary life, are '' Makaan'' by Paigham Afaqui, ''Do Gaz Zameen'' by Abdus Samad, and ''Pani'' by Ghazanfer. These works, especially ''Makaan'', brought the Urdu novel out of the prevailing themes of partition and identity issues and took it into the realm of modern-day realities and issues of life in India. ''Makaan'' had an impact on many English writers such as

Vikram Seth Vikram Seth (born 20 June 1952) is an Indian novelist and poet. He has written several novels and poetry books. He has won several awards such as Padma Shri, Sahitya Academy Award, Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, WH Smith Literary Award and Crosswor ...

, who turned to novel writing. These Urdu novels further impacted significant works such as ''Andhere Pag'' by Sarwat Khan, ''Numberdar Ka Neela'' by S M Ashraf and ''Fire Area'' by Ilyas Ahmed Gaddi. Paigham Afaqui's second major novel, ''Paleeta'', was published in 2011 and depicts the tension of the political sickening of a common Indian citizen in the six decades after India's independence. Bewildered by the disappointing state of democracy and the transformation of Indian society into a mental desert the central character dies after leaving behind his writings which catch fire.

Famous novels

*'' Mirat-ul-Uroos'' (''The Bride's Mirror''; 1868–1869) by Deputy Nazeer Ahmed is regarded as the first novel in Urdu. Within twenty years of publication over 100,000 copies had been printed; and was also translated into Bengali, Braj, Kashmiri, Punjabi, and Gujarati. It has never been out of print in Urdu. In 1903 an English translation was published in London by G. E. Ward. *''

Umrao Jaan Ada ''Umrao Jaan Ada'' ( ur, ) is an Urdu novel by Mirza Hadi Ruswa (1857–1931), first published in 1899. It is considered the first Urdu novel by many

'' by Mirza Hadi Ruswa is considered the first Urdu novel by many critics.Umrao Jaan Ada by Mirza Hadi Ruswa
Umrao Jaan at sasw.chass.ncsu.edu *''Binat-ul-Nash'' (''The Daughters of the Bier'', a name for the constellation Ursa Major) is another novel by Deputy Nazeer Ahmed. It was his 2nd novel after ''Mirat-tul-uroos''. Like ''Mira-tul-Uroos'', this novel is also on the education of women and their character building. *'' Zindagi'' (''Everything Happens in Life''; 1933–1934) by

Chaudhry Afzal Haq Chaudhry Afzal Haq (1891–8 January 1942) was born in a Muslim family, a writer, humanitarian, leader and co-founder of Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam, and a senior political figure in the history of Indian subcontinent. He worked to help the poor an ...

describes the ups and downs of life for developing moral values and guidance of young people. His entire work is full of the teaching of moral values. *''Taubat-un-Nasuh'' (''Repentance of Nasuh''; 1873–1874) by Deputy Nazeer Ahmed also focused on moral lessons for youth. *''Fasaana-e-Mubtalaa'' (1885) was another novel for developing moral values and guidance for youth. *''

Jasoosi Dunya Jasoosi Dunya (Urdu: جاسوسى دنيا) is a popular series of Urdu detective stories created by Ibne-Safi. Its first novel, ''Dilaer Mujrim'' (دلير مجرم) was published in March 1952. In the following 27 years, Ibn-e-Safi wrote 127 bo ...

'' and ''Imran'' series by

Ibn-e-Safi Ibn-e-Safi (26 July 1928 – 26 July 1980) (also spelled as Ibne Safi) ( ur, ) was the pen name of Asrar Ahmad ( ur, ), a fiction writer, novelist and poet of Urdu from Pakistan. The word Ibn-e-Safi is an Persian expression which litera ...

*'' Aag Ka Darya'' by Quratulain Haider *'' Aangan'' by Khadija Mastoor *'' Udaas Naslain'' by Abdullah Hussain *'' Jangloos'' by Shaukat Siddiqui *"Daira" (دائرہ) by

Muhammad Asim Butt Muhammad Asim Butt (Urdu: محمد عاصم بٹ) is an Urdu novelist, short story writer, translator, researcher, editor, critic and journalist. He has published three novels and two collections of short stories along with a number of books tr ...

