Ahmad Faraz | |
|---|---|
 Ahmad Faraz, in Toronto 2005 | |
| Native name | احمد فراز |
| Born | Syed Ahmad Shah Ali (1931-01-12)12 January 1931 |
| Died | 25 August 2008(2008-08-25) (aged 77) |
| Pen name | FarazUrdu: فراز |
| Occupation | Urdu Poet,Lecturer |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Citizenship | Pakistani |
| Education | Urdu literature M.A Persian literature M.A |
| Alma mater | Edwardes College,University of Peshawar |
| Period | 1950–2008 |
| Genre | Urdu Ghazal |
| Subject | Romance,Politics,Resistance |
| Literary movement | Democratic Movement |
| Notable awards | Sitara-i-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence) Award Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Crescent of Excellence) Award Hilal-e-Pakistan (Crescent of Pakistan) Award Nigar Awards |
| Children | Saadi,Shibli Faraz and Sarmad Faraz |
Syed Ahmad Shah Faraz (Urdu:سید احمد شاہ; 12 January 1931 – 25 August 2008), better known by hispen nameAhmad Faraz, (Urdu:احمد فراز)[1][2][3] was aPakistaniUrdu poet,scriptwriter and became the founding director general (later chairman) ofPakistan Academy of Letters.[4] He wrote his poetry under thepseudonymFaraz.[a] He criticisedmilitary rule andcoup d'état in the country and was displaced by the military dictators.[5]
Faraz was born Syed Ahmad Shah on 12 January 1931 inKohat, a son of Syed Muhammad Shah Bark.[4][2][6] He belonged to aPashtun Syed family.[7] His brother isMasood Kausar, an ex Governor ofKhyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Faraz had earlier moved toPeshawar fromKohat District with his family. He studied atEdwardes College, Peshawar and received hisMaster's degree inUrdu andPersian fromPeshawar University.[1][4][6] During his college life, the two poetsFaiz Ahmad Faiz andAli Sardar Jafri influenced him and became Faraz's role models.[4]
Faraz is credited for writingPas Andaaz,Sab Awazain Meri,Khuwab Gul,Janan Janan, andGhazal Bahana Karoon.[8]
| Title | Publishing Year | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| TANHA TANHA | 1957 | Malik Sons publishers, Lahore |
| JANAN JANAN | 1979 | Wali Aasi |
| BE AWAZ GALI KUCHON MEIN | 1984 | Husami Book Depot, Hyderabad |
| SHAB KHOON | 1987 | Jamia Imarat Arabia Al-Muttahida |
| NAYAFT | 1988 | Shalimar Books, New Delhi |
| PAS-E-ANDAZ-E-MAUSAM | 1990 | Khalid Sharif |
| DARD-E-ASHOOB | 1991 | Khalid Sharif |
| SAB AWAZEIN MERI HAIN | 2002 | Kitabi Duniya, Delhi |
| GHAZAL BAHA NA KARUN | 2002 | Kitabi Duniya, Delhi |
| BOODLUCK | 2005 | Kitabi Duniya, Delhi |
| AYE ISHQ-E-JUNOON PESHA | 2007 | Dost Publication, Islamabad |
| SHAHR-E-SUKHAN AARASTA HAI | 2013 | Dost Publication, Islamabad |
| PARTAN (Punjabi Translated) | Maktaba Sher-o-Adab, Lahore | |
| MERE KHWAB REZA REZA | Yusuf Publishers, Rawalpindi |
Singers likeMehdi Hassan,Noor Jehan,Ghulam Ali,Pankaj Udhas,Jagjit Singh andRuna Laila greatly popularized his poetry by singing hisghazals in films and in live concerts.[1][4][5]
Ahmad Faraz served as Chairman of the National Book Foundation inIslamabad,Pakistan.[9][4]
Faraz was arrested for writing poems that criticised military rulers inPakistan during the reign of GeneralZia-ul-Haq. Following that arrest, he went into a self-imposed exile.[5] He stayed for 3 years in Britain, Canada, and Europe before returning toPakistan,[9] where he was initially appointed as Chairman of thePakistan Academy of Letters and later chairperson of the Islamabad-based National Book Foundation for several years.[9][1][4]
Earlier in 2008, after a fall inBaltimore, Maryland, there were rumors of his death while he was being treated in a Chicago hospital. But he was able to return to his homeland, Pakistan. Ahmad Faraz later died ofkidney failure, confirmed by his sonShibli Faraz, in a private hospital in Islamabad on 25 August 2008. His funeral was held on the evening of 26 August, among many admirers and government officials at H-8 Graveyard,Islamabad, Pakistan.[6][1][10]
Ahmad Faraz is included in the long list of revolutionary poets of Urdu language and is "acclaimed as one of the most influential modern Urdu poets of the last century."[2][9][5]
"This felicity with words is evident in much of Faraz's work, as is an economy of expression, along with an ability to wrap layers of meaning into brief lines, the hallmark of an artist who has a command over his craft."[9]
Ahmad Faraz was first awarded theSitara-i-Imtiaz by theGovernment of Pakistan and then theHilal-e-Imtiaz in 2004 by the thenPresident of PakistanPervez Musharraf. He returned this award two years later in 2006 "as a means of protest against the actions of the Musharraf regime."[2][4][6]
On 25 August 2008, he died inIslamabad, and laterGovernment of Pakistan conferredHilal-e-Pakistan posthumously upon Faraz for his contribution to poetry andUrdu literature.[2][4]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Other | |
