Ibn-e-Insha ابنِ اِنشا | |
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Born | Sher Muhammad Khan 15 June 1927 Phillaur, Punjab, British India |
Died | 11 January 1978 London, England | (aged 50)
Pen name | Insha |
Occupation | Urdu poet, humorist, Travelogue writer and newspaper columnist |
Nationality | Pakistani |
Genre | Ghazal |
Notable awards | Pride of Performance Award in 1978 by the President of Pakistan |
Children | Roomi Insha (died 16 October 2017) & Saadi Insha |
Sher Muhammad Khan ( Urdu: شیر مُحمّد خان), ( Punjabi, شیر محمد خان), better known by his pen name Ibn-e-Insha, ( Urdu: اِبنِ اِنشا), ( Punjabi, ابن انشا) (15 June 1927 – 11 January 1978) [1] [2] [3] was a Pakistani Urdu poet, humorist, travelogue writer and newspaper columnist.
Along with his poetry, he was regarded as one of the best humorists of Urdu. [1] [3] His poetry has a distinctive diction laced with language reminiscent of Amir Khusro in its use of words and construction that is usually heard in the more earthy dialects of the Hindi-Urdu complex of languages, and his forms and poetic style is an influence on generations of young poets. [2] [4] [5]
Insha was born in Phillaur tehsil of Jalandhar District, Punjab, India. [1] [3] [6] His father hailed from Rajasthan. [7] In 1946, he received his B.A. degree from Punjab University and subsequently, his M.A. from University of Karachi in 1953. [1] [3] He was associated with various governmental services including Radio Pakistan, the Ministry of Culture and the National Book Centre of Pakistan. [2] [3] He also served the UN for some time [2] and this enabled him to visit many places, all of which served to inspire the travelogues he would then pen. [1] [3] Some of the places he visited include Japan, Philippines, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey, France, UK and the United States. [2] [3] His teachers included Habibullah Ghazenfar Amrohvi, Dr. Ghulam Mustafa Khan and Dr. Abdul Qayyum. In the late 1940s, in his youth years, Ibn-e-Insha had also lived together with the renowned film poet Sahir Ludhianvi in Lahore for a short period. He was also active in the Progressive Writers Movement. [8] [4]
Ibn-e-Insha spent the remainder of his life in Karachi [4] before he died of Hodgkin's Lymphoma on 11 January 1978, while he was in London. He was later buried in Karachi, Pakistan. [3] [6] [4] His son, Roomi Insha was a Pakistani director until his death on 16 October 2017. [6] [9] [1]
Insha is considered to be one of the best poets and writers of his generation. [3] [4] His most famous ghazal Insha Ji Utthoo Ab Kooch Karo (Rise oh Insha Ji, and let us set off ) is an influential classic ghazal. [4] [5] Ibn-e-Insha had written several travelogues, showcasing his sense of humor [3] [4] and his work has been appreciated by both Urdu writers and critics. [3] [4] He also translated a collection of Chinese poems into Urdu in 1960. [3] [5]
Poetry
Travelogue
Humor
Translations