 First hardback edition cover. | |
| Author | Anita Desai |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Heinemann |
Publication date | 8 October 1984 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 208 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | 0-434-18635-X (first edition, hardback) |
| OCLC | 11284150 |
In Custody (1984) is a novel set in Delhi, India by Indian American writer Anita Desai. [1] It was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1984.
Deven earns a living by teaching Hindi literature to college students. As his true interest was in Urdu poetry, he jumps at the chance to meet the great Urdu poet, Nur. Under the advice of his friend Murad, an editor of a periodical devoted to Urdu literature, Deven procures a secondhand tape recorder so that he can help transcribe Urdu's early poetry, as well as conduct an interview or even write the memoirs of Nur. However, things do not happen as he expects them to.
Devens' old friend Murad visits Deven unexpectedly with an offer for him to interview a great Urdu poet Nur Sahjahanabadi who lives in Chandni Chowk, Old Delhi for his magazine. Deven is fond of Urdu poetry. He accepts the offer. At first, he thinks that he is getting a chance to sit before a great Urdu poet but after reaching his house he notices the unbearable condition of Nur's house. When he meets Nur, he refuses to give an interview by saying that Urdu is now at its last stage and soon this beautiful language will not exist. But he shows some trust in Deven. But Deven gets annoyed by the condition of Nur's house and drops the idea of interviewing Nur. Murad again convinces him to interview Nur with the help of tape recorder so that it can be further used for audio learning by Urdu scholars. Deven, who is a poor lecturer, asks for money from the college for a tape recorder. He goes to a shop to buy, where the shopkeeper, Jain, offers him a second hand tape recorder. At first Deven refuses to purchase it but later Jain convinces him that it is a machine with good quality and his own nephew Chikua will help them to operate it while recording the interview. Unwillingly, Deven agrees to purchase it. Nur's first wife promises Deven that she can arrange a room for Deven if he gives her some money. Deven arranged the money for the payment to her by the college authority with the help of his colleague-cum-friend Siddiqui. He then goes to Delhi with Chiku for recording, but he fails to record the interview. Now, he not only has no recording but also has to bear the expenses like payment demanded by poet, his wife, nephews of Jain, etc.
The 1993 film adaptation of the novel by Merchant Ivory Productions In Custody was directed by Ismail Merchant, with a screenplay by Shahrukh Husain. It stars the noted actors Shashi Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, and Om Puri.
Altaf Hussain Hali, also known as Maulana Khawaja Hali, was an Urdu poet and a writer.
Urdu literature is literature in the Urdu language. While it tends to be dominated by poetry, especially the verse forms of the ghazal غزل and nazm نظم, it has expanded into other styles of writing, including that of the short story, or afsana افسانہ. Urdu literature is mostly popular in Pakistan, where Urdu is the national language and India, where it is a recognized language. It is also widely understood in Afghanistan and has moderate amount of popularity in Bangladesh.
Anita Desai, born Anita Mazumdar is an Indian novelist and the Emerita John E. Burchard Professor of Humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. As a writer she has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times. She received a Sahitya Akademi Award in 1978 for her novel Fire on the Mountain, from the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters. She won the British Guardian Prize for The Village by the Sea. The Peacock, Voices in the City, Fire on the Mountain and an anthology of short stories, Games at Twilight. She is on the advisory board of the Lalit Kala Akademi and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, London.
Mir Muhammad Taqi, known as Mir Taqi Mir, was an Urdu poet of the 18th century Mughal India and one of the pioneers who gave shape to the Urdu language itself. His father's name was Meer Muttaqi. After his father's death, his step-Brothers took control over his property. His step-uncle took care of him after he was orphaned and after the death of his step-uncle(paternal) his maternal step-uncle took care of him. The captivating part of his poetry is the grief he expresses. He has expressed a lot of grief over the downfall of his city, Delhi. He was one of the principal poets of the Delhi School of the Urdu ghazal and is often remembered as one of the best poets of the Urdu language. His pen name (takhallus) was Mir. He spent the latter part of his life in the court of Asaf-ud-Daulah in Lucknow.
In Custody/Muhafiz is a 1993 film by Merchant Ivory Productions. It was directed by Ismail Merchant, with screenplay by Anita Desai and Shahrukh Husain. It is based upon Desai's 1984 Booker Prize nominated novel In Custody.
Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan, also known by the pen names of Ghalib and Asad, was an Indian poet. His honorific was Dabir-ul-Mulk, Najm-ud-Daula. During his lifetime, the already declining Mughal Empire was eclipsed and displaced by the British East India Company Rule and finally deposed following the defeat of the First Indian War of Independence of 1857; these are described through his work.
