Hyderabad, March 4: The sweetness and evocativeness of Urdu still holds considerable sway today. Drawn particularly by the musical charms of the ghazal, people are then impelled to further explore its subtleties by paying closer attention to the language in which it is conveyed.
A living testimony to this is the oral certificate course “Tahseen-e-Ghazal” offered by the Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU). And a practical demonstration, lending new hope for the future of Urdu in the country, was the programme “Ek Shaam Faiz ke Saath” organised by the students of the course as part of the birth centenary celebrations of the revolutionary poet Faiz Ahmed “Faiz” under the aegis of the university’s Centre for Urdu Language, Literature and Culture & Dept. of Urdu at the Ramanuja Chary Hall at Maheshwari Complex, Masab Tank, here on Wednesday, March 2, 2011.
The function was presided over by Vice-Chancellor Mohammed Miyan. The chief guests were the doyenne of cultural activities in the city, Lakshmi Devi Raj, and noted critic Prof. Khalid Qadri. Director in-charge of the centre Prof. Khalid Saeed and head, department of Urdu, Dr Naseemuddin Farees were the joint-conveners. Dr Khaja Naseer introduced the guests and the programme was compeered by Sarah Matthews, which owed so much to lawyer-philanthropist Mehmood Ali who has made the premises freely available for the conduct of the course as a whole.
An interesting feature of the course is the eclectic mix of learners – doctors, scientists, journalists, housewives and senior citizens from diverse linguistic backgrounds. Some of them – Sheetal and Shweta Vyas, Jasveen Jairath, Elizabeth “Mona” Kurien, Dr Qurratulain Hasan, Dr M. Kiran and Dr Deepti Naseer, presented select couplets of Faiz, explaining key themes in his work with remarkable felicity of expression. For the benefit of non-Urdu speakers, difficult words and phrases were glossed in English before the recitation of the couplet. Another highlight was the 10-minute PowerPoint presentation of Faiz’s life and work by the sisters, Sheetal and Shweta Vyas. And enthralling the audience was a learner from the previous, and pioneering, batch, Neerja Giri, with her rendition of some of the poet’s ghazals.
Impressed with the prowess and enthusiasm shown by the learners, Vice-Chancellor Mohammed Miyan declared that, as of the next academic year, the certificate course would be upgraded to a diploma. He also spelt out plans to shore up software for the language laboratory at MANUU.
Chief guest Lakshmi Devi Raj stressed that Urdu was a language whose appeal transcended divisiveness and narrow-mindedness, and fellow chief guest Prof. Qadri remarked that the genius of Faiz lay in his delicate blending of ideology and poetry without hitting jarring notes or lapsing into dull didacticism.
The participants of the course expressed their gratitude to their beloved teacher, Prof Khalid Saeed, with a giant “Thank You” card. Mona gave a witty vote of thanks to the guests who included noted Hyderabadis from all walks of life, including literary luminaries. Mr. Majaz Panjatan & Dr. Qurratulain Hasan played key role in ensuring the success of the event.
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