Anwar Masood (, ; born 8 November 1935) is a Pakistani poet and educationist primarily known for his comic Punjabi poetry. His works include a wide variety of genres including

humour Humour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humorism, humoral medicine of the ancient Gre ...

, sentimentalism and

literary criticism 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's ...

. He predominantly writes in Punjabi,

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 ...

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 ...

as well. His poetry is known for the unique use of everyday, commonplace phrases and wording that is instantly relatable for masses in the region. Numerous of his Punjabi lines and phrases have actually become

figures of speech A figure of speech or rhetorical figure is a word or phrase that intentionally deviates from straightforward language use or literal meaning to produce a rhetorical or intensified effect (emotionally, aesthetically, intellectually, etc.). In the ...

in everyday conversations. The most prominent feature of his expression is the poignant undertones of his humorous verse, making his poetry one of its kind. The nuance of tragedy in his poems is a reflection of social injustice, discrimination, and personal misfortunes of his characters. This is why he himself commented: "قہقہ وہ ہے جسے نچوڑیں تو آنسو ٹپکیں" (Real laughter is one that sheds tears when squeezed). He was awarded the Hilale Imtiaz Civil in 2024. He was awarded the

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 ...

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

Early life and education

Anwar Masood was born on 8 November 1935 into an

Arain Arain (also known as Raeen) are a large Punjabi Muslim agricultural community with a strong political identity and level of organisation. At the beginning of the last century, they numbered around 1 million and were mainly rural cultivator ...

family in Gujrat,

Punjab, Pakistan Punjab (, ) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. With a population of over 127 million, it is the Demographics of Pakistan, most populous province in Pakistan and the List of first-level administrative divisions by popu ...

. He received his elementary education in Gujrat and

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 ...

, Pakistan. His father Muhammad Azeem Arain moved to Lahore a few years before the partition in 1947. After his elementary education in Gujrat and Lahore, he attended Watan High School on Brandreth Road, Lahore. Just before partition, the family moved back to Gujrat. It was here in the Public High School, Gujrat that Masood took his

matriculation examination A matriculation examination or matriculation exam is a university entrance examination, which is typically held towards the end of secondary school. After passing the examination, a student receives a School leaving qualification, school leaving ce ...

and passed his Secondary School Examination with distinction in 1952. Conceding to the parents’ will to become a doctor, he took admission in FSc. Pre-Medical in Zamindaar College, Gujrat. However, science was not his area of interest. So two years later, he again started his FA and earned a scholarship. He earned his

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in 1958, with distinction, topping the college and earning a scholarship and winning a spot on the Roll of Honor list. His subjects in BA were History, Urdu Literature, Persian and English. Due to domestic problems, he could not start his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

program right away and started teaching at Government Islamia High School in Kunjah, Punjab. He finally finished his master's degree from the Oriental College, Punjab University in 1961. In fact, he became a gold medalist in MA Persian and topped in

University of the Punjab The University of the Punjab (UoP) is a public university, public research university in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab, Pakistan. Founded in 1882, its international influence has made it one of the most prestigious universities in South As ...

exams. He retired from the teaching profession in 1996. Masood married his former classmate Qudrat Ilahi Siddiqa in 1965. His wife also taught Persian at Government College, 6th Road

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...

. Together they have five children: three sons and two daughters: Muhammad Aqib, Muhammad Ammar Masood, Muhammad Jawad Azfar, Adeela Rashid, and Leenah Hashir.

Poetry

Masood is a multilingual poet of Urdu, Persian, and Punjabi. His poetry gives the message of the original and pure culture of Pakistan. Masood is a unique poet who is popular among the masses. The way he has described the different aspects of life and culture in his poetry have never been described before. Some of his poems are so popular that wherever he goes in the world, people like to listen to them again and again. Some of his famous poems are "Anar Kali Diyan Shanan", "Aj Kee Pakaeay", "Banyan", "Juma Bazaar", "Jehlum Dey Pul Tey", "Hun Ki Karye", "Mela Akhian Da", " Ambri" and many others. Masood has performed and given live recitations of his poetry among many international communities and is popular worldwide.Books by Anwar Masood on goodreads.com website
Retrieved 4 August 2019 Students: Over the span of the last 5 decades, Anwar Masood has had several scholastic students learning Persian, Poetry, Radeef, Translation of Old Scholarly Articles, etc. He has been mentoring only up to 2 students at a time and his current students are Muhammad Ali Abbas and Arqam Shah. Muhammad Ali Abbas is known for composing poetry and learning Persian under Masood's mentorship, and amongst Ali's popular works is " Aurat Ki Nami" translated into "Women's Warmth" in English. Ali Abbas is also adept at documenting the latent cultures within Pakistan and is constantly occupied with such journalisitc endeavors during his travels, for Mushairas, across Pakistan with Anwar Masood. On the other hand, Arqam is beginner in the field of poetry and is currently learning Persian Poetic genres and stylistic distinctions. A poem reviewer once said about him, "He is a poet that has the rare gift of being able to take a very serious subject and make it light and entertaining".Know Your Poets: Anwar Masood (Profile of poet Anwar Masood by Pashaura Singh Dhillon)
Published 10 June 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2019 He is a great command of covering all aspects of the topic or subject.

Famous poems

* چاء تے لسی (Tea and curd milk, it is a metaphor for two different civilizations) * آج کی پکائیے (What should we cook today) * امبڑی (Mother, a heart touching story of a student who used to beat his mother) * جہلم دا پُل (Jehlum bridge)

Books and publications

* ''Mela Akhiyan Da'' (Punjabi poetry, includes " Ambri", published in 1974) *''Hun Ki Kariye'' (Punjabi poetry) *''Qataa Kalami'' (Urdu poetry) *''Ek Dareecha, Ek Chiragh'' (Urdu poetry) *''Shaakh-e-Tabassum'' (Essays on humorous poets) *''Darpesh'' (Humorous Poetry) *''Taqreeb'' (Anthology of essays presented in various ceremonies) *''Ghuncha Phir Laga Khilnay'' (Humorous poetry) *''Siddiqa Anwar ke naam'' (Collection of letters addressed to his wife) *''Saif-ul-Muluk'' (Urdu Translation in prose) *''Meli Meli Dhoop'' (Poetry on environment) *''Baat Se Baat'' (Compilation of radio talks) *''Bariyaab'' (Collection of Naats in Urdu, Punjabi and Persian) *''Kuch Urdu Kuch Punjabi'' (Urdu and Punjabi poetry) *''Payan Safar Neest'' (Persian poetry) *''Farsi Adab Ke Chand Goshay'' (Research work)

References

External links