Ata ul Haq Qasmi ( Punjabi, ) is a

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

columnist A columnist is a person who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Column (periodical), Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs. They take the ...

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

. He has written around twenty books and many articles on different subjects for the leading newspapers of Pakistan. His books have been translated into four languages.

Early life and career

Qasmi was born in

Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

in 1943. His family has Kashmiri roots. His father Maulana Baha ul Haq Qasmi used to teach at MAO High School and MAO College in Amritsar. After

independence of Pakistan The Pakistan Movement was a religiopolitical and social movement that emerged in the early 20th century as part of a campaign that advocated the creation of an Islamic state in parts of what was then British Raj. It was rooted in the two-nation th ...

in 1947, his family migrated to Pakistan and first settled in

Wazirabad Wazirabad (Urdu/) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the administrative capital of Wazirabad District (formerly a Tehsil of Gujranwala District). Famous for its cutlery products, it is known as the city of cutlery and is also quite famous f ...

and later moved to

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

where he finished his high school. He then graduated from Government M.A.O. Graduate College, Lahore. He first joined the Urdu language newspaper Nawa-i-Waqt as a sub-editor where the renowned journalist Majid Nizami was the editor. Later he started writing columns for

Daily Jang The ''Daily Jang'' () is an Urdu language newspaper headquartered in Karachi, Pakistan. It is considered one of Pakistan's newspaper of record and a leading newspaper of Pakistan. History It is the oldest newspaper of Pakistan in continuous p ...

and many other newspapers. The most distinguished character of Qasmi's columns is his satire on social inequalities and his anti-

dictatorship A dictatorship is an autocratic form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, who hold governmental powers with few to no Limited government, limitations. Politics in a dictatorship are controlled by a dictator, ...

stance which he boldly takes in his columns. He has a unique writing style of humorously handling even the most serious issues facing the country. He served as the

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

of Pakistan in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

from 1997 to 1999. His books and newspaper columns include ''Rozan-e-Dewar Sey'', ''Column Tamam'', ''Shar Goshiyan'', ''Hansna Rona Mana Hay'', ''Mazeed Ganjey Farishtey'' and many more while his TV

Drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

serials include the most popular PTV TV dramas

Khawaja and Son ''Khajawa and Son'', Pakistani TV show (began in 1985) is a comedy serial that revolves around Khawaja Sahib (played by Ali Ejaz) and his son Jawad (played by Aurangzeb). It is directed by Ayub Khawar and written by Ata ul Haq Qasmi.

(1988), "Shab Daig", ''Aap ka Khadim'' popularly known by its character ''Sheeda Taili'' and ''Khoye Hooun Ki Justajoo''. His travelogues ''Shoq-e-Awargi'' and ''Goron kay des mein'' are widely read and popular among the readers. In early 2015, he was serving as the honorary Chairman of the

Lahore Arts Council Alhamra Arts Council (also known as the Alhamra Hall, Alhamra Cultural Complex, Alhamra Art Gallery and Lahore Arts Council) was designed by Nayyar Ali Dada and completed in 1992. The Alhamra Arts Council is located on a colonial-period road ...

, Pakistan. Veteran Pakistani journalist Altaf Gauhar had once named him the wittiest newspaper columnist in Pakistan. The well-known writer Mushtaq Ahmad Yusufi has called him the best newspaper columnist in the country. He has been working as a journalist for 52 years. In 2015, he was appointed Chairman for

Pakistan Television Corporation Pakistan Television Corporation (; reporting name: PTV); also known as ''Pakistan Television'', is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster founded by the Government of Pakistan, operating under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. I ...

, a state-owned institution, where he served till December 2017. He has been associated and involved with Pakistani television for over 35 years as a

Personal life

Ata ul Haq Qasmi has three sons - Pirzada Muhammad Omar Qasmi, Pirzada Muhammad Ali Usman Qasmi and Yasir Pirzada.

Awards and recognition

Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance (), officially known as the Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sp ...

Award by the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

in 1991 *

Sitara-i-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and Civil decorations of Pakistan, civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially me ...

(Star of Excellence) Award by the

Hilal-i-Imtiaz The ''Hilal-e-Imtiaz'' (; ), also spelled as ''Hilal-i-Imtiaz,'' is the second-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") civilian award and honour given to both civilians and military officers of the Pakistan Armed Forces by the Government of Pakist ...

(Crescent of Excellence) Award by the

in 2014(Associated Press of Pakistan)

References

External links

*
Poetry of Ata ul Haq Qasmi on rekhta.org website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Qasmi, Ata Ul Haq 1943 births Living people Pakistani male journalists Pakistani columnists Pakistani people of Kashmiri descent Ambassadors of Pakistan to Norway Ambassadors of Pakistan to Thailand Recipients of the Pride of Performance Recipients of Sitara-i-Imtiaz Recipients of Hilal-i-Imtiaz Poets from Lahore Pakistan Television Corporation executives Journalists from Lahore Urdu-language columnists Urdu-language writers Urdu-language dramatists and playwrights Urdu-language poets from Pakistan 20th-century Pakistani poets