Akhtar Husain (1912-1992,
) also known as Dr Akhtar Husain Raipuri was 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 ...
scholar
A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a termina ...
,
journalist
A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism.
Roles
Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...
and
lexicographer
Lexicography is the study of lexicons and the art of compiling dictionaries. It is divided into two separate academic disciplines:
* Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionary, dictionaries.
* The ...
.
He is also the author of the book ''The Dust of the Road: A Translation of Gard-e-Raah'' that was translated into English by Amina Azfar many years after his death.
Early life
Akhtar Husain was born in the district of
Raipur
Raipur ( ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raipur is also the administrative headquarters of Raipur district and Raipur division, and the largest city of the state. It was a part of Madhya Pradesh before the state of Chh ...
in the
British Indian Empire
The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent,
*
* lasting from 1858 to 1947.
*
* It is also called Crown rule ...
, now within the state of
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh (; ) is a landlocked States and union territories of India, state in Central India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the List ...
,
Republic of India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country since 2023; and, since its independence in 1947, the world's most populous democracy. Bounded by ...
. He was born to Saiyyed Akbar Husain, an engineer stationed in Raipur. His mother Mumtazunnisa was a publisher in women's journals. She died at age twenty-six when Akhtar was just three.
As a child, Akhtar became fond of reading and saved money to buy books in
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
(a major register of
Hindustani written in the
Devanagari script
Devanagari ( ; in script: , , ) is an Indic script used in the Indian subcontinent. It is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental writing system), based on the ancient '' Brāhmī'' script. It is one of the official scripts of India an ...
), but could not read
Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
(another major register of Hindustani written in the
Perso-Arabic script
The Persian alphabet (), also known as the Perso-Arabic script, is the right-to-left script, right-to-left alphabet used for the Persian language. It is a variation of the Arabic script with four additional letters: (the sounds 'g', 'zh', ' ...
) as fluently. At age twelve, his school teacher asked him to help organize the school library, and his command over Hindi was so strong that, apart from reading it, he began writing in the language, and "his first story “Parajit” (Defeated) was published in Madhuri, a reputed literary journal, when he was only 16 years old."
Outside Urdu and Hindi, other languages he'd master are Sanskrit, Bengali, Persian, English and French. Later in his life he'll have a command over Spanish as well.
Education and career
Husain moved to
Calcutta
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...
to pursue advanced studies which at the time was also a major center for publication in
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
, Hindi and Urdu. But after leaving there in 1932, Husain went on to translate popular works from Bengali poet
Qazi Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam (24 May 1899 – 29 August 1976) was a Bengali poet, short story writer, journalist, lyricist and musician. He is the national poet of Bangladesh. Nazrul produced a large body of poetry, music, messages, novels, and stories ...
into Urdu. According to Husain,
Babu Moolchand and
Maulvi Abdul Huq as his two major life influences.
He also became acquainted with friends with the poets
Saghar Nizami and
Majaz Nizami. Huq upon reading Husain's works encouraged him to increase his attention to literature rather than journalism. Huq encouraged Husain to assist him in the development of an English–Hindi dictionary and the publication of the Urdu journal. After Husain agreed, the two of them moved to
Aurangabad
Aurangabad (), officially renamed as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 2023, is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a ...
where they started ''
Anjuman-i Taraqqi-i Urdu'' and worked for about two years. During that time, Husain also reviewed Urdu books under the pseudonym "Nakhuda". Over this time bonds between Husain and Abdul Haq.
By 1935, Husain married Hamida, daughter of police officer and
crime fiction
Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...
novelist
Zafar Omar.
Akhtar Husain witnessed the historic 1936 meeting of
Sahitya Parishad in which
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...
declared that
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
rather than
Hindustani (which includes Urdu and technically
Caribbean Hindustani
Caribbean Hindustani () is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by Indo-Caribbean people and the Indo-Caribbean diaspora. It is a koiné language mainly based on the Bhojpuri and Awadhi dialects. These Hindustani dialects were the most-spoken dialec ...
as well) be the national language of
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
upon independence.
Upon this, Haq stopped all his works in Hindi, including the development of the English-Hindi dictionary, and Husain left Aurangabad for
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
where he had difficulty settling for a career as a result of his application being rejected.