Mirza Ghalib is a 1954 Indian Hindi and Urdu language biographical film, directed by Sohrab Modi. Based on the life of well-known poet Mirza Ghalib, the film was acclaimed upon release. It stars Bharat Bhushan as Ghalib and Suraiya as his courtesan lover. The film won the President's Gold Medal for the All India Best Feature Film and the President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi in the 2nd National Film Awards for 1954. Suraiya's singing and her acting was specially applauded by the Prime Minister, Jawahar Lal Nehru, who remarked to her, "You have brought back Ghalib to life", in a special screening of the film at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Sheikh Muhammad Ibrahim Zauq (1790–1854) was an Urdu poet and scholar of literature, poetry and religion. He wrote poetry under nom de plume "Zauq", and was appointed poet laureate of the Mughal Court in Delhi just at the age of 19. Later he was given the title of Khaqani-e-Hind by the last Mughal emperor and his disciple Bahadur Shah Zafar.
Ali Sardar Jafri was an Indian writer of Urdu language. He was also a poet, critic and film lyricist.
Shamsur Rahman Faruqi was an Indian Urdu language poet, author, critic and theorist. He is known for ushering modernism to Urdu literature. He formulated fresh models of literary appreciation that combined western principles of literary criticism and subsequently applied them to Urdu literature after adapting them to address literary aesthetics native to Arabic, Persian, and Urdu. Some of his notable works included Sher-e-Shor Angez (1996), Ka’i Chand The Sar-e Asman (2006), The Mirror of Beauty (2013), and The Sun that Rose from the Earth (2014). He was also the editor and publisher of the Urdu literary magazine Shabkhoon.
Umashankar Jethalal Joshi was an Indian poet, scholar and writer known for his contribution to Gujarati literature.
Akhtar Shirani, was an Urdu poet. He is considered to be one of the leading romantic poets of Urdu language.
Janam ("Birth") is a 1985 Indian television film directed and written by Mahesh Bhatt. It is one of the autobiographical films Bhatt created in the early part of his career. The film was remade in Telugu as Atmakatha. The film premiered on 4 December 1985 on DD National.
Ankahi is an Urdu television drama serial broadcast by PTV in 1982 as is now considered as a cult-classic. It was written by Haseena Moin and directed by Shoaib Mansoor and Mohsin Ali.
Muhammad Abdul-Hayy Siddiqui, writing under the pen-name Bekhud Badayuni, was one of the leading Urdu poets of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Vijay Kumar Abrol,, better known by his pen name Zahid Abrol, is a well-versed Indian Urdu poet. He has done 'the first-ever Urdu translation' of the 12th century Sufi-poet Baba Farid's shlokas and shabads and that too in verse.
Aurangabad is one of the historical cities of the Deccan, India. It is well known for its literary and cultural traditions. As this city was the stronghold of the Mughals, a number of civil and military officers, men of letters, citizens, etc., from Delhi came here with the result that Aurangabad was so much influenced by the North Indian culture that it was considered to be the Delhi of the Deccan. Thus, till 1763, Aurangabad was the seat of Government and the capital of the Deccan. Afterwards when Hyderabad was made the capital, poets, literary men and learned people gradually left Aurangabad and this city lost its literary prominence. Still the city continued to produce men of literary genius well into the 20th century. Though, Aurangabad had gained its importance since the time of Malik Ambar, up to 1700 AD the literary achievements of that city in regard to the Urdu language are not traceable. The Urdu spoken in Aurangabad is called Hyderabadi Urdu, which in itself is a form of Dakhini Urdu.
Mehr Lal Soni, better known as Zia Fatehabadi, was an Indian Urdu ghazal and nazm writer. He was a disciple (shaagird) of Syed Aashiq Hussain Siddiqui Seemab Akbarabadi (1882–1951), who was a disciple of Nawab Mirza Khan Daagh Dehlvi (1831–1905). He used the takhallus of Zia meaning "Light" on the suggestion of his teacher, Ghulaam Qadir Farkh Amritsari.
Clear Light of Day is a novel published in 1980 by Indian novelist and three-time Booker Prize finalist Anita Desai. Set primarily in Old Delhi, the story describes the tensions in a post-partition Indian family, starting with the characters as adults and moving back into their lives throughout the course of the novel. While the primary theme is the importance of family, other predominant themes include the importance of forgiveness, the power of childhood, and the status of women, particularly their role as mothers and caretakers, in modern-day India.
Saghar Siddiqui, was a Pakistani Urdu poet. Also known as a Saint poet, homeless Siddiqui was found dead on a street corner of Lahore at age 46. His dog also died a year later, reportedly at the same spot.