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Pashto poetry has its roots in resistance since the days of Khushal Khan Khattak when he stood up to the Mughal suppression of the Pakhtuns and Rahman Baba, a mystic poet using his Sufi muse to highlight people’s problems in his verses.
Then came the British era when Pakhtun folk poets, mostly , spoke vehemently against their tyranny and oppression. The Pashto poets affiliated with Khudai Khidmatgar Tehrik of Baacha Khan including Fazal Mahmood Makhfi, Abdul Akbar Khan Akbar, Shad Muhammad Maigay and many others played active role to resist British colonial rule.
The second, but very vocal nationalist generation of poets included Qalandar Momand, Ajmal Khattