ASHFAQ AHMAD
Ashfaq Ahmed, PP, SI (Punjabi: اشفاق احمد) (August 22, 1925 – September 7, 2004) was a distinguished writer, playwright, broadcaster, intellectual and spiritualist from Pakistan. His qualities of head and heart, in particular his ability to weave Islamic (sufi) wisdom into everyday folk experience earned appreciation across the world. He was regarded by many as among the finest Urdu Afsana (short-story) writers alongside Saadat Hasan Manto, Qurratulain Hyder,Prem Chand, Bedi, Mirza Adeeb, Ismat Chughtai and Krishan Chander following the publication of his famous short-story Gaddarya [The Shepherd] in 1955.
Life and career
Ahmed was born on 22 August 1925 in Firozpur, British Punjab. He obtained his early education in his native district. Shortly before independence in 1947, he migrated to Pakistan and made the Lahore his abode. He completed his Masters in Urdu literature from Government College Lahore. Bano Qudsia, his wife and companion in Urdu literary circles who is also one of the best novelists of Urdu, was his classmate at Government College.
After Partition, when Ashfaq Ahmed arrived at the Walton refugee camp with millions of other migrants, he used to make announcements on a megaphone round the clock. Later, he got a job in Radio Azad Kashmir, which was established on a truck that used to drive around in various parts of Kashmir. He then got lectureship at Dayal Singh College, Lahore for two years. Whereafter, he went to Rome to join Radio Rome as an Urdu newscaster. He also used to teach Urdu at Rome university. During his stay in Europe, he got diplomas in the Italian and French languages from the University of Rome and University of Grenoble, France. He also got special training diploma in radio broadcasting from New York University.
He started writing stories in his childhood, which were published in Phool [Flower] magazine. After returning to Pakistan from Europe, he took out his own monthly literary magazine, Dastaango [Story Teller], and joined Radio Pakistan as a script writer. He was made editor of the popular Urdu weekly, Lail-o-Nahar [Day and Night], in place of famous poet Sufi Ghulam Mustafa Tabassum by the Government of Pakistan.
In 1962, Ashfaq Ahmed started his popular radio program, Talqeen Shah [The Preacher] which made him immensely popular among the people in towns and villages. It was a weekly feature that ran for three decades, the longest weekly radio show in the subcontinent. He was appointed director of the Markazi Urdu Board in 1966, which was later renamed as Urdu Science Board, a post he held for 29 years. He remained with the board until 1979. He also served as adviser in the Education Ministry during Zia-ul-Haq's regime. In the 60s, he produced a feature film, Dhoop aur Saie [Shadows and Sunshine], which was not very successful at the box office.
Style
Ashfaq Ahmed's subtle sense of humour is reflected in his long-running radio programs and characters like Talqeen Shah, while several TV drama series based on his memorable plays of three decades ago are still enjoyed by the audience. Their appeal lies in the universal truths of life portrayed in human hopes, emotions, aspirations and relationships that touch the soul of people of all age groups. His popular TV plays include Aik muhabbat sau afsanay [Bunch of Love Stories], Uchhay burj Lahore dey [Barbicans of Lahore], Tota kahani [Story of the Parrot],Lekin [But], Hairat kadah [Incredibility] and Mun chalay ka sauda [Bargain of the Stubborn]. All through his life, Ashfaq Ahmad endeavored to reform the society through his writings. He had authored over twenty five books including a travelogue, Safar dar safar [Long Way Journey], with an atypical style. In fact, he gave a new mold to diction and locale situations, many of his fans would fondly remember. He used Punjabi literary words very well in Urdu and introduced a new kind of prose, which was unique to him. For his excellent literary work, he was awarded President's Pride of Performance and Sitara-i-Imtiaz for meritorious services in the field of literature and broadcasting.
Besides his personality as a great author of impressive and laudable books, Ashfaq Ahmed, in his later period of life, was greatly inclined towards sufism, which was visibly reflected in most of his works. His close association with Qudrat Ullah Shahab and Mumtaz Mufti was also attributed for this tendency. Of-late, he used to appear in a get-together with his fans in television's program Baithhakh [The Guest Room] andZaviya [The Dimension] wherein he gave swift but satisfying responses to each and every query, placed before him, explicitly by the youth of each gender, in a mystic style.
Works
Aik hi boli
Aik mohabbat 100 dramay
Aik muhabbat sau afsaney
Arz-e-musannif
Aur dramey
Band gali
Baba sahiba
Dhandoraa - Talqeen Shah
Gadaria - ujlay phool
Gulldan
Hairat kaadah
Hasart-e-tameer
Jung ba jung
Khail tamasha
Khatiya watiyaa - Poetry
Man-chaley-ka-sauda-ashfaq-ahmad/ Man chaley ka sauda
Mehmaan saraey
Nangey paoon
Safar dar safar
Safar-e-maina
Shahla Kot
Shehre aarzoo
Shora shori - Talqeen Shah
Subhaey ifsaney
Talism hosh afza
Tota kahani
Uchay buraj Lahore dey
Waday-e-jang
Talqeen Shah Radio program and character played by himself as Talqeen Shah in typical Panjabi mostly spoken in Faisalabad (Lylpur). And Late Nazeer Husaini as Hidayat
Zaviya - 1
Zaviya - 2
Zaviya - 3
Zaviya - 4
Zaviya - 5
Zaviya - 6
BANO QUDSIA
Life
Qudsia moved with her family to Lahore during the Partition of India. Her father, a landlord with aBachelor's degree in agriculture, died when she was young. She attended school in Dharamsalain eastern India before moving to Lahore. Her mother, Mrs. Chattah, was an educator. She married novelist Ashfaq Ahmed.
Education
She wrote for college magazines and other journals. She graduated from Kinnaird College in Lahore. In 1951, she completed her M.A. degree in Urdu from the Government College Lahore.
Works and Honors
She wrote numerous short stories, novelettes, television and radio plays, and stage plays. Her short stories include Baz Gasht, Amar Bail, Doosra Darwaza and Twajju ki Talib. She wrote the novel Raja Gidh which builds around the symbol of a vulture, a bird of prey, that feeds on dead flesh and carcasses with the premise that indulgence in the forbidden leads to physical and mental degeneration.
Her plays include Tamasil, Hawa key Naam, Seharay and Khaleej. The plight of women and other socio-economic issues have often been the subject of her television serials. The Graduate Award for Best Playwright was conferred on Bano in 1986, followed by the same award for three consecutive years from 1988 to 1990. In 1986, she was also given the Taj Award for Best Playwright.
Books
Aatish Zeir Pa
Adhi Baat
Aik Din
Amr Bail
Assey Passey
Bazgasht
Chahar Chaman
Dast Basta
Dosra Darwaza
Dusra Qadam
Foot Path Ki Ghaas
Haasil Ghaat
Hawwa Key Naam
Kuch Aur Nahi
Marde Abresham
Maum Ki Gallian
Naqabal e Zikr
Piya Naam Ka Diya
Purwa
Purwa and Aik Din
Raja Gidh
Saman-e-Wajood
Shehr-e-bemisaal
Sudhraan
Suraj Mukhi
Tamaseel
Tawjha Ki Talib
Dastan Sarei, forthcoming
Collection from a Ashfaq ahmad and Bano qudsia work.
Missing books will be uploaded soon.....
RAJA GIDH:
GADRIYA:
AIK MUHABBAT SO AFSANEY:
MARD E ABRESHAM
PURWA
BAAZ GASHT
PHULKARI
KHEL TAMASHA
Request and suggestions are welcomed
Bano Qudsia books download
Ashfaq Ahmad Books
