The in-person Bazm-e-Sukhan conferences are on the second Wednesday of every month at cultural area LaMakaan, and entail appreciation of poets and poetry.
| Photo Credit: Special association
The Urdu sher (couplet), irrespective of it being composed by a classical or trendy poet, is more likely to purchase a recent nature given the topic it offers with, and its construction. After all, at a time when the vessel for applause and abuse is a social media submit, the pathos or ardour that the sher evokes can match properly into an eloquent 140-character tweet. Hyderabad-based Bazm-e-Sukhan (Assembly of Celebrating Poetry) seeks to result in an appreciation of poetry by leveraging easy applied sciences, retaining in-person conferences , and publishing.
“If you see, the 140 characters are perfect for a sher. A gamut of emotions can be expressed in a sher. Contrary to popular perception, technology does not sound the death knell of art. When there is a growth in tech, one sees an increase of interest in literature and art,” says growth economist Amir Ullah Khan, co-founder of the Bazm. “It has also helped the Bazm connect with Urdu lovers across the globe.”
The concept germinated slightly over 4 years in the past when Mr.Khan and his pal Ashar Farhan sat down and thought of how in a different way Urdu poetry may very well be appreciated, particularly by these whose mom tongue isn’t Urdu. The consequence, after consultations, was in-person poetry appreciation conferences organised as soon as per week the place members would recite their couplets or quatrains of their selecting to a convincing and appreciative wah from listeners.
But, in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic struck. Like all conferences, the Bazm too moved on-line. It was then that it actually went international. Poetry aficionados from Europe, USA and West Asia joined in. They learn, they recited, they usually discovered.
As per the Bazm’s custom, Col. Ramesh Chugh, a lover of Urdu poetry, begins reciting. He chooses Shahid Kabeer: “ Neend se aankh khuli hai abhi dekha kya hai/ dekh lena abhi kuch dair mey duniya kya hai. Bandh rakha hai kisi sonch ne ghar se hum ko/ Warna apna dar-o-dewaar se rishta kya hai.”
The Bazm is now a collaborative effort of the Digital Empowerent Foundation (DEF), an organisation led by Osama Manzar that seeks to slender the digital gender divide, together with open cultural area LaMakaan, and the Centre for Development Policy and Practice (CDPP). Mr.Khan says whereas DEF takes care of the Bazm’s digital initiatives and presence, in-person conferences are organised at LaMakaan, and CDPP is entrusted with publishing.
“We have been consistent. There is an online Bazm meeting every Tuesday at 10 p.m. where people from across the world join in. Once a month — on the second Wednesday — there is an in-person meeting at LaMakaan. And once a year, we publish a book,” Mr.Khan says.
The first publication was Aata Hai Yaad Mujhko Guzra Hua Zamana, an autobiographical account of Ram Pall Joshi, who started his profession in the 2nd Emergency Commission of the Indian Army as a Caption and retired as the Additional Director General of Police in Punjab. The writer narrates his life and introduces couplets that include inside them an expertise.
For occasion, the writer remembers that as half of his coaching, he needed to stroll for 10 hours with a number of brief breaks. In an interplay together with his Captain, Mr.Joshi marvelled at the hardship the human physique might endure, and sums it up with a couplet: Pahaadon se jo takraaye usay toofan kehte hai/ Jo toofan se takraaye usay insaan kahte hai [One who braves the mountains is known as storm/ One who braves storms is known as Insaan (human)] (writer’s translation). The e book is peppered with comparable pleasant and poignant situations and accompanying couplets penned by poets equivalent to Ghalib, Muhammad Iqbal, and Pandit Mela Ram Wafa.
Alfaaz ki Mehfil by Satya Prabhakar, a enterprise chief, is a e book of Urdu poetry and its English interpretation.
And what of mentorship? The Bazm seeks steering from Prof.Ashraf Rafi, Laxmi Devi Raj, Anees Ayesha and Tasneem Johar. Another patron is Maulana Azad National Urdu University Vice-Chancellor Syed Ainul Hasan.
This 12 months, the Bazm introduced it could encourage newer and youthful poets. As many as 12 poets can be chosen, dropped at Hyderabad subsequent March. After their work is analysed, the first three can be awarded. The high three can be awarded ₹1 lakh, ₹50,000 and ₹25,000.
The founders consider that the Bazm is a celebration of all that’s innately India — range, and a rootedness in artwork.