Mirza Ghalib remembered on his 218th birth anniversary

Legendary Urdu poet of sub-continent, Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib was remembered on his 218th birth anniversary on Sunday.

Mushahiras and other ceremonies in connection to his birth anniversary were held across the country during which the speakers paid rich tributes to the greatest poet of Urdu literature and for his contribution which gave a new direction to Urdu literature.

Ghalib was born on 27 December 1797 in Agra, which is now part of India, while he died on 15 February 1869 in Delhi. His Delhi house is now called as Ghalib ki Haveli and hosts permanent Ghalib exhibition. He descended from the family of Aibak Turks who originally hailed from central Asian countries and started poetry at a very early age of 11.

The great poet initially used pen name “Asad” (Lion) but later replaced it with Ghalib which means superior. In his lifetime Ghalib witnessed the downfall of Mughal dynasty in India and arrival of the Britishers. His ghazals and letters also carried a history of events of those times.

Mirza Asadullah was depicted in famous Bollywood movie “Ghalib” while his ghazals have been sung by legendary singers like Mehdi Hassan, Fareeda Khanum, Abida Perveen, Tina Sani and many others. Ghalib was laid to rest in Nizamuddin area near mausoleum of renowned saint Nizamuddin Auliya.