Amin Kamil (1924–2014) was a Kashmiri

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 ...

literary critic A genre of arts criticism, literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical analysis of literature' ...

researcher Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

and

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...

. He is also known for his

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

, a genre of which he was one of the pioneers in Kashmiri. He remains one of the most popular and influential masters of the Kashmiri language, leaving behind a legacy of literary brilliance.

Life

Kamil was born at Kaprin, a village in South Kashmir. He graduated in Arts from the

Punjab University Punjab University may refer to: India * Punjab Agricultural University, a state agricultural university in Ludhiana, Punjab * I. K. Gujral Punjab Technical University, a state university in Kapurthala, Punjab * Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Techn ...

and took his degree in Law from the

Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University is a Collegiate university, collegiate, Central university (India), central, and Research university, research university located in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Kh ...

. He joined the Bar in 1947 and continued to practice Law until 1949, when he was appointed a lecturer in

Sri Pratap College Sri Pratap College, commonly known as SP College, is an academic and professional college in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. The college has been accredited by NAAC with an 'A+' Grade. It is the oldest institute of higher education in the K ...

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 ...

. He was closely associated with

Progressive Writers' Movement The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or ''Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind'' () or ''Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh'' (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगतिश� ...

of that time and under its influence switched over from

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 ...

to Kashmiri as his medium of expression. He joined the State Cultural Academy when it was set up in 1958 and was appointed the Convener for the

Kashmiri language Kashmiri ( ) or Koshur (Kashmiri: , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language of the Dardic languages, Dardic branch spoken by around 7 million Kashmiris of the Kashmir region, primarily in the Kashmir Valley and surrounding hills o ...

. He later became Editor for Kashmiri and edited the two journals of the Academy – Sheeraza and Son Adab with distinction for many years. He retired from the service of the Academy in 1979.

Fiction

In 1958, ''Gati Manz Gaash'' (Light amidst darkness) was published, a novel inspired by the well-known observation of

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 ...

in the context of the aftermath of the partition of the

Indian sub-continent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakis ...

in 1947, that in the midst of darkness prevailing everywhere he had found a ray of light in Kashmir alone. Kamil's collection of short stories, "Kathi Manz Kath" (Story within Story) published in mid-60s includes his most highly regarded work, "Kokar Jang" (The Cockfight). The Cockfight is considered as the most popular story in the Kashmiri literature. It has been translated into many Indian languages and has appeared in English translation in anthologies such as ''Indian Short Stories 1900–2000'' edited by I. Vi. Ramakrishan; ''Contemporary Kashmiri Short Stories'' edited by Hriday Kaul Bharati, Neerja Mattoo; ''Contemporary Indian Short Stories Vol 3'' all published by Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi. The Cockfight is prescribed in the school and university curriculum in Jammu and Kashmir. It has also appeared in ''Best Loved Indian Stories of the Century'' published by Penguin India in 1999. Prof. J L Koul writes about this story that "...perhaps, the comic muse at its subtlest best (though not unmixed with irony) in Kashmiri short story is to be seen in Amin Kamil's Hini Rahman and Kokar Jang, particularly in the latter, in which the foibles and eccentricities of character of the two women neighbors, Jaana Bits and Shah Maal, are expressed through their respective cocks."

Poetry

Writing in ''The Encyclopedia of Indian Literature'', Ghulam Nabi Gauhar says of Kamil: "He is a master of Kashmiri Ghazal and has to his credit poems of eternal value."

Awards and honours

Amin Kamil won the

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

in 1967 for his book of poems, ''Laveh Te Praveh''. Kamil has won awards from the Jammu & Kashmir Cultural Academy, the State Government of Jammu & Kashmir, Robes of Honor from many prestigious organisations, (1967) International Irfan Foundation Award, Kashmir University's Lifetime Achievement Award, and

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 the year 2005 (Literature & Education) from the

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...

. Recently, a two-day national seminar on Amin Kamil was held in

in which Kamil was recognised. Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages published a special issue of its literary magazine Sheeraza on Amin Kamil's life and works which was released in Srinagar in Summer 2011.

Death

Amin Kamil died on 30 October 2014, Thursday morning in Jammu. He was 90 years old.

References

External links

Kamil's official website

Muse India Archive

The Cock-fight

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamil, Amin 1924 births Kashmiri poets Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Kashmiri 2014 deaths 20th-century Indian poets Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University alumni People from Shopian district Indian male poets Poets from Jammu and Kashmir 20th-century Indian male writers