Syed Ali Jawad Zaidi (10 March 1916 – 6 December 2004) was an Indian

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 ...

poet, scholar, and author of over 80 books in several languages. He was also an Indian independence activist, lawyer and later a civil servant, but is best known for his work in

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 ...

. He was an authority on

marsiya A marsiya (; ) is an elegiac poem written to commemorate the martyrdom and valour of Hussain ibn Ali, his family, and his companions at the tragedy of Karbala. Marsiyas are essentially religious lamentations. Background The word ''Marsiya'' is d ...

go poetry of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

, including the poets Mir Anis and

Mirza Ghalib Mirza Asadullah Beg Khan (27 December 179715 February 1869), commonly known as Mirza Ghalib, was an Indian poet. Widely regarded as one of the greatest poets in the Urdu language, he also produced a significant body of work in Persian. Ghali ...

, and wrote on both poetry and prose, including research and analytical works. He has received several awards for his contributions to literature and other fields.

Early life and education

Zaidi was born in the village Karhan, Uttar Pradesh, then in

Azamgarh district Azamgarh district is one of the three districts of Azamgarh division in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Etymology The district is named after its headquarters town, Azamgarh. Azam, a son of Vikramajit, founded the town in 1665. Vikramajit ...

(now

Mau district Mau district is one of the districts of Uttar Pradesh state of India, and Mau town is the district headquarters which is also one of the few remaining areas of handloom saree production in eastern Uttar Pradesh, specializing in Sadiya silk sare ...

) in eastern

, the eldest of six children in a

zamindar A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...

family of Mohammadabad-Gohna, Azamgarh. He was born at his maternal grandfather's home in Karhan. Belonging to a Saiyid family and being the eldest son in his family, he was sent to the local

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

madarsa to gain education and proficiency in Islamic theology and religious matters. When Zaidi was 11 years old, his father died. His early formal education took place in Mahmudabad, the princely state. He then graduated from Government Jubilee College,

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

and an LLB from

Lucknow University University of Lucknow (informally known as Lucknow University, and LU) is one of the oldest public state university based in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. LU's main campus is located at Badshah Bagh, University Road area of the city with a second ...

Indian independence activism

During his graduation and later while doing his LLB, he came into contact with leaders of the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

, which he joined in the late 1930s. He wrote revolutionary poetry while he led the student's movement along with other student leaders such as

Shankar Dayal Sharma Shankar Dayal Sharma (; 19 August 1918 – 26 December 1999) was an Indian lawyer and politician who served as the President of India from 1992 to 1997. Born in Bhopal, Sharma studied at Agra, Allahabad and Lucknow and received a doctorate i ...

, who later went on to become the president of India. His poetry drew praise from

Sarojini Naidu Sarojini Naidu (Birth name, née Chattopadhyay) (; 13 February 1879 – 2 March 1949) was an Indian political activist and poet who served as the first Governor of Uttar Pradesh, Governor of United Provinces, after Independence Day (India), Indi ...

, and he was subsequently elected as the secretary-general of the All India Student's Federation. He remained the secretary-general of the

All India Students Federation The All India Students' Federation (AISF) is the oldest Student society, student organisation in India, founded in 1936. Pre-independence AISF was founded on 12 August 1936, with guidance and cooperation from the Indian independence movemen ...

during the Quit India Movement (1942) launched by

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 ...

. His poems were proscribed by the British Colonial Government for inciting rebellion against 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 ...

. The British government issued an arrest warrant in order to stop him from organising student rallies and mobilising students against the Raj. He continued his work underground, organising students throughout India. He was later arrested at

Nagpur Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...

, and was sentenced to jail for anti-British activity and sent to serve his term at the Nagpur Central Prison and later transferred to the

Benares Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges, Ganges river in North India, northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hinduism, Hindu world.* * * * The city ...

Central Jail. He was laid to rest at the Malka Jahan burial grounds, Lucknow, India, with full state honours provided to an Indian freedom fighter.

Government service

With India's independence, Zaidi ended his active involvement in politics. He joined the Information Department of the

Government of Uttar Pradesh The Government of Uttar Pradesh (International Organization for Standardization, ISO: ''Uttara Pradēśa Sarakāra''; often abbreviated as GoUP) is the subnational government of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with the governor as its appoin ...

and was a deputy director there until he was inducted into the

Indian Information Service The Indian Information Service (IIS) () is the central civil service under Group A and Group B of the Central Civil Services of the executive branch of the Government of India. Indian Information Service officers are the media managers of the ...

and posted to

Srinagar Srinagar (; ) is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary ...

. Although he had taken up Government Service for a full-time job, and chosen that as a career, he remained active in arts and cultural activities in Jammu and Kashmir, organising and conducting the annual Kashmir festival during the summer months. He was appointed as the secretary general of the Society of Arts and Culture,

Government of Jammu and Kashmir The Government of Jammu and Kashmir is the principal administrative authority responsible for the governance of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Established on 5 March 1948 as the Government of Princely state of Jammu and Ka ...

