JEDDAH – "Iqbal is more relevant in modern times than before the partition of Indian Subcontinent," said Amjad Islam Amjad, famous Pakistani Urdu poet, drama writer and lyricist in an interview to Saudi Gazette, while reiterating the fact that people view Iqbal reverently even till date. "Iqbal-bashing is done only by a handful of people suffering from an inferiority complex. Such persons try to draw attention of the people by attributing some unbecoming things to Iqbal. Media have made them outspoken but their argument doesn't have any substance. The government of Pakistan hasn't changed its policy regarding Iqbal, and no responsible person has ever declared Iqbal irrelevant," he added. "We are living in the era of science, technology and development. Iqbal was a dreamer, and his philosophy is revered by the people, who belong to the domain of science and technology. Those venting their feelings against Iqbal are like the person who, at the end of the opening night of George Bernard Shaw's great plays, came up to him to declare that the play was the worst he had ever seen. Shaw at that time a Nobel laureate, nodded and said that the critic was hundred percent correct but he (Shaw) couldn't do anything for the people appreciated and liked the play so much," he said. Amjad was in Jeddah to participate in the Mushairah and literary evening that was organized to honor him under the aegis of Aalami Urdu Markaz, Jeddah. Amjad, born in Lahore on Aug. 4, 1944, has received many awards for his literary work and screenplay for TV, including Pride of Performance and Sitara-e-Imtiaz. He received his Masters of Arts degree in Urdu literature from Punjab University and began his career as a lecturer in Government M.A.O College, Lahore. Later he worked as a director at Pakistan Television Corporation from 1975 to 1979, before returning to teaching. In 1989, Amjad was appointed as director general of Urdu Science Board. He has also worked as a project director of the Children Library Complex. He is famous for his columns, translation, criticism and essays while his main focus remained in writing nazms and ghazals (Urdu poetry in meter). In answer to a question regarding most popular poet of the past three decades, he, as a prominent Pakistani poet, said, "It's very difficult to crown a single poet as the greatest. During the post-partition scene Nasir Kazimi, Jaun Elia, Munir Niyazi, Habib Jalib and Zafar Iqbal emerged as the popular poets. Even I belong to the era of poets of before 1970s generation. In this period Parvin Shakir and Ubaidullah Aleem shot to fame. Among the contemporary poets, I like Abbas Tabish and Faisal Ajami too. In India no poet has excelled Irfan Siddiqui, Bashir Badr and Shahryar after 1970s. In the present generation Shahid Zaki, Afzal Khan and Kashif Hussain Ghayer are good poets." In a comparative study of the post-partition poets and the present generation he said, "In each generation we find a large group of impressive poets. The difference of cultures distinguishes the poetry of each generation. In the post-partition scene, poets like Jigar Muradabadi, Firaq Gorakhpuri and Ahmad Nadeem Qasimi — who had gone through the trauma of partition — are seen adjusting with the realities of the partition. It's a fact that the old generation had better skills and command over language and poetry." "There are many good poets in Pakistan. But at the international level the graph of poetry and literature has fallen. The priorities of the people have changed. Half-century ago, idealism was the main spirit behind poetry and literature. The present scenario is different but I believe in this couplet of Munir Niyazi: Takht khali nahin raha karta; Koi waris zaroor hota hai (The throne never remains empty, someone inherits it). Same is the case regarding the domain of poetry and literature too. Time decides whether the inheritor is worthy or unworthy," Amjad said. "As we don't know the real meaning of ghazal but it has ruled our hearts and minds so is its future. The ghazal has some invisible elements that never allow it to die. My friend Satyapal Anand, a ghazal-basher is a good scholar and a good poet of nazm but nobody ascribes to his ghazal-bashing ," he said regarding ghazal's future. In Urdu criticism and fiction, he acknowledged, the place of Shamsur Rahman Faruqi. As a famous playwright he seemed disappointed with present TV dramas in Pakistan and said, "About 30 years ago Pakistan Television was able to highlight the whole society now it has become one-sided. Turning the camera to the bathroom is not an art. He acknowledged that after a long time he was able to discover that his nazms contained the element of drama." When asked to compare Urdu and English poetries, he said, "Urdu poetry is better than the English poetry. During the 18th century one finds great English poets. In the 20th century we find Hume, Eliot and Ezra Pound. In America, Robert Frost made his mark. Except a few names we don't find great English language poets. The reason for this is that there is no room for emotions in the Western society. In the Eastern languages and especially in Urdu there are many great poets because our culture believes in emotions. Urdu is among 3 big international languages and within a decade it will be the second biggest but as I think Urdu's script is in danger."
