Farman Fatehpuri

Farman Fatehpuri was a Pakistani linguist, researcher, writer, critic and scholar. He was widely regarded as a leading authority on the life and work of Ghalib. He wrote many scholarly articles, book reviews, and editorials. He received the Sitara-i-Imtiaz Award for his literary accomplishments in 1985 from the President of Pakistan. He was born in a Pashtun family of the Mohmand tribe in Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh, British India, in 1926. He migrated to Pakistan and settled in Karachi, Sindh, in 1950. He completed his Master of Arts degree in Urdu literature from Government College Lahore, where he met his future wife and companion in Urdu literary circles, Bano Qudsia. He travelled widely and could speak Punjabi, Urdu, English, Italian and French. He wrote over thirty books, including novels, short stories and plays. His short story Gaddarya (The Shepherd) earned him early fame in 1955. He also created the Central Board for the Development of Urdu in Lahore and edited the popular Urdu weekly, Lail-o-Nahar. He started his radio program, Talqeen Shah (The Preacher) in 1962, which made him popular among the people in towns and villages. He was also the director of the Markazi Urdu Board, later renamed as Urdu Science Board, for 29 years. He also served as an adviser in the Education Ministry during Zia-ul-Haq's regime. He died in 2013 and was buried in Karachi. ¹