. In the early 1960s he was transferred to

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 ...

and posted with the

Press Information Bureau The Press Information Bureau, commonly abbreviated as PIB, is a nodal agency of the Government of India under Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Based in National Media Centre, New Delhi, Press Information Bureau disseminates informati ...

in Delhi and

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

. His final posting was in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

and he retired from active Government service as Joint Director, News Services,

All India Radio All India Radio (AIR), also known as Akashvani (), is India's state-owned public broadcasting, public radio broadcaster. Founded in 1936, it operates under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broa ...

in August 1978. Zaidi was a

secularist Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...

and

nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

. He was a member of the Inder Kumar Gujral Committee for promotion of Urdu. He also worked as the editor of '' Naya Daur'', an

monthly digest, and ''Al-Ilm'', a monthly published from Mumbai. ''Naya Daur'' ran a series on his memoirs on a monthly basis for a time, as well as a special issue in his memory of Ali Jawad Zaidi (Nov/Dec issue, 2004) after his death. He also did some translation work (into English) for the

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of the Indian government. Its off ...

. He travelled extensively in India and abroad, often working with heads of state and other high-ranking officials. He was friends with Darshan Singh of the Sawan Kirpal Ruhani Mission.

Writing career

Throughout his years with the government, Zaidi continued writing. Seven of his books have won State Government Awards. He was the author of over 80 books in Urdu, English,

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 ...

and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

. Many of his works are now reference material for research students. He has been the subject of research scholars, and

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of Postgraduate education, graduate study and original resear ...

degrees have been awarded to four students for research done on his life and works. He was president of the Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy, Lucknow and as the president of the Zainabbiya Institute of Islamic Studies, Mumbai, and was on the board of

, New Delhi and the Sangeet and Natya Akademi, New Delhi and other social, literary and cultural organizations. He was also an advisor to the Government of Uttar Pradesh. His books are included in the U.S.

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

. Amongst his notable works are ''Qasida Nigaran-e-Uttar Pradesh'' (in 2 Volumes), Uttar Pradesh ke Marsiyago (in 2 Volumes) & Do Adabi School, which have been published in Urdu-speaking Pakistan as well. These books along with his ''History of Urdu Literature'' (English), Mirza Ghalib – Ek Parichay (Hindi), Mir Anis, are unique in their approaches to their subjects. Zaidi was a member of the progressive

movement, other members of which included

Ali Sardar Jafri Ali Sardar Jafri (29 November 1913 – 1 August 2000) was an Indian writer of Urdu language. He was also a poet, critic and film lyricist. Biography Early life and education Ali Sardar Jafri was born in Balrampur (in present-day Uttar Prad ...

and

Kaifi Azmi Kaifi Azmi (born Athar Husain Rizvi; 14 January 1919 – 10 May 2002) was an Indian Urdu poet. He is remembered as the one who brought Urdu literature to Indian motion pictures. Together with Pirzada Qasim, Jaun Elia and others he participa ...

. His poetic contemporaries included Majaz,

Faiz ''Faiz'' () is a male Arabic name meaning overflowing, plenty. People with the name * Faiz Mohammad Katib Hazara (1862/63–1929), a Hazara people, Hazara historian, writer and intellectual * Faiz El-Ghusein (1883–1968), an official of the Tur ...

, and Qurratulain Hyder. He was also a member of the Committee for Promotion of Urdu (appointed by the Government of India Resolution No. F. 15-25/72-L. 1 dated 5 May 1972) Confined to his home in Lucknow due to poor health and failing eyesight during his last years, he wrote using an

amanuensis An amanuensis ( ) ( ) or scribe is a person employed to write or type what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. It may also be a person who signs a document on behalf of another under the latter's authority. In some aca ...

. He died on 6 December 2004.

Awards

The Government of India conferred on him the

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

in recognition of his contributions to

(1988). He also received a Tamra Patra award for his role in the freedom movement, and the Ghalib award. Other awards included: * Anis Award in recognition of Expertise on Mir Anis * Ghalib Award in recognition of Expertise on Mirza Ghalib * Certificate of Honour presented by The Rotary Club, Lucknow * Awards presented to his various books by Governments and Literary Organizations are marked in the list of his books below. In 1987, Zaidi asked government bodies and literary organizations not to consider his works for awards. The Jawad Memorial Prize was instituted in his remembrance in 2019 for awarding outstanding translations of Urdu works to English.

