Majaz Lakhnavi: His colourful life and ageless poetry (IANS Column: Bazm-e-Ghazal)

Authors, especially poets, are feted more for their work than for their lives, with the general impression being that the latter cannot be equated with their exploits of imagination and expression. Save a handful, say Shakespeare, or Lord Byron, or in the Indian case, Mirza Ghalib, they rarely figure much in public consciousness or popular culture in their own right. This early 20th century Urdu poet was an exception.

Not only did Asrar-ul-Haq 'Majaz Lakhnavi' have the distinction of being one of the first leading poets not associated with the Hindi cinema to have one of his works used in a film starring Shammi Kapoor no less, during his lifetime, he was deemed famous enough as to figure namelessly in a classic, with an actor resembling him reading out his poetry.

Then, he was one of the six leading modern Urdu poets, chosen by veteran poet Ali Sardar Jafri, to have his life retold on the TV series "Kahkashan"