17 Jul 2015

Hindustan Times (Delhi)

Snehal Tripathi snehal.tripathi@hindustantimes.com

Devoting a lifetime to
keep Urdu poetry alive
Abrar Kiratpuri, a revered Hamd-o-Naat poet, has penned 25,000 couplets
NEW DELHI: Old age has not stopped Abrar Kiratpuri from enchanting the audience with his
shayari. At 77, he is a renowned Hamd-o-Naat (poetic piece in praise of God) shayar, Urdu poet
and a writer. He still flawlessly recites rhythmic words of Urdu poetry; a hidden message of love
and wisdom lies in every line of his shayari.

TRIBHUWAN SHARMA / HT PHOTOSAfter

moving to the capital, Abrar Kiratpuri lived for nearly 34

years at Nizamuddin West; some of his best days as an Urdu poet were spent here.
Tum jo chaho hasi khushi rehna, shehar main apne ajnabi rehna, jaane kab uski yaad aajaye,
zahen ki khidkiyon khuli rehna (Be happy no matter where you are living in a city, but do not

befriend bad people. Always acknowledge those who love and care for you), he recites this to
youngsters who have gathered around him in hope of learning the skill.
Living in Zakir Nagar, Abrar Kiratpuri is visited by many who wish to learn Urdu or master the
skill of shayari. He teaches the basics of the language and encourages youngsters to practice
shayari in order to keep this traditional art form alive hence facilitating in preserving the language.
Abrar got his pen name from the city of Kiratpur in Uttar Pradesh, where he was born and
spent his childhood. There were no poets in his family before Kiratpuri; however, a few oldtime
Urdu poets lived in his native village.
As a child, Abrar Kiratpuri was fascinated by the lyrical words of Urdu poems; he started
speaking words of shayari on his own, read books on Urdu poetry and listened to shayars. He
started learning from Ustad Waqif Muradabadi and became an expert in Urdu poetry under him.
After moving to the capital, he lived for nearly 34 years at Nizamuddin West. Some of his best
days as an Urdu poet were spent here. Remembering his old days and mehfils which were
commonplace in the city, Kiratpuri said he would regularly visit the auditorium at Ghalib Academy
where poets would gather along with hundreds of ordinary people. Kiratpuri would recite his
shayaris there, and this provided a good platform to showcase his art.
Those were the times when people liked listening to shayars. A huge crowd would assemble.
People would sit on chairs and some would bring their own furniture items. When there was no
space to sit, they would climb on trees to listen to us, he recalls.
Soon Kiratpuri founded a literary society, Markaz-ilmo-Danish, to encourage young poets. This
society would organise events where old-timers as well as the new-generation poets would come
together for a bigger audience and perform.
Abrar Kiratpuri has written 36 books, so far, that contain more than 25,000 couplets and
ghazals. Some of his works are available in the archive section of many public libraries. Many of
his poems have been adapted into curriculum books in a few schools in states where Urdu is
taught at primary level.
Through shayari we convey to our audience the power of love. The day humans start
respecting and loving each other, there will be no more fighting in the world, says Kiratpuri.
His recently published a book titled Illahoo, which means no one except the almighty. He
likes to write in solitude. Sometimes he takes only a week to complete 1,200 pages, but
sometimes it may take a month or more. Whenever some new words occur to him, he quickly jots
them down on a paper and later includes them in his writings.

Kiratpuri laments that todays generation is not learning Urdu. There are hardly any schools
left in south Delhi where Urdu is being taught since primary level. Also, no university has taken up
Urdu poetry as a subject. It is unfortunate, he said.