He then applied to
Sorbonne where he pursued a PhD in ancient life in the Indian subcontinent based on Sanskrit texts. His thesis adviser was
Marc Bloch
Marc Léopold Benjamin Bloch ( ; ; 6 July 1886 – 16 June 1944) was a French historian. He was a founding member of the Annales School of French social history. Bloch specialised in medieval history and published widely on France in the Middle ...
. He also briefly worked as a translator to support himself financially. He also later worked in news bulletins to write news analysis. He also worked with the Radio's Dictionary Committee.
By 1942, Husain became
Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College
Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College (, lit. "Science School for the Muslims of India") was founded in 1875 by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, initially as a primary school, with the intention of turning it to a college level institution. It was inspired by t ...
,
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 ...
. Mutually, he also translated a three volume autobiography of Gorky. He also continued to write short stories (''Zindagi ka Mela''). By 1945, Husain worked as an assistant in the education department at
Simla
Shimla, also known as Simla (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Himachal Pradesh, the official name until 1972), is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summe ...
, where he also got the opportunity to work for
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin (11 November 188822 February 1958), better known as Maulana Azad and sometimes referred as Abul Kalam Azad, was an Indian politician, writer and activist of the Indian independence movement. A senior leader of t ...
.
Independence and the end of British Rule
Two years within the end of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and the end of the
British Raj
The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent,
*
* lasting from 1858 to 1947.
*
* It is also called Crown rule ...
, Husain and his family relocated to
Karachi
Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
,
Sindh
Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. It was around this time it was reported that violence between Brahmans and Muslims intensified.
In Pakistan, Husain continued working in the educational fields, where he worked as secretary. Dissatisfied with the political direction Pakistani society had headed for, he took up a job at UNESCO where he retired from in 1972.
Bibliography
Some of his major works include:
*''La société dans le drame sanscrit''.
PhD thesis written in French for the Sorbonne, in 1939, 'on the society in Sanskrit drama
The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in ...
'.
*''Adab aur inqilāb''.
A critical study on prominent Urdu authors and their works.
*''Ḥabash aur At̤āliyah''.
History of Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
and Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
.
*''Payām-i shabāb''.
Translation of Bengali poetry
Bengali poetry is a rich tradition of poetry in the Bengali language and has many different forms. Originating in Bengal, the history of Bengali poetry underwent three successive stages of development: poetry of the early age (like '' Charyapad ...
from Kazi Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam (24 May 1899 – 29 August 1976) was a Bengalis, Bengali poet, short story writer, journalist, lyricist and musician. He is the national poet of Bangladesh. Nazrul produced a List of works by Kazi Nazrul Islam, large body of ...
.
*''Roshan mīnār : tanqīdī maẓāmīn kā majmūʻah''.
Essays on Urdu literature
Urdu literature (, ) comprises the literary works, written in the Urdu language. While it tends to be dominated by poetry, especially the verse forms of the ''ghazal'' () and '' nazm'' (), it has expanded into other styles of writing, includin ...
.
*''Tāsh ke patte''.
Urdu translation from the English of James Hadley Chase
James Hadley Chase (24 December 1906 – 6 February 1985) was an English writer. While his birth name was René Lodge Brabazon Raymond, he was well known by his various pseudonyms, including James Hadley Chase, James L. Docherty, Raymond ...
's ''The Joker in the Pack''.
*''Śakuntalā''.
Urdu translation from the Sanskrit of Kālidāsa
Kālidāsa (, "Servant of Kali (god), Kali"; 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on Hindu Puranas and philosophy. ...
's Śakuntalā.
References
External links
Akhtar Husain Raipuri- Literature and life*
Akhtar Husain's family treeon Geni.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Husain, Akhtar
Academic staff of Aligarh Muslim University
1912 births
1992 deaths
Muhajir people
Pakistani literary critics
20th-century Urdu-language writers
Writers from Karachi
Scholars from Karachi
Urdu-language short story writers
Pakistani male short story writers
Pakistani short story writers
Pakistani socialists
Linguists from Pakistan
Banaras Hindu University alumni
Hindustani-language writers
Pakistani people of Bihari descent
20th-century Pakistani linguists
20th-century Pakistani translators
People from Raipur, Chhattisgarh
Urdu-language writers from Pakistan