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    Aqib Sabir
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    The document discusses a mushaira, or poetic symposium, that takes place in the novel Umrao Jan Ada. It summarizes that mushairas have been a tradition in Urdu culture since the Mughal era in the 17th century. The mushaira in the novel occurs in the home of a poet from Delhi, representing a rivalry between the Delhi and Lucknow schools of poetry. Introducing the character Umrao as a poet is notable, as few female poets were historically featured in mushairas. The mushaira serves to dramatically introduce Umrao and corresponds to the focus of Realism in Indian novels of the time.

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    The document discusses a mushaira, or poetic symposium, that takes place in the novel Umrao Jan Ada. It summarizes that mushairas have been a tradition in Urdu culture since the Mughal era in the 17th century. The mushaira in the novel occurs in the home of a poet from Delhi, representing a rivalry between the Delhi and Lucknow schools of poetry. Introducing the character Umrao as a poet is notable, as few female poets were historically featured in mushairas. The mushaira serves to dramatically introduce Umrao and corresponds to the focus of Realism in Indian novels of the time.

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    407 views3 pages

    Mushaira in Umrao Jan Ada

    Uploaded by

    Aqib Sabir
    The document discusses a mushaira, or poetic symposium, that takes place in the novel Umrao Jan Ada. It summarizes that mushairas have been a tradition in Urdu culture since the Mughal era in the 17th century. The mushaira in the novel occurs in the home of a poet from Delhi, representing a rivalry between the Delhi and Lucknow schools of poetry. Introducing the character Umrao as a poet is notable, as few female poets were historically featured in mushairas. The mushaira serves to dramatically introduce Umrao and corresponds to the focus of Realism in Indian novels of the time.

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    of 3

    Aqib |1

    Mohd Aqib

    MA English Final Year

    Paper Code 403(i)

    Mushaira in Umrao Jan Ada

    Mushaira in Urdu literary tradition is a poetic symposium and a symbol of oral performative
    Urdu culture. Maulana Muhammad Husain Azad in his ‘canon-forming’ book Aab-e-Hayat
    (1880) has recorded the history of Urdu as five eras of poetry from Shams Wali Allah (around
    1580s) to Mir Anees (1803-1874). This tradition of mushairas has been in practice since the time
    of Mughals (around 17th century) when Urdu took its decisive form as a language and continues
    till today.

    The orality of Urdu culture is so deep rooted that even today when poets have to present their
    poetry in a Mushiara or even in a Nashist (a smaller gathering than the contemporary meaning of
    a Mushaira), they say, “ek nayi ghazal kahi hai” and not ‘likhi hai’. (kehna = to say and likhna =
    to write). Umrao Jaan Ada, the novel, belongs to that time i.e. 1899 in Indian literary history
    when the written literature was just taking shape, only nineteen years later than Maulana Azad’s
    book. The novel itself, like Azad’s book, belongs to the tradition of ‘Tazkira-e-Shora’ that would
    roughly translate to ‘biographical memoir of poets’. Meenakshi Mukherjee mentions in the
    preface to ‘Early Novels in India’ that the rise of novel in India is closely associated with the
    development of prose itself.

    The fact that the Mushaira in Umrao Jan Ada is taking place in the lodgings of Munshi Ahmed
    Husain, a resident of Delhi, who happens to be in Lucknow. There are three prominent schools
    of Urdu poetry- Delhi, Lucknow and Deccan and there had always been a traditional rivalry
    between Lucknow school and Delhi school. Maulana Azad in Aab-e-Hayat records Mir Taqi
    Mir’s verses wherein the central idea is the humiliation of Mir at the hands of Lucknowites when
    he had to migrate to Lucknow in 1782 after the sack of Delhi by Ahmed Shah Abdali, beginning
    in 1748. Munshi Ahmed Husain’s sojourn in Lucknow can be seen as a representation of the
    glory of Awadh, (the destruction of which happens to be a prominent theme of the novel,
    emphasized by the placing of Mushaira at the beginning of the novel), juxtaposed with the rival
    school, especially after the conferment of the title of ‘king’ to Ghazi-ud-Din Haider by the
    British in 1818.

    The Mushaira in Umrao Jan Ada also serves as the dramatic introduction of the eponymous
    character and it is interesting to note that Umrao is introduced as a poet (Ruswa, the character, is
    himself unaware of the tawaaif being Umrao herself until a female attendant of Umrao comes to
    Aqib |2

    call on him). There is little mention of female poets in the classical history of Urdu poetry. No
    female poet is featured in Maulana Azad’s five eras of Urdu poetry. Introducing Umrao as a poet
    is in accordance with the phenomenon of women forming the centre of written literature in
    contemporary India as seen in the novels of the time across India e.g. Sarasvatichandra (first
    volume published in 1887), Indira Bai (1899), Chha Mana Atha Guntha (1902) etc. Also, the
    profession to which Umrao belongs and of which the reader is aware in the beginning of the
    Mushaira itself corresponds to the focus of Indian novel on Realism.
    Aqib |3

    Bibliography and References:

    1. Umrao Jan Ada: Mirza Hadi Ruswa


    2. Aab-e-Hayat: Maulana Muhammad Husain Azad
    3. Guzishta Lucknow: Abdul Haleem Sharar
    4. Early Novels in India: Meenakshi Mukherjii

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