At the mention of Urdu poets of the twentieth century, one gets reminded of the popular names like Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Meeraji, Habib Jalib, Nand, and the likes. These poets are canonical in every sense of the word. And as the tradition of the literary canon goes, they are all men. One cannot help but wonder: were there no women writing poetry against the chaotic backdrop of the partition then?
Up until the beginning of the 20th century, writing, particularly poetry, was largely limited to men. Naturally, women had no business in it. Regardless, women still wrote. They continued to produce brilliant verses from within their twenty-foot courtyards. Some chose to hide away their art in the worn-out pallus of their stained saaris; others would hide their poems away at the very sound of the evening doorbell. This is not to say that there were no women who got published, but not without compromising on their feminine identity in an otherwise man’s world. Zahida Khatoon Shervaniya, for instance, published her poetry by her initials ز خ ش (Ze Khe Sheen).
Poetry, in one of its traditional forms, ghazal, was used as a means to marvel at the ideal of feminine beauty; to express the longing for one’s beloved and to cry over their infidelities. Transformed into mere objects that the poets loved and adored, women in these ghazals were devoid of any real personality. Another form of poetry, Rekhti, which emerged and gained popularity in the 19th century, had a more liberated expression of women’s desires. And although it carried within itself the persona of a female, it was still written by men and through the somewhat narrow lens of their understanding of womanhood. Naturally, it reflected only what men thought women felt at the time. What they thought women wanted. How the patriarchy saw, or rather wanted to, see things.
Sajid Sajni, in one of his Rekhti couplet, writes:
طلاق دے تو رہے ہو عتاب و قہر کے ساتھ
مرا شباب بھی لوٹا دو میری مہر کے ساتھ
As time went by and chaos started stirring up in the subcontinent, a number of poets masterfully expressed the political and social turmoil – the uncertainty, the chaos raging on along with all the destruction, barbarism, abuse, killings, and the endless bloodbath following the partition. We get, on gold-gilded platters as our heritage, only a man’s view of our history.
Subh-e-Azadi by Faiz , Yahan Bhi Wahan Bhi by Nida Fazli and Azadee by Mehjoor could be the most popular, but are certainly not the only great pieces of partition poetry. Filled with the same agony, if not with more poise and intensity, is Amrita Pritam’s ode, To Waris Shah.
اج آکھاں وارث شاہ نوں، کتھوں قبراں وچوں بول تے اج کتابِ عشق دا کوئی اگلا ورقہ پَھول اک روئی سی دھی پنجاب دی، تُوں لکھ لکھ مارے وین اج لکھاں دھیاں روندیاں، تینوں وارث شاہ نوں کہن اُٹھ درد منداں دیا دردیا، اُٹھ ویکھ اپنا پنجاب اج بیلے لاشاں وچھیاں تے لہو دی بھری چناب
Zeb Usmania, on the other hand, writes about peace and love
ہم صلح و مروت کا جب ہاتھ بڑھا دینگے
ایک عمر کے روٹھوں کو آپس میں ملا دینگے
Zehra Nigaah, one of the many talented poets and winner of several awards including Pride of Performance, in her poem, Suna Hai, has captured the uncertainty and desperation – the running urgency of the times, by comparing the system to the “laws of the jungle” in a way that is simple and straightforward, but in equal parts as moving as any other poem written at that time.
سنا ہے جنگلوں کا بھی کوئ دستور ہوتا ہے
خداوند! جلیل و معتبر! دانا و بینا منصف و اکبر
میرے اس شہر میں اب جنگلوں کا ہی کوئ قانون نافظ کر
Ada Jafri, who became the first female voice of the subcontinent, wrote poetry in a way that is unarguably soft but stabs like a two-sided dagger. She rebelled against the norms but also stuck with the traditional style in poetry all the same. Perhaps her most celebrated verse is:
ہونٹوں پہ کبھی انکے مرا نام ہی آۓ
آۓ تو سہی بر سرِ الزام ہی آۓ
Another beautiful couplet by Ada Jafri:
جس کی باتوں کے فسانے لکھے
اس نے تو کچھ نہ کہا تھا شاید
As the years went by, more and more women started entering the male-dominated primary of Urdu poetry. They addressed more serious issues, even those which were traditionally considered taboo - issues such as relationships, sexism, discrimination, consent, etc.
As Bilqis Zafarul Khan writes:
خود پہ یہ ظلم گوارا نہیں ہوگا ہم سے
ہم تو شعلوں سے نہ گزریں گے نہ سیتا سمجھیں
Parveen Shakir, one of the most celebrated poets, had a very distinctive, passionate and expressive way with her poetry. Topics like love, compassion and feminism can be found in her poetry.
اس کے یوں ترکِ محبت کا سبب ہوگا کوئ
جی نہیں مانتا وہ بے وفا پہلے سے تھا
Though her diction is quite simple, her words- in their clarity- resonate with the reader for a long time
میں سچ کہوں گی مگر پھر بھی ہار جاؤں گی
وہ جھوٹ بولے گا اور لاجواب کر دے گا
Running against their pre-decided fates as women and poets, these were the pioneers who stood up and unshackled their feet. They defied the rules that othered them and published their writings. Not only did these poetesses speak of their fundamental rights - the right to speak and the right to be heard – they snatched them from the clutches of patriarchy. Today, we remember the likes of Ada Jafri, Zehra Nigaah, Parveen Shakir, Fehmida Riaz, Zeb Usmania, and their contributions to Urdu literature. We remember them for their passion, poise, and poetry. Most importantly, however, we remember them for their refusal to be forgotten.
زخم کو پھول کہیں نوحے کو نغمہ سمجھیں
اتنے سادہ بھی نہیں ہم کہ اتنا نہ سمجیں
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