Qateel Shifai | |
|---|---|
| Born | Muhammad Aurangzeb (1919-12-24)24 December 1919[1] |
| Died | 11 July 2001(2001-07-11) (aged 81)[1] |
| Pen name | Qateel Shifai |
| Occupation | Urdu poet, film songs lyricist |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Genre | Ghazal andNazm |
| Literary movement | Progressive Writers Movement |
| Notable awards | Pride of Performance in 1994 by theGovernment of Pakistan Adamjee Literary Award in 1964 Amir Khusro Award in India 4Nigar Awards including (Special Millennium Award) for his lifetime contributions toPakistan Film Industry in 1999 |
Muhammad Aurangzeb (24 December 1919 – 11 July 2001), commonly known by hispen nameQateel Shifai (Urdu:قتیل شفائی), was a PakistaniUrdu poet and lyricist.[2][1]
Qateel Shifai was born inHaripur District as Muhammad Aurangzeb in 1919 inBritish India (nowPakistan).[3] He was ofHindkowan background.[4][2]
He adoptedQateel Shifai as his pen name in 1938, under which he was known in the world ofUrdu poetry. "Qateel" was his "takhallus" and "Shifai" was in honour of hisustaad (teacher) Hakeem Mohammed Yahya Shifa Khanpuri, whom he considered his mentor.[5]
Due to his father's death in 1935, Qateel was forced to quit his higher education. He started his own sporting goods shop. Being unsuccessful in his business, he decided to move from his small town toRawalpindi, where he started working for a transport company and later joined thePakistani film industry in 1947 as a film song lyricist.[5][6] "His father was a businessman and there was no tradition of sher-o-shayari (poetry) in his family. Initially, he showed his poetry to Hakeem Yahya Shifa Khanpuri for correction and advice. Qateel derived his poetic surname 'shifai' from him. Later, he became the disciple ofAhmad Nadeem Qasmi who was his friend and neighbor."[5]
"In 1946, he was called to Lahore byNazir Ahmed to work as the assistant editor of the monthly 'Adab-e-Latif', a literary magazine published since 1936. His first ghazal was published in the Lahore weekly 'Star', edited by the poetQamar Ajnalvi."[1]
In January 1947, Qateel was asked to write the songs for a film by a Lahore-based film producer,Dewan Sardari Lal. The first film he penned the lyrics for wasTeri Yaad (1948) in Pakistan. Later, after working for some time as assistant lyricist to some of the famous poets/lyricists of the time (1948 to 1955),[7] he eventually became a highly successful film lyricist ofPakistan and won numerous awards over the years for his film song lyrics despite a crowded field of competitors in those days. Among his contemporaries were poets likeKaifi Azmi,Amrita Pritam,Majrooh Sultanpuri,Sahir Ludhianvi,Majaz Lucknawi,Tanvir Naqvi,Saifuddin Saif,Ahmad Faraz andMuhammad Hasan Askari.[6]
In 1988, Qateel Shifai started work on his autobiography "Ghungroo Toot Gaye" with the assistance of his pupil, now a famous Urdu poet, Naeem Chishti. This was a long project and took quite a few years to complete. The book was finally published after his death by his son Naveed Qateel in 2006. The book revealed many hidden facts about film industry and literary circles and about the personal lives of legendary personalities likeSahir Ludhianvi,Noor Jehan andIqbal Bano.
Qateel Shifai died on 11 July 2001 inLahore, Pakistan.[1][8][2]
Over 20 collections of verse and over 2,500 film songs for Pakistani and Indian films were published. He wrote songs for 201 Pakistani and Indian films. His talent crossed the borders. His poetry has been translated into numerous languages includingHindi,Gujarati, English, Russian and Chinese. On Qateel Shifai's 11th death anniversary in 2012, in an interview to a major newspaper, a prominent literary figure Dr Salahuddin Darvesh said, "Shifai was one of those great poets of 20th century who had gained international recognition."[9]
Qateel Shifai produced a film in his mother language—Hindko—in 1970. It was the first Hindko film which was named "Qissa Khwani". The film was released in 1980. He died on 11 July 2001 inLahore. The street on which he lived inLahore has been namedQateel Shifai Street after him. There is also a sector ofHaripur city that has been named after him –Mohallah Qateel Shifai.
Includes bothPakistani andIndian films.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
