J&K poets make mark in All India Urdu Mushaira

Poets at All India Urdu Mushaira in Jammu on Monday. — Excelsior/Rakesh
Poets at All India Urdu Mushaira in Jammu on Monday. — Excelsior/Rakesh

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Jan 28: The All India Urdu Mushaira held as part of the 70th Republic Day celebrations and considered as the significant showcasing of contemporary Urdu poetry in the country, regaled audience at the Abhinav Theatre, here today.
The highlight of today’s poetic symposium organized by Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (JKAACL), was that all the invited leading Urdu poets from different parts of the country as well as the State had hitherto not participated in the prestigious annual event.
Commissioner Secretary to Govt. Department of Culture, Saleem Sheshgar was the chief guest on the occasion.
Allaying the fear that Urdu is at the back foot in the State, the J&K poets made their mark with ingenious use of Urdu language’s beauty and its expressive import. The native poets from three regions of the State, instead of delving in old time motifs of Mina, Sagar, Ishaq and Mashooq, portrayed the issues which plague the everyday life of a common man with an earthly intensity.
The local poets included Mohammad Ashraf Ali Sagar-Dras, Bashir Mehtab-Ramban, Balraj Bakshi-Udhampur, Deepak Arsi-Jammu, Ahtesham Hussain & Anwar Khan Anwar- Poonch, Ali Shaida, Rukhsana Jabeen, Shafaq Sopori- all from Kashmir.
The poets who presented their poetic compositions in the mushaira from outside the State were Shabeena Adeeb, Jauhar Kanpuri, Mohammad Ahmad Alvi, Kunwar Ranjeet Singh-Delhi, Mukesh Alam-Jalandhar, Mujeeb Shehzar, Maktoob-ur-Rehman, Wasim Ahmad Khan-Badaun, Mohammad Ramzan Shah, Nazir Azad, Dr Mumtaz Munawar-Poona, , Misdaque Azmi-Azamgarh, and Khushbir Singh Shaad- Jalandhar.
Earlier, Additional Secretary JKAACL, Arvinder Singh Aman, in his welcoming address said that Academy’s All Indian Mushaira over the decades has become a permanent feature for lovers of Urdu poetry who attend this Mushaira on this particular date at Abhinav Theatre every year. He said Urdu is one of the richest languages in our country which has an affluent tradition of poetry with regard to communal harmony and togetherness of different identities of the State, in particular.
In his presidential address, Saleem Sheshgar said that JKAACL is doing a commendable job for the promotion of art, culture and languages of the State. He made a special mention of the role of the JKAACL towards the promotion and preservation of the Urdu language in the state. He also appreciated the participating poets for their wonderful recitation of poetry. He also emphasized the need for more such programmes in the winter capital to promote local languages too.
Conducted by Dr. Alamdar Adam, the mushaira was attended by a large gathering of Urdu lovers, scholars, academicians, poets, writers and members of the civil society. Teswang Paljor, SOCA G-I of Academy presented the vote of thanks.