Urdu Academy of North America pays tribute to Daagh Dehlvi
By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
The Urdu Academy of North America dedicated to its July 18, 2023 literary event to the life and work of great Urdu poet Daagh Dehlvi. 
Qazi Habib was MC of the event held at the Chandni Restaurant, Newark CA. Qazi Habib presented a well-researched maqala on the life and work of a great Urdu poet, Daagh Dehlvi.
A number of Urdu enthusiasts presented poetry of Daagh Dehlvi: Qazi Habib, Tasadduq Hussain Attari, Anitha Dixit, Anjum Zishaan, Abdus Sattar Ghazali, Zeba Rizvi, Rana Qureshi, Habib, Sulaikh Choudhri, Suraiya Jabeen
Tashie Zaheer, President of the Urdu Academy, presented Naat of Daagh Dehlvi.
Sulaikh Choudhri, stole the show with her melodious presentation of Daagh Dehlvi’s popular ghazal:
uzr aane mei bhi hai pas bulate bhi nahi.
Daagh wrote romantic and sensuous poems and ghazals in simple and chaste Urdu, minimizing use of Persian words. He laid great emphasis on the Urdu idiom and its usage.
Daagh was born in Kucha Ustad Dagh, Chandni Chowk in Delhi to Nawab Shamsuddin Ahmed Khan, the ruler of Loharu and Ferozepur Jhirka and Wazir Khanum, daughter of a Delhi jeweller.
His father was hanged under charges of conspiracy in the murder of William Fraser, a British India civil servant who was an Agent to the Governor General of India and Commissioner of the Delhi Territory during the reign of the last Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar.
Her mother remarried the Mughal crown prince, Mirza Muhammad Fakhroo, an heir to the last Mughal Bahadur Shah Zafar. Hence, Daagh had the privileged education at the Delhi Red Fort. There he received best of education and was later under tutelage of poet laureate, Mohammad Ibrahim Zauq. Later, he also took advice from Mirza Ghalib on finer nuances of Urdu literature and poetry.
Daagh started reciting poetry at the age of ten and his forte was the romantic version, the ghazal. He became popular for his poetry. Unlike the elitist style by the poets of the time, his style was simple and was well received by both, the common man and the elite.
Daag started reciting poetry at the age of ten. His forte was the ghazal. His poetry does not wallow in despair. The tone of his poems is exuberant. He was a self-acknowledged romantic but contrary to the impression one gets from his poetry, he eschewed wine. 
He had innumerable disciples. Usage of common words and phrases was distinctive of his style. His work comprises of four volumes consisting of 16,000 couplets.
He was bestowed with many titles that included: Dabeer ud Dawla, Faseeh ul Mulk, Nawab Nizam Jang Bahadur, Sipah Salar, Yar-e-Wafadar, Muqrib-us-Sultan, Bulbul-e-Hindustan, Jahan Ustad, Nazim Yar Jung.
Daagh’s poems generally consisted of four major Dewans, like: Gulzar-e-Dagh, Aftab-e-Dagh, Mahtab-e-Dagh and Yaadgare-Dagh.
Daag Dehlvi passed away in the year 1905, at the age of 74, in Hyderabad, due to a paralytic stroke.
The program ended with a vote of thanks by Qazi Habib, who particularly thanked Entrepreneur Syed Sarwat for hosting the Urdu Academy’s literary events.
See More Pictures Watch videos on YouTube
