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aek naamvar fan-kaar ka zauq-e-shaa'iri
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Raj Kumar
Jul 6, 2021, 6:31:19 PM7/6/21
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Dear friends:
The other day I came across an interesting article, in the Pakistani newspaper Dawn, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the famous artist M.F. Hussain. In this article (I quote) -------
“Singer and guitarist Bilal Maqsood remembered legendary Indian artist Maqbool Fida Hussain on his 10th death anniversary with a sweet anecdote. Taking to Instagram, he reminisced about the time his son, Mikael Maqsood, sketched Hussain”.
Bilal Maqsood also showed three pictures of the event. The first picture showed his son Mikael, then eight years old, sitting across from Hussain and sketching him in a notebook.
The second picture showed the small but impressive sketch of Hussain made by Mikael, on which the celebrated artist not only put his signature but also wrote a misr’a from Urdu poetry by way of complimenting the talent of the young lad.
The third picture featured Hussain sketching and Mikael sitting by his side. Hussain was so flattered, Bilal revealed, that he made his son a painting in return.
----------
The reason I brought this item up here is to tell you what misr’a Hussain wrote for Mikael:
“aek tum ho jise suurat banaa aatii hai”
On reading this misr’a, I was so disappointed that for a long time I kept thinking why an artist of Hussain’s calibre --- who supposedly had sufficient interest in Urdu poetry so as to quote a line from a proverbial she’r --- would write it so wrong. The problem here is that the word “suurat” is making this misr’a out-of-meter; duusre afaaz meN, yuuN kah sakte haiN k lafz “suurat” ne is misr’e ki shakl biGaaR Daali hai! :-(
asl zarb-ul-masal she’r kuchh yuuN hai:
aek ham haiN k liyaa apni hi suurat ko bigaaR
aek voh haiN jinheN tasveer banaa aatii hai
Hussain sahib ne, mauqe’ ke mutaabiq, “aek voh haiN jinheN” ko “aek tum ho jise” meN badal diyaa, which is fine. But why did he write “suurat” instead of “tasveer”? Clearly, the celebrated artist did not display a feel for the correct “sur-taal” here --- which left me nonplussed and disappointed.
On one hand, this story teaches me a lesson that I shouldn't be surprised when lesser mortals commit similar mistakes; on the other, it encourages me not to hesitate in pointing out such mistakes and have them corrected, so that they do not perpetuate along.
Here is the link to that article:
Bilal Maqsood remembers when his 8-year-old son sketched one of India's most celebrated artists - Celebrity - Images (dawn.com)
The second picture in the article can be rolled sideways to get the three pictures I have mentioned here.
Khair-aNdesh, Raj Kumar
The other day I came across an interesting article, in the Pakistani newspaper Dawn, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the famous artist M.F. Hussain. In this article (I quote) -------
“Singer and guitarist Bilal Maqsood remembered legendary Indian artist Maqbool Fida Hussain on his 10th death anniversary with a sweet anecdote. Taking to Instagram, he reminisced about the time his son, Mikael Maqsood, sketched Hussain”.
Bilal Maqsood also showed three pictures of the event. The first picture showed his son Mikael, then eight years old, sitting across from Hussain and sketching him in a notebook.
The second picture showed the small but impressive sketch of Hussain made by Mikael, on which the celebrated artist not only put his signature but also wrote a misr’a from Urdu poetry by way of complimenting the talent of the young lad.
The third picture featured Hussain sketching and Mikael sitting by his side. Hussain was so flattered, Bilal revealed, that he made his son a painting in return.
----------
The reason I brought this item up here is to tell you what misr’a Hussain wrote for Mikael:
“aek tum ho jise suurat banaa aatii hai”
On reading this misr’a, I was so disappointed that for a long time I kept thinking why an artist of Hussain’s calibre --- who supposedly had sufficient interest in Urdu poetry so as to quote a line from a proverbial she’r --- would write it so wrong. The problem here is that the word “suurat” is making this misr’a out-of-meter; duusre afaaz meN, yuuN kah sakte haiN k lafz “suurat” ne is misr’e ki shakl biGaaR Daali hai! :-(
asl zarb-ul-masal she’r kuchh yuuN hai:
aek ham haiN k liyaa apni hi suurat ko bigaaR
aek voh haiN jinheN tasveer banaa aatii hai
Hussain sahib ne, mauqe’ ke mutaabiq, “aek voh haiN jinheN” ko “aek tum ho jise” meN badal diyaa, which is fine. But why did he write “suurat” instead of “tasveer”? Clearly, the celebrated artist did not display a feel for the correct “sur-taal” here --- which left me nonplussed and disappointed.
On one hand, this story teaches me a lesson that I shouldn't be surprised when lesser mortals commit similar mistakes; on the other, it encourages me not to hesitate in pointing out such mistakes and have them corrected, so that they do not perpetuate along.
Here is the link to that article:
Bilal Maqsood remembers when his 8-year-old son sketched one of India's most celebrated artists - Celebrity - Images (dawn.com)
The second picture in the article can be rolled sideways to get the three pictures I have mentioned here.
