Gauhar Raza

Gauhar Raza
Born	(1956-08-17) 17 August 1956 (age 69) Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh
Occupation(s)	poet, activist, scientist, documentary filmmaker
Spouse	Shabnam Hashmi

Gauhar Raza (born 17 August 1956) is an Indian engineer, science communicator, Urdu poet, social activist ^[1] and documentary filmmaker. He is known for his films like Jung-e-Azadi, on India's First War of Independence, and Inqilab (2008) on Bhagat Singh. ^{[2] [3] [4]} He was also the honorary director of Jahangirabad Media Institute.

Early life and education

He was born in Allahabad (now Prayagraj), Uttar Pradesh, India on 17 August 1956. ^[5] His family moved to Aligarh in 1958. His father Wizarat Husain (1919–2007) was a freedom fighter, communist party member and renowned educationist and science teacher at Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh. His mother, a social worker, was also intensely involved in freedom struggle and had worked with Indira Gandhi in Allahabad.

He completed a BSc in engineering at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) in 1977 and an MTech in Power Apparatus and Systems at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in 1979. ^[6] He was a member of the Students' Federation of India (SFI) when he studied at AMU. During the Emergency, he was the SFI Secretary of Western Uttar Pradesh.

Career

In 1979 he joined Eicher Goodearth Ltd., a multinational company, as an electrical engineer and worked there for 3 years. He solved some major design problems that the company was facing and within a short time he rose to Executive-Engineer level. In 1982 he joined the National Institute of Science, Technology and Development Studies as a scientist and he continues to work there.

Poetry

Gauhar Raza's poetry collection Jazbon Ki Lau Tez Karon has been noted for its frankness of tone and social concerns. In his most famous poem, "Main Chahta hoon" ("I like to"), he express his helplessness to write a romantic poem in days of darkness. ^[7] He also wrote lyrics for a Hindi film, Say Salaam India , released in 2007. ^{[8] [9]}

Personal life

He is married to the activist Shabnam Hashmi, ^[10] sister of the murdered theatre activist Safdar Hashmi. The couple have a son, Sahir Raza, and a daughter, Seher. ^[11]

Works

• Plague, Media and People, NITADS, 1996 (co-writers: Bharvi Dutt and Surjit Singh)
• Confluence of Science and Peoples' Knowledge at the Sangam, NISTADS, 1996 (co-writers: Surjit Singh, Bharvi Dutt and Jagdish Chander)
• A Delicate Space Ship, Youth for Disarmament, Delhi, 1998
• Jazbon Ki Lau Tez Karo, Raj Kamal, Delhi, 1999
• Walk the Sky, A play on violence against women, V-Day, Delhi, 2001
• Science Crafts and Knowledge: Understanding of Science Among Artisans in India and South Africa: a Cross-cultural Endeavour, Protea Book House, Pretoria, 2002 edited along with Hester du Plessis
• HIV/AIDS Public Understanding and Attitude, NYKS, 2007 (co-writers: Surjit Singh and Chader Shekhar Pran)

Awards

• Best subject expert for educational film in 1999 by the University Grants Commission.
• Creative Literature Award, Hindi Academy, 2001, for his collection of poems Jazbon Ki Lau Tez Karo
• For contribution to science writings and propagation of science, Urdu Academy, Delhi, 2002 ^[12]

^{[13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23]}

See also

• Faiz Ahmad Faiz
• Civil society
• Social Activist
• Scientist
• Shabnam Hashmi

References

1. "Leadership should be open to ideas, says poet-scientist Gauhar Raza".
2. Documentary on Bhagat Singh by Madhur Tankha, The Hindu, 12 July 2008.
3. United we stand The Hindu, 4 October 2007.
4. Censorship: Unofficial might The Hindu, 7 December 2003.
5. "Quoting Einstein, Raza says this Chaiwala's brew is poisonous".
6. "Prof Raza talks on the 'scientific way of life' in India". Durban University of Technology. 17 September 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
7. "Gauhar Raza - nazm - 03 - Muscat - 2008". YouTube. 9 November 2009. Archived from the original on 20 December 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
8. Gauhar Raza filmography Bollywood Hungama.
9. "Say Salaam India Lyrics". hindilyrics.net. Archived from the original on 30 July 2016. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
10. "What sets apart the poetry of Gauhar Raza?". www.awazthevoice.in. Retrieved 29 April 2025.
11. Insensitivity on adoption upsets Shabnam Hashmi By Our Staff Reporter, The Hindu, 1 March 2005.
12. "nistads.res.in". nistads.res.in. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
13. "Speaker Biographies". Archived from the original on 9 June 2008.
14. Raza, Gauhar; Singh, Surjit; Shukla, Rajesh (1 July 2009). "Relative Cultural Distance and Public Understanding of Science" . Science, Technology and Society. 14 (2). Sts.sagepub.com: 269–287. doi:10.1177/097172180901400204 . Retrieved 7 April 2012.
15. "National youth readership survey 2009" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2009. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
16. "Invitees" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
17. "Press Information Bureau English Releases". Pib.nic.in. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
18. "New Delhi News : Documentary on Bhagat Singh". The Hindu . 12 July 2008. Archived from the original on 4 August 2008. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
19. "The 'filmy' attack on Narendra Modi - Rediff.com India News". News.rediff.com. 2 October 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
20. "[IMC-DC] Documentaries/Discussion explore Hindi - Islamic Conflict in India". Archives.lists.indymedia.org. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
21. Unknown ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
22. "National Students Video Film Festival". Archived from the original on 10 November 2006. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
23. "National Student Video Film Festival". Fest21.com. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 7 April 2012.

External links

• Jahangirabad Media Institute, Lucknow, India Archived 4 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine , Jahangirabad Media Institute