Zafar Iqbal | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1932-09-27)27 September 1932 (age 93) |
| Occupation(s) | Poet, Writer[2] Attorney Journalist |
| Relatives | Aftab Iqbal (son) Junaid Iqbal(son) |
| Awards | Pride of Performance Award by thePresident of Pakistan in 1999[1] Hilal-i-Imtiaz Award by thePresident of Pakistan in 2014[2] |
Zafar Iqbal (Urdu:ظفر اقبال,romanized: Ẓafar Iqbāl; born 27 September 1932) is anUrdu poet from Pakistan.[1][3]
Zafar was born in 1932 inBahawalnagar, Punjab where his maternal grandparents lived. He received his basic early education inOkara, Punjab which is his hometown and later moved toLahore for his college education.[1]His poetry is mainly in the genre ofghazal. The diction of his ghazal is entirely different from traditional Urdu poetry. He is a lawyer by profession, and regularly contributes articles to some Urdu newspapers.[3][4]
In contrast to classical poets, Zafar's poetry portrayslove as scientific and physical rather than supernatural. Dr Tabassam Kaashmiri called himLiterature's renegade of the 20th century. FormerChief Minister of Punjab (Pakistan),Hanif Ramay, who was also a writer and a well-knownliterary critic, called him a poet of a new tone and new concepts.[1]
Besides being a poet, he has been a newspaper columnist for different newspapers for over 35 years. Considering that he also has been a professional lawyer for most of his adult life, those are not small accomplishments. He practised as an attorney, first in Okara and then in Lahore until 2003, when he had a heart bypass surgery and quit practicing law.[1]