Khair-aNdesh, Raj Kumar
Message has been deleted
Zoya
Jul 7, 2021, 6:06:01 PM7/7/21
to
You have raised a very valid point, thanks for doing so. I totally agree with you, when someone of M F Hussain's caliber makes such an error, it seems rather jarring. If anyone recites out loud the misra' as Hussain sahib has quoted, it immediately and obviously feels out of meter. Maybe we can give him the benefit of doubt that it was a slip of pen and he did not pay enough attention while writing it down? But you are right, if it can happen to Hussain sahib, it can easily happen to the lesser mortals.
You are absolutely right that such errors need to be pointed out so they do not get perpetuated. I have personally heard/read many famous people wrongly quote some very common asha'ar. It always bothers me, and I am not sure what can be done about it generally. I am glad at least we have this forum where such matters can be discussed, even if the feedback reaches just a limited group of people.
Let me now add that just like a lot of other people, I am also a huge M F Hussein fan. One of my RJ friends had interviewed him once on her radio show, and honestly it was the single best ever interview I have ever heard in my life. He was a real magician in his field, unparalleled talent. Other than in museums, the only original M F Hussain painting I have actually seen was in my old friend, the famous author, Bapsi Sidhwa's home.
Thank you for starting this thread, I find it very interesting as well as educational.
______Zoya
Naseer
Jul 18, 2021, 6:22:09 PM7/18/21
to
I tried to find the shi3r you have quoted in the link you provided for the Dawn newspaper but could n't. However, I did find it in the Indian Express.
https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/art-and-culture/pakistani-singer-artist-bilal-maqsoods-son-mikail-sketch-mf-husain-death-anniversary-7374077/
From what I can see, the reason for his writing a xaarij az vazn misra3 is obvious. It seems I am not alone in being ignorant about these matters!:-) The late M F Hussain, along with the whole of the editorial team of "Dawn" and "Indian Express" papers are totally oblivious of what is in meter and what is out of it! Perhaps you are giving more credit to Maqbool Fida Hussain in matters pertaining to Urdu poetry than he deserves. There is a mention on the net about his interest in quoting Urdu ash3aar but Raj Kumar SaaHib, you know that every Tom, Dick and Naseer can quote ash3aar, even correctly at times, but not everyone is likely to be aware of the delicate balancing act required, which on the whole, only Urdu poets know the secrets of! Having said this, you are also aware that even top notch poets have fallen foul of this intricate art!
Naseer
Raj Kumar
Jul 21, 2021, 10:05:09 PM7/21/21
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I fully understand the point you have made but my initial reaction to this discovery was based on the "naive" assumption that MF Hussain, being a top-notch expert in the "art of painting/calligraphy" with some interest in "Urdu poetry" (both these activities belonging to the category "funuun-e-latiifa) shouldn't have committed such an error. An added factor in my assessment was an uncalled for comparison between MFH and an equally prominent Pakistani artist/calligrapher Sadequain who also had an interest in Urdu poetry but, as I now know, at a level much higher than MFH.
A nephew of Sadequain happens to be living here in San Diego and a common interest in Urdu poetry has brought us close enough that we are now family friends. He has introduced me to not only a voluminous body of Sadequain's work but also to a book of "rubaaiyaat" by him. This book contains hundreds of rubaa'iis, each rubaa'ii adorned with a matching calligraphic sketch, which makes it a very enjoyable read. I expected MFH to be in the same league insofar as poetry is concerned but I agree with you that I expected a bit much from him.
One difference between the two gentlemen is that whereas MFH was born in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, and his mother tongue was Maraathi, Sadequain was born in Amroha, Uttar Pradesh, and his mother tongue was Urdu. How significant this difference is, insofar as proficiency in Urdu poetry is concerned, is rather difficult to say.
Raj Kumar***
Naseer
Jul 22, 2021, 11:09:32 AM7/22/21
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muHtaramii Raj Kumar SaaHib.
On Thursday, 22 July 2021 at 03:05:09 UTC+1, Raj Kumar wrote:
> I fully understand the point you have made but my initial reaction to this discovery was based on the "naive" assumption that MF Hussain, being a top-notch expert in the "art of painting/calligraphy" with some interest in "Urdu poetry" (both these activities belonging to the category "funuun-e-latiifa) shouldn't have committed such an error. An added factor in my assessment was an uncalled for comparison between MFH and an equally prominent Pakistani artist/calligrapher Sadequain who also had an interest in Urdu poetry but, as I now know, at a level much higher than MFH.
Well, Syed Sadequain Ahmed Naqvi (1930-1987), as you have indicated was not only a well known painter/artist, he was also an accomplished Urdu poet which many people may not know. There is a whole "tuluu3-i-afkaar" number published in February 1992 in which the likes of Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Malik Ram, Dr. Farman Fatehpuri, Syed Sabt-i-Hassan, Ahmed Nadeem Qasimi and many many more contributed. Here is a link to the "number". On page 71 is an article by Dr. Farman Fatehpuri entitled, "Sadeqain, Urdu rubaa3ii kaa Khayyam". On page 41 of this shumaarah, janaab M. F. Hussain has penned a short piece entitled, "mussavvir-i-Hindustan ba-naam-i-musavvir-i-Pakistan". There is no indication in this short article that his Urdu falls short of the required standards.
https://www.rekhta.org/ebooks/tulu-e-afkar-shumara-number-002-husain-anjum-magazines?lang=ur
One of his rubaa3iis mentions Khayyam by name..