*"Jannat Kay Pattay" by Nemrah Ahmed *"

Pir-e-Kamil ''Pir-e-Kamil'' or ''Peer-e-Kamil'' ( ur, ; meaning "The Perfect Mentor") is a novel written by Pakistani writer Umera Ahmad. It was first published in Urdu in 2004 and later in English in 2011. The book deals with the turning points in int ...

" by

Umera Ahmad Umera Ahmed ( Punjabi, ur, ) is a Pakistani writer, author and screenwriter. She is best known for her novels and plays ''Shehr-e-Zaat'', ''Pir-e-Kamil'', ''Zindagi Gulzar Hai'', '' Alif'', ''Durr-e-Shehwar'', ''Daam'', '' Man-o-Salwa'', ''Qa ...

*" Khuda Ke Saaye Mein Ankh Micholi " by Rahman Abbas *" Ek Mamnua Muhabbat Ki Kahani " by Rahman Abbas *" Rohzin " By Rahman Abbas In the first decade of twenty first century Rahman Abbas has emerged as most influential Urdu fiction writer. 'The Hindu', writes about work of Rahman Abbas, "With his uncanny ability to subvert what people believe, Rehman Abbas raises the art of story-telling to a new level."

Short stories (afsanah nigari)

Urdu literature has included the short story form for slightly more than one hundred years. During this period it has passed through some major phases including the early romantic period, progressive writings, modernist writings, and the current phase. Although a number of male and female writers wrote short stories during the first phase(including both romantic stories and social criticisms), the short story crystallized as a regular part of Urdu literature in the growth of the writings of

Munshi Premchand Dhanpat Rai Srivastava (31 July 1880 – 8 October 1936), better known by his pen name Premchand (), was an Indian writer famous for his modern Hindustani literature. Premchand was a pioneer of Hindi and Urdu social fiction. He was one of ...

. His notable short stories include "Kafan" and "Poos Ki Raat". The Urdu short story gained momentum with the phenomenal publication of '' Angare'', a collection of many writers towards the end of the life of Premchand. Writers like Ghulam Abbas,

Manto may refer to: People * Mando (singer), Greek singer * Manto Mavrogenous, Greek national heroine * Saadat Hasan Manto, Urdu short story writer known by his pen name Manto * Manto Tshabalala-Msimang (1940–2009), South African politician * Manto ...

Rajinder Singh Bedi Rajinder Singh Bedi (1 September 1915 – 1984) was an Indian Urdu writer of the Progressive Writers' Movement, progressive writers' movement and a playwright, who later worked in Hindi cinema as a film director, screenwriter and dialogue writer ...

and

, to name but a few, turned the short story into a major genre of Urdu literature. The next generation of Urdu short story writers included

Qurratulain Hyder Qurratulain Hyder (20 January 1927 – 21 August 2007) was an Indian Urdu novelist and short story writer, an academic, and a journalist. One of the most outstanding and influential literary names in Urdu literature, she is best known for ...

, Qazi Abdul Sattar and Joginder Paul. The short story tradition continues with younger generation writers like

Zahida Hina Zahida Hina (Urdu: زاہدہ حنا) is a noted Urdu columnist, essayist, short story writer, novelist and dramatist from Pakistan. Life Zahida was born in India, after the independence of Pakistan in 1947, her father, Muhammad Abul Khair, ...

, Paigham Afaqui, Syed Mohd Ashraf, Salam Bin Razzaq,

Naeem Baig Naeem Baig ( ur, ) (born 1952) is a Pakistani short story writer. He has written short stories (afsanas) in Urdu Urdu (;"U ...

, Akhlaq Ahmed Khan, Moinuddin Jinabade, as well as notable women writers like Afra Bukhari and Wajida Tabassum. Urdu short stories have dealt with a wide range of the dimensions of life, but the most famous stories concern the trauma of the partition of the sub-continent and the violence generated out of it. Towards the end of the last century, short stories became grounded in the complexity of daily life which can be seen in the unique collection of short stories in Paigham Afaqui's ''Mafia''. An entirely different approach is seen in the collection of short stories ''T'abir'' by Moinuddin Jinabade and ''Taus Chaman Ka Maina'' by Nayyer Masood.

