Urdu Studies Vol. 6, Issue 1, 2026

“Rāshid Anwar Rāshid kā Shāʾirānah Ijtihād”

Safdar Imam Quadri
Translated by
Sami Rafiq
DOI:https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23585045

Abstract. Rashid Anwar Rashid (1970–2024) was an academic at Aligarh Muslim University and a versatile author, poet, and critic. He published about 25 books, which include environmental poetry in Urdu, fiction and non-fiction, and also translations from English to Urdu. He received numerous awards for his writing. By way of introduction to Rashid and his craft, I translate below Safdar Imam Quadri’s essay “Rāshid Anwar Rāshid kā Shāʾirānah Ijtihād,” published in Dhoop Aisi to Nahin thi Pahle (back then, the sun wasn’t like this), a selection of the poems of Rashid Anwar Rashid (Creative Star Publications, New Delhi,2018). These translations are part of a Major Research Project funded by ICSSR on translating regional environmental literatures into English, 2026.

Keywords. Modern Urdu Poetry, Rashid Anwar Rashid

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Sami Rafiq is Professor of English at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, India. A translator, author, poet, and novelist, she explores and celebrates human values through her literary work. Her extensive contributions include over 200 articles, short stories, and poems published in national newspapers and magazines, along with several translated books. She has also written stories and features for children, published in both English- and Urdu-language newspapers. Her collection of poems Woman in the Trees: Poems on Climate and Nature was published in 2022, and her translation of “Farozaan” by Moin Ahsan Jazbi was published in April 2023. Her most recent works include Songs of Aligarh: Poems on Nature and Culture (Hawakal Publishers, November 2024) and a collection of stories titled Innocent Raptures: Stories on the Non Human (Hawakal Publishers, June 2026).
Email: samirafiq10031@gmail.com
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-6153-8515

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0