Syed Hussain Sibt-e-Asghar Naqvi,[2][a] commonly known by his pen nameJaun Elia,[b] 14 December 1931 – 8 November 2002), was a Pakistani poet. One of the most prominent modern Urdu poets of ghazals (odes), popular for his unconventional ways, he "acquired knowledge of philosophy, logic, Islamic history, the Muslim Sufi tradition, Muslim religious sciences, Western literature, and Kabbala".[3] He was fluent in Urdu, Arabic, Sindhi, English, Persian, Sanskrit and Hebrew.[3]
Jaun Elia was born on 14 December 1931 in Amroha, India into an educated Shia family.[4][5] His father, Shafiq Hasan Elia, was a scholar of literature and astronomy well-versed in the Arabic, English, Persian, Hebrew and Sanskrit languages, and who corresponded with leading intellectuals like Bertrand Russell.[6] Jaun Elia was the youngest of his siblings: his brother Rais Amrohvi was a poet and psychoanalyst while another brother, Syed Mohammed Taqi, was a philosopher and a translator who had translated Karl Marx's Das Kapital.[7] Indian film director Kamal Amrohi was his first cousin.[8] Another relative in Pakistan is actor Munawar Saeed, famous for his roles as a villain.[9]
Described as a child prodigy, Jaun was initially educated at the Syed-ul-Madaris in Amroha, a madrasa affiliated with the Darul Uloom Deoband.[10]
He married writer Zahida Hina in the year 1970.[11] They divorced in the year 1984.[12]
Writing career
He began writing poetry when he was 8 but published his first collection, Shayad, when he was 60.[13]
Jaun was very particular about language. While his diction is rooted in the classical tradition, he touches on new subjects. He remained in quest of an ideal all his life. Unable to find the ideal eventually, he became angry and frustrated. He felt, perhaps with reason, that he had squandered his talent.[18]
In 2020, Punjabi rapper Kay Kap's album Rough Rhymes for Tough Times featured a song entitled Bulaava which had couplets from the poem Pehnaayi Ka Makaan written and recited by Jaun Elia.[19]
In 2020, Pakistani rock-fusion band Nishtar Park released a single Purane Aur Naye Sawal which was based on Elia's ghazal Umr Guzaregi Imtihan Mein Kya.
In 2023, Urdu rapper Talha Anjum’s album Open Letter featured a song entitled Secrets which was strongly influenced by Jaun Elia’s poem Be-dilli Kya Yuhin Din Guzar Jaenge. Talha Anjum’s other works are also heavily influenced by Jaun Elia’s poetry.
Above are some of his translations from Arabic and Persian. Not only did he translate these books but also introduced several new words in the Urdu language.[20]
↑ Suhayb, Muhammad (22 June 2021). "Good to be Bad: The Villains of Pakistani Cinema". Youlin Magazine. Retrieved 25 March 2023. Related to famous poets like Raees Amrohvi and Jaun Elia, Munawwar Saeed often had trouble with the Punjabi language, and often reverted back to Urdu in his dialogue.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