Drama

Urdu drama evolved from the prevailing dramatic traditions of North India raas as practiced by exponents like Nawab

Wajid Ali Shah Mirza Wajid Ali Shah ( ur, ) (30 July 1822 – 1 September 1887) was the eleventh and last King of Awadh, holding the position for 9 years, from 13 February 1847 to 11 February 1856. Wajid Ali Shah's first wife was Alam Ara who was better k ...

of Awadh. His dramatic experiments led to the famous

of Amanat and later this tradition took the shape of

Parsi Theatre Parsi theatre is a generic term for an influential theatre tradition, staged by Parsis, and theatre companies largely-owned by the Parsi business community, which flourished between 1850 and 1930s. Plays were primarily in the Hindustani language ( ...

. Agha Hashr Kashmiri is the culmination of this tradition. Urdu theater traditions have greatly influenced modern

Indian theatre Theatre of India is one of the most ancient forms of theatre and it features a detailed textual, sculptural, and dramatic effects which emerged in mid first millennium BC. Like in the areas of music and dance, the Indian theatre is also defin ...

. Among all the languages, Urdu (which was called Hindi "meaning:Language of the Hind" by some early writers), along with Gujarati, Marathi, and Bengali theatres have remained popular. Many Urdu dramas have also been made into films. Classic playwrights include Prof Hasan, Ghulam Jeelani, J. N. Kaushal, Shameem Hanfi and Jameel Shaidayi. Danish Iqbal, Sayeed Alam, Shahid Anwar, Iqbal Niyazi and Anwar are a few of the post-modern playwrights actively contributing to Urdu drama. Sayeed Alam is known for his wit and humour in plays like ''

in New Delhi'', ''Maulana Azad'' and ''Big B''. Danish Iqbal's '' Dara Shikoh'', directed by M S Sathyu, is considered a modern classic for its use of newer theatre techniques and a contemporary perspective. His other plays are ''Sahir'', on the famous lyricist and revolutionary poet; ''Kuchh Ishq kiya Kuchh Kaam'', a Celebration of the Faiz's poetry, featuring events from the early part of his life, particularly the events and incidents of pre-partition days which shaped his life and ideals; and ''Chand Roz Aur Meri Jaan'', another play inspired from Faiz's letters written from various jails during the Rawalpindi Conspiracy days. He has written 14 other plays including ''Dilli Jo Ek Shehr Thaa'' and ''Main Gaya Waqt Nahin hoon''. Shahid's ''Three B'' is also a significant play. He has been associated with many groups including 'Natwa'. Zaheer Anwar has kept the flag of Urdu Theatre flying in

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

. Unlike the writers of the previous generation, Sayeed, Shahid, Iqbal, and Zaheer do not write bookish plays but rather their work is a product of a vigorous performing tradition. Iqbal Niyazi of Mumbai has written several plays in Urdu. His play ''Aur Kitne Jalyanwala Baugh??'' won several awards. Hence this is the only generation after Amanat and Agha Hashr who actually write for the stage and not for libraries.

Literary movements

Progressive Writers Movement

According to The Dawn, the

Progressive Writers Movement The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or ''Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind'' (( ur, ) or ''Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh'' (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगति� ...

in Urdu literature was the strongest movement after Sir Syed's education movement.

Modernism

The modernist movement started in Urdu literature around 1960. This movement laid more stress on symbolic and other indirect expressions as opposed to direct and clear expressions. The most well-known names in this movement included Shamsur Rehman Farooqui and Gopichand Narang and the poets Noon Meem Rashid and Meeraji. Apart from them, a number of other poets like Zafer Iqbal, Nasir Kazmi, Bashir Bader and Shahryar are related to this movement.

Halqa e Arbab e Zauq

Halqa e Arbab e Zauq was a literary movement begun in Lahore, British Raj, India in 1939.Early members included poets Noon Meem Rashid, Zia Jallandhari, Muhtar Siddiqui, Hafeez Hoshiarpuri and Meeraji, brought to the meeting by his friend, Qayyum Nazar, an active member of the group. The Halqa was the second modern literary movement in Urdu poetry in the 20th century, founded just a couple of years after the leftist Progressive Writers' Movement, and is considered to be the most influential group on modern poetry in the Urdu Language.

Post-modernism

Post-modernism was introduced to Urdu literature by

Gopi Chand Narang Gopi Chand Narang (11 February 1931 – 15 June 2022) was an Indian theorist, literary critic, and scholar who wrote in Urdu and English. His Urdu literary criticism incorporated a range of modern theoretical frameworks including stylistics, st ...

