Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Ratekreel (talk | contribs) at 20:52, 23 September 2024 (→Political views: added more content). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Abdul Ahad Dar (1903 – 1948), popularly known as Abdul Ahad Azad, was a Kashmiri poet, historian and literary critic. Born in the Rangar village of Chadoora in Budgam district, he is often referred to as the "Keats of Kashmir". He was influenced by Kashmiri ghazals of Rasul Mir and Mahmud Gami.

Together with Mahjoor and Zinda Kaul, he is considered to be one of the pioneers of the modernist movement in Kashmiri literature.

Personal life

Azad was born in 1903 to Muhammad Sultan Dar and belonged to the Dar tribe of Kashmir. He received his early education in a madrassa and was taught Persian, Arabic and Islamic philosophy by his father. Azad was appointed by government as a primary school teacher and taught arabic at a primary school in Zowhama, before being transferred to Tral. Azad was victimized by the Dogra administration because of his revolutionary thinking and was transferred to far places. His dues were also withheld by the government.

Azad's son died suddenly at a very early age, which left a deep psychological mark on him. At the age of 39, he came in close contact with Prem Nath Bazaz and his socialist colleagues and was ideologically drifting towards radical Marxism.

In April 1948, Azad died at the age of 45 of appendicitis in Srinagar, amidst the political turmoil in Kashmir.

Literary work

Azad wrote his first poem at the age of 16. He was introduced to the poetry of Habba Khatoon, Rasul Mir and Maqbool Shah by his father. Azad wrote various revolutionary poems and became a source of inspiration for the freedom fighters during the political awakening in Kashmir. Azad composed the first history of Kashmiri language and poetry from Lalleshwari to his time. The three volume book, Kashmiri Zaban aur Sayiri, was edited by Mohammad Yusuf Teng and was posthumously published by Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages in Urdu, in 1959, 1962 and 1963, respectively. Azad initially wrote prose in Urdu but was later inspired to write in Kashmiri after Mahjoor founded the journal, Kong Pos.

Braj Kachru has identified three poetic phases in Azad's poetry, which he asserts, are indicative of his maturity and development. These phases coincide with the pen names Azad adopted throughout his career. The first phase was the poems of love and devotion written under the pen name, Ahad. The second phase is characterized by his nature poetry under the pen name of Janbaz. The last phase was when he adopted Azad as his pen name, in 1931, at Khanqah-e-Moula, and is known to Kashmiris by this name. Kachru holds that this change came partly due to the sudden death of his son.

Kuleat e Azad and Haraam e Saba are two of his books.

Poetic themes

Azad introduced revolutionary themes in Kashmiri poetry. The linguistic innovation required for these new themes was also attempted by him, notably in his poems, Shikwa-i-Iblis, among other. His poetry, influenced by Marxist worldview, expresses a strong desire for social emancipation by giving voice to the voiceless elements of society. His poetry reveals a devotion to the birth of a new, progressive society in which the structures of exploitation and inequality collapse, as Marx predicted in his philosophy. Azad was the first poet to include new themes like war and religious fanaticism and champion the cause of peace and universal brotherhood.

Political views

Abdul Ahad Azad endeavored to incite feelings of Linguistic nationalism and championed the restoration of the lost prominence of the Kashmiri language during the 1930s, in his history of Kashmiri language and poetry. His work highlighted importance of revolution in bringing about the social and political change, apart from the empowerment of rural masses. Hafsa Kanjwal, in her book, Colonizing Kashmir: State-building Under Indian Occupation, writes, "he (Azad) identified as a Marxist and his poetry directly addressed themes of social change and justice." Trilokinath Raina asserts that "Azad courageously preached scientific humanism" and that "Azad's ideological commitment was deep." He further asserts that "he remained a radical Marxist throughout his life."

References

1. Kashmir, Greater. "Abdul Ahad Azad remembered". Greater Kashmir. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
2. "ABDUL AHAD AZAD ( 1903-1948 )". KashmirPEN. 5 July 2017. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
3. Gauhar, G. N., 1934- (1997). Abdul Ahad Azad. Sahitya Akademi. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 81-260-0322-7. OCLC 37993483. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 22 September 2024.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
4. ^ Handoo, Jawaharlal (1979). "Contemporary Kashmiri Poetry". Indian Literature. 22 (5): 145–154. ISSN 0019-5804.
5. ^ "Abdul Ahad Azad: Voicing Romance and Rebellion". Brighter Kashmir. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
6. Life, Kashmir (19 March 2021). "Why Abdul Ahad Azad Was The Poet of The Future?". Kashmir Life. Archived from the original on 9 June 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
7. ^ Bhat, Roopkrishen (2018). Communal harmony in Kashmiri literature. New Delhi: Authorspress. pp. 121–136. ISBN 978-93-87281-41-7.
8. ^ Kachru, Braj B. (2023). Kashmiri literature. A history of Indian literature / Series editor Jan Gonda Vol. 8, Modern Indian-Aryan literatures, part 1 (Reprint 2020 ed.). New Delhi: Manohar. ISBN 978-93-88540-55-1.
9. Fayaz, Farooq (2004). "Political Awakening and Protest as Echoed in Folk Verse (1885-1947)". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 65: 715–726. ISSN 2249-1937.
10. Kaul, J. L. (1963). "Kashmiri Literature". Indian Literature. 6 (2): 92–96. ISSN 0019-5804.
11. ^ Yaqoob, Gowhar (16 March 2019). "In Pursuit of a Nation: Conflicting Formulations of Nationalism in the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir (1930 – 1940) — by Gowhar Yaqoob". INVERSE JOURNAL. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
12. SHAMEEM, BASHARAT (29 December 2023). "Remembering the Poet of the Masses: Abdul Ahad Azad". Rising Kashmir. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
13. ^ Raina, Trilokinath (2002). A history of Kashmiri literature. Sahitya Akademi. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 978-81-260-1366-1.
14. Kanjwal, Hafsa (2023). Colonizing Kashmir: state-building under Indian occupation. South Asia in motion. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. p. 205. ISBN 978-1-5036-3603-3.

• 1903 births
• 1948 deaths
• Kashmiri poets
• 20th-century Indian poets
• Indian male poets
• 20th-century Indian male writers