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Urdu Majlis Celebrates
Urdu Majlis Celebrates
- by Rubina Firdaus
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The Urdu Majlis is an informal gathering of Urdu lovers of all ages with a common
passion for the Urdu language and its literature. It is a literary forum where friends of
Urdu meet to discuss and celebrate works of popular poets and writers. The Majlis
provides an opportunity for Urdu enthusiasts, budding poets and amateur writers to
present their work to an appreciative and encouraging audience (something like a suniye-
sunaaiye mehfil). Each month a group of about fifty people gather at Caldwell Hall at
NC State University to talk about their chosen poet of the evening over a lazeez potluck
dinner and lots of aromatic chai. Urdu Majlis is affiliated to the Department of Foreign
Languages at NC State University. It is a one-of-a-kind organization on this side of the
coast. Mehraab is an Urdu Majlis publication that teems with South Asian cultural arts
and Urdu literature.
The Urdu Majlis celebrated its sixth anniversary in January 2002. With the recap of all
the Majlis gatherings we had during the past year and the delicious dinner, it was a
memorable event. On this occasion I would like to take this opportunity to write about the
history of the Urdu Majlis - how it all came to be and why.
The growth of the RTP area during the early and mid 90's resulted in a steady increase in
the population of the Urdu speaking community. A need was felt among the members of
the community for an informal forum - a majlis - where everyone could express their
views and appreciate the popular literary works in their beloved Urdu language and also
present their own work to an open and supportive audience. Notable among the members
of this community were the family of Professor Khwaja Ahmad Faruqi, Jafar Abbas and
Afroz Taj who moved to the RTP area during this time. It was fortuitous that these
individuals came together, all sharing a common passion for the future of Urdu in the
Triangle.
Prof. Khwaja Ahmad Faruqi was the driving force behind the establishment of the Urdu
Majlis. He was a highly respected figure in the Urdu literary circles, and was the head of
the Department of Urdu at Delhi University, India. I am told that he had a deep fondness
for the history and culture of the Indian city of Hyderabad, and was instrumental in
establishing the Urdu university at Hyderabad as well as working towards incorporating
Urdu as a second language in several states of India. His association with the Nizam of
Hyderabad influenced him to start the Nizam memorial lectures at Delhi University. He
served on the board of directors of the Mufakham Jah Institute, which is a premier,
academic facility offering higher education and engineering programs in Hyderabad. He
also worked as a Professor of Urdu at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and helped
establish an exchange program with Delhi University.
After Prof. Khwaja Ahmad Faruqi passed away, the need for establishing this forum was
felt even more strongly. The first Urdu Majlis was held in the January of 1996.
Since then, there have been several gatherings of the Urdu Majlis, Shaam-e-Ghalib and
Shaam-e-Faiz being just a few of the many memorable ones.
During the past year, the poets Qateel Shifai, Mugheesuddin Faridi, Zehra Nigah and
Ismat Chugtai were discussed. We enjoyed the live Ghazal performance of Munni
Begum. Brian Silver, the Director of South Asian Service, Voice of America, was a guest
at one of the gatherings. We also got to hear recorded telephone interviews of some
popular figures in Urdu literature.
NC State University has a thriving department of foreign languages, whose Hindi-Urdu
program headed by Dr Afroz Taj is quite popular in the local community. The libraries of
Duke University, NCSU, and UNC at Chapel Hill carry an impressive collection of Urdu
literature; there are literally thousands of different Urdu books available to the public.
Professor Taj and John Caldwell host a songs-on-demand program called 'Geet Bazaar'
on WKNC 88.1 FM that can be heard all over the Triangle area. It gives me great
pleasure to say that the Triangle offers much more than just a conducive atmosphere for
the pursuit of Urdu literature.
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