. Many other critics in Urdu literature are also attached to this approach to criticism. Post-modernism does not claim to be a movement and does not demand any writer to adopt a particular style of writing. It generally concentrates on a method of understanding contemporary literature in the light of its content—mostly examining features like feminism, Dalit, regional and other types of literature as opposed to seeking uniformity in the global literature on the basis of internationally established trends.

Independent writers

By the end of the 1980s the atmosphere in Urdu literature became very depressing. The progressive movement was almost dead and the modernist movement had started running out of ideas. But this was also the time for an upsurge of new creative forces rooted in the new life that was metamorphosing the socio-economic and political climate in the sub-continent. It was under this climate that a new era of fiction started with the publication of Paigham Afaqui's novel ''Makaan''. Afaqui and other writers refused to be identified by any movement and displayed complete independence in using personally developed styles and techniques for writing novels and explored their own philosophy and vision of life. It was a serious departure from the theme of partition which dominated writers like Qurtul Ain haider and Abdullah Hussain and the theme of existentialism which was the benchmark of modernism. Writers like Ghazanfer and Musharraf Alam Zauqi have further widened the horizons of new themes and concerns.

Theatre of the Absurd

Theatre of the Absurd The Theatre of the Absurd (french: théâtre de l'absurde ) is a post–World War II designation for particular plays of absurdist fiction written by a number of primarily European playwrights in the late 1950s. It is also a term for the style o ...

is a new and somewhat rare genre in the history of Urdu literature. The first play of the genre was written and published by the Pakistan research-writer, poet, lawyer and columnist Mujtaba Haider Zaidi in December 2008 under the title '' Mazaron Ke Phool'' (i.e. ''Graveyard Flowers'').

Classical literature vs. popular literature

There is an old distinction of classical literature ( ur, ) and popular literature ( ur, ) in Urdu language, where the popular writers of digests/magazines are discriminated somewhat as a "lower caste". But with the introduction of modern statistical methodologies, the literature published in millions cannot be ignored just because the literary elite doesn't approve it. While the literary critics are still reluctant to acknowledge the popular writers, nevertheless, the contributions of

and other writers like Humayun Iqbal,

Mohiuddin Nawab Mohiuddin Nawab ( ur, ) (September 4, 1930 - February 6, 2016) was a Pakistani novelist, screenwriter, and poet. He is famous for his popular novel series, " Devta" that was episodically and continuously published in Suspense Digest from February ...

, Ilyas Sitapuri,

MA Rahat Marghoob Ali Rahat popularly known as MA Rahat was a Pakistani writer. He died at the age of 76. He used different pen names and wrote thousands of novels and hundreds of books on various topics for the digests. M.A. Rahat started writing in 196 ...

, Ishtiaq Ahmed, and many others, to Urdu literature cannot be ignored.

References

Cited sources

* * * * * * * * *

External links

Columbia University: Urdu Language Sources

Maḫzan al-asrār. Niżāmī raqm-i Muḥammad. Dessinateur 1538 AD

ترتیب وڈیزائننگ ایم پی خاؿ اردولشکری زبان

Origin

Religious period (1350-1590)

Urdu in the Deccan (1590-1730)

Qutub Shahi poets (1590-1687)

Adil Shahi poets (1590-1688)

Urdu in Deccan under Mughal Rule (1687-1730)

18th century

First Urdu period in Delhi (1730-1830)

19th century

Poetry

Urdu poetry in Lucknow

Second Urdu period in Delhi

New movement

Prose

Fort William College writers

Aligarh movement

Urdu novel

Drama

20th century

Prose

Age of Premchand

Progressive Writers’ Movement

Special contributors

Dāstāngoi (epics) داستان گوئی

(Tazkiras) (To Narrate) تذکیرہ

Poetry شاعری

Sonnets

Novels

Famous novels

Short stories (afsanah nigari)

Drama

Literary movements

Progressive Writers Movement

Modernism

Halqa e Arbab e Zauq

Post-modernism

Independent writers

Theatre of the Absurd

Classical literature vs. popular literature

See also

References

Cited sources

Further reading

External links

Further reading