Riyaz Ul Khaliq
KL NEWS NETWORK
SRINAGAR
An Old City youth has been named ‘Poet of the Year’ for 2014 by Urdu Cultural Academy, New Delhi.
The young poet, Munawar Ali Hussainy, was awarded certificate for his poem ‘Zulm Ka Mara’. With this he has become the first Kashmir youth to get such an award.
A resident of Hassanabad, Rainawari area of summer capital, Hussainy completed his twelfth class this year and cracked J&K CET and was selected as a BUMS student-the counselling is yet to be done. He is not sure whether to go with it or not but is eyeing MBBS and “shall work hard to get it next year”.
Speaking to Kashmir Life, Hussainy said that he National Urdu Academy, New Delhi every year invites five poems from a poet to be adjudged by a panel of jury for rankings.
“I submitted only three,” he said, “the best three.”
Just 17 years old, Hussainy has been writing poems since his childhood days. “My interest in writing poems compounded for one year now,” he narrates his journey so far, “Although, Diwan-i-Ghalib would be in my hands since I was in primary class days but I started understanding the legend Urdu poet since last year.”
Living in a joint family, Hussainy’s father works in R&B department and his mother a home maker.
He passed matriculation from Sultan–Ul-Aarifeen Wakf Higher Secondary School, Rainawari before passing twelfth from SP Higher Secondary School, Srinagar. He has younger brother as well who is a class seventh student.
When he submitted his three poems, Hussiany had his ‘heart-out’ for ‘Zulm Ka Mara’. “The poem is based on twenty stanzas and it describes the life and death of children across Muslim world,” he informs. The poem sketches conflict torn life on Kashmir, Palestine, Burma and Syria.
An avid Blogger, Hussainy writes short stories in English as well but is confused how to get his works published. “I have a good number of poems written now and how to get them published is my concern,” he maintains.
One of the English stories of Hussainy –In the Floods- was ranked among top fifteen by Liveen Post.
When asked about his mentors, Hussainy said, “Allama Iqbal is my Roohaani peer, and Pakistan’s Mohsin Naqvi has been my great inspiration.”
Hussainy, who uses social networking sites profusely, has an interesting tale to narrate as well. He has two ‘guides’ who have helped him improve his poetic skills but he has never met them. “I have two special Facebook friends who have always been suggesting corrections in my writings and if I have won any little thing yet, share of credit goes to them as well.”
