The Urdu Ghazal Poetry: Season 3 Episode 7 --Jigar Moradabadi

Jigar Moradabadi (1890-1960) was born in Benaras. Because he lost his father at an early age, he struggled to get a start in life and gain proficiency in Urdu and Persian. Due to his friendship with Asghar Gondvi, he settled in Gonda, a town near Lucknow. Jigar kept alive the classical, rhythmic traditional style of ghazal writing, and his name often occurs near the top of twentieth-century Urdu poets. His ghazals have a rare psychological touch and a sweeping lyrical flow. While making a socio-political point, he handles the metaphor masterly so as not to deviate too much from the make-belief art of the ghazal. He was awarded an honorary D. Litt. by the Aligarh Muslim University – a rare honor he shares with Allama Iqbal and Sarojini Naidu. 

 For more information about the Urdu ghazal poetry, please get a copy of:

 Gopi Chand Narang, Trans. by Surinder Deol, The Urdu Ghazal: A Gift of India’s Composite Culture. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2020.