Khayyaam ko ik kitaab maiN ne dii hai
Sarmad ko mai-i-3azaab maiN ne dii hai
asnaaf-i-adab meN sab se kaTTar hai jo sinf
apne liye intixaab maiN ne kii hai
> A nephew of Sadequain happens to be living here in San Diego and a common interest in Urdu poetry has brought us close enough that we are now family friends. He has introduced me to not only a voluminous body of Sadequain's work but also to a book of "rubaaiyaat" by him. This book contains hundreds of rubaa'iis, each rubaa'ii adorned with a matching calligraphic sketch, which makes it a very enjoyable read. I expected MFH to be in the same league insofar as poetry is concerned but I agree with you that I expected a bit much from him.
Which year was this book published and what is its title, Raj Kumar SaaHib?
> One difference between the two gentlemen is that whereas MFH was born in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, and his mother tongue was Maraathi, Sadequain was born in Amroha, Uttar Pradesh, and his mother tongue was Urdu. How significant this difference is, insofar as proficiency in Urdu poetry is concerned, is rather difficult to say.
>
Not significant at all! Being a mother tongue speaker is not a precondition for achieving greatness. There are so many examples of individuals who have outperformed mother tongue speakers. The greatest grammarian of the Arabic language was one known by the name "Sibawayh"* (Scent of an apple) born in 760 in Beyza Iran and died at the unripe age of 36 in Shiraz Iran. He was attached to the Basra school of Arabic grammarians and wrote the earliest grammar treatise entitled simply, "al-kitaab". Ghazali (1058-111) was another towering figure who almost exclusively wrote his works in Arabic but was of Iranian origins (Tous- the same place whence Firdausi came). But why go far? Is n't there a notorious poet who bears the taxallus "Qais", is known by his lovers as Raj Kumar, was born in Ramdas, Punjab, yet he miraculously writes in Urdu or should I say he writes in"miraculous Urdu"?!
* Arabized form of the Middle Persian compound word "seb-boy" سیب بوی
By the way, you will probably also have heard of perhaps the best artist/painter of Pakistan, namely Muhammad Abdur Rahman Chughtai born 1894 in Lahore and died also in Lahore in 1975. One of his well known books is called "muraqqa3-i-chuGhtaa'ii". Here is a link to it. The book consists of Ghalib's diivaan, Chughtai's paintings and sketches and Iqbal's foreword.
Naseer
On Thursday, 22 July 2021 at 03:05:09 UTC+1, Raj Kumar wrote:
> I fully understand the point you have made but my initial reaction to this discovery was based on the "naive" assumption that MF Hussain, being a top-notch expert in the "art of painting/calligraphy" with some interest in "Urdu poetry" (both these activities belonging to the category "funuun-e-latiifa) shouldn't have committed such an error. An added factor in my assessment was an uncalled for comparison between MFH and an equally prominent Pakistani artist/calligrapher Sadequain who also had an interest in Urdu poetry but, as I now know, at a level much higher than MFH.
https://www.rekhta.org/ebooks/tulu-e-afkar-shumara-number-002-husain-anjum-magazines?lang=ur
One of his rubaa3iis mentions Khayyam by name..
Khayyaam ko ik kitaab maiN ne dii hai
Sarmad ko mai-i-3azaab maiN ne dii hai
asnaaf-i-adab meN sab se kaTTar hai jo sinf
apne liye intixaab maiN ne kii hai
> A nephew of Sadequain happens to be living here in San Diego and a common interest in Urdu poetry has brought us close enough that we are now family friends. He has introduced me to not only a voluminous body of Sadequain's work but also to a book of "rubaaiyaat" by him. This book contains hundreds of rubaa'iis, each rubaa'ii adorned with a matching calligraphic sketch, which makes it a very enjoyable read. I expected MFH to be in the same league insofar as poetry is concerned but I agree with you that I expected a bit much from him.
> One difference between the two gentlemen is that whereas MFH was born in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, and his mother tongue was Maraathi, Sadequain was born in Amroha, Uttar Pradesh, and his mother tongue was Urdu. How significant this difference is, insofar as proficiency in Urdu poetry is concerned, is rather difficult to say.
>
* Arabized form of the Middle Persian compound word "seb-boy" سیب بوی
By the way, you will probably also have heard of perhaps the best artist/painter of Pakistan, namely Muhammad Abdur Rahman Chughtai born 1894 in Lahore and died also in Lahore in 1975. One of his well known books is called "muraqqa3-i-chuGhtaa'ii". Here is a link to it. The book consists of Ghalib's diivaan, Chughtai's paintings and sketches and Iqbal's foreword.
Naseer
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