List of published books

''(Books marked by an ‘*’ are award-winning books) authored by Saiyid Ali Jawad Zaidi'' #Meri Gazalain 1959 * Poetry #Teesha-e-Awaaz 1985 Poetry #Uttar Pradesh Ke Marsiyago Research #Do Adbi School 1970 * Critical Analysis #Naath Nigari Uttar Pradesh mein Research & analysis #Zabt Shuda Nazmein Collection of Proscribed Poems #Urdu Main Qaumi Shairi Ke Sau Saal 1957 Criticism & analysis #History of Urdu Literature 1993 Research & Analysis #Mir Anis (Tr. English) 1986 Biography #Rang-e-sang 1944 Poetry #Dayar-e-Sahar 1960 Poetry #Naseem-e-Dasht-e-Arzoo 1980 * Poetry #Inteqhab Ali Jawad Zaidi 1971 Poetry #Silsila (Inteqhab) 1990 Poetry #Warq Warq Zanjeer 1990 Poetry #Dhoop Chaaon 1994 Poetry #Urdu Main Shairi Ke Sau Saal (Muqqadame ke saath) 1981 Criticism & analysis #Hamari Quami Shairi Criticism & analysis #Taamiri Adab 1959 * Criticism & analysis #Anwaar-e-Abu Al Kalaam 1959 #Hindustan Mein Islami Uloom Ke Marakaz 1972 #Fikr-o-Riyaz 1975 * Collection of Muqalaat #Tareekh-e-Adab Urdu Ki Tadween 1976 Research #Qasida Nigaran-e-Uttar Pradesh 1978 Research #Tarrek Adab Ki Tadween (Vol II) 1983 Research #Do Aadabi Ischool (Revised Edition) 1980 Critical Analysis #Qasida Nigaran-e-Uttar Pradesh (Vol II) 1983 Research & analysis #Masnavi Nigari 1985 Research & analysis #Diwan-e-Ghani 1964 Research & analysis #Zikr-o-Fikr Ghani 1966 Silsila Muqalaat #Nasr Nigari Uttar Pradesh Mein Research & analysis #Do aadabi Ischool (Pakistan edition) 1988 Critical Analysis #Hindustan Mein Arabi Ki Taweej Research & analysis #Kamal-e-Abu Kalam 1989 Collection of articles #Mir Anis (Hindi) Biography #Ghalib – Ek Parichay (Hindi) 1969 Biography #Tareek-e-Mushaira 1992 Research #Malik Ram Ek Mutaalah 1987 Biography #Islami Taraqqi Pasandi #Dehalvi Marsiyago – Vol I 1982 * Research & Analysis #Dehalvi Marsiyago – Vol II 1987 * Research & Analysis #Anis Ke Salaam 1981 Collection #Rubiyaat-e-Anis 1985 Collection #Mir Anis 1991 Collection & Short biography #Jadeed Marsiye Ka Baani – Mir Zamir Laknawi #Adbiyaat Kashmiri 1994 #Mahatma Gandhi (Urdu) 1986 Translation from English #Diwan Shams Tabraizi Ki Seer (Urdu) Translation from Persian #Islami Para Para #Aap Se Miliye 1963 * Sketches #Humsaaya 1985 Sketches #Hum Qaabila 1990 Sketches #Ehl-e-Qaabila Sketches #Yaadon Ke Rahguzar Memoirs #Nazr Collection of articles #Inteqaab-e-Rind, Anthology 1983 #Payaam-e-Aazadi 1947 #Naghma-e-aazadi (Urdu) 1957 Collection of Poems #Naghma-e-aazadi (Hindi) 1957 Collection of Poems #Zaidi ke Tafsare Collection #Zaidi Ke Muqadmaat Collection #An Experiment in Communication Planning 1970 Research & Analysis #Lucknow ka dabistan-e-shairi, Urdu Markaz, 1971 #Urdu mein Ram Kathan (Research) #Annotations to Gani Kashmiri's poetry collection (Complied by Amin Daraab Kashmiri); J&K Academy of art, culture & languages #Human Interest Stories 1970 #Malik Ram Felicitation Volume 1972 #The Prophet's Daughter Historical Research (Ready but Unpublished) #Urdu Press in Bihar & Bengal 1978 Research & Analysis #Mortality & Growth in Urdu Press 1978 Research & Analysis #All India Students Conference, Golden Jubilee Celebrations 1986 #A Short History of Student Movement Historical Research #Paro 2005 Long Poem Published by Anwar Zaidi's efforts #Annual Report (1961–62) J&K, Academy of Arts, Culture & Languages 1962 Report #Report of the I K Gujral Committee for the Promotion of Urdu (In 2 Vols.) 1975 Report Zaidi himself has been the subject of research in several publications: # Ali Jawad Zaidi, by Saikh Abdur Rehman, 1999 # Ali Jawad Zaidi, Hindustan Adab ke Mehmur, Sahitya Acedamy, by Wazahat Hussain Rizvi, 2012 # Naya Daur, Shumara Number-008,009, by Wazahat Hussain Rizvi # Ali jawad Zaidi aur sheeraza Kashmir (research), presented at Ali Jawad Zaidi - Fun aur shakshiyat; by Dr. Mohd. Rashid Azeez

List of unpublished works

The Prophet's Daughter Historical Research (Ready but Unpublished) Urdu Mein Ramkatha Research on the Ramayanas written in the Urdu language

References

External links

* https://www.scribd.com/document/231817656/App-Say-Miley-Pensketches-Ali-Jawad-Zaidi-Dehli-1963 (By Rashid Ashraf) Internet searches should also include "Ali Javad Zaidi" as some people mistakenly spell the Jawad as Javad. {{DEFAULTSORT:Zaidi, Ali Jawad Writers from Uttar Pradesh People from Mau University of Lucknow alumni 1916 births 2004 deaths Twelvers Indian Shia Muslims Recipients of the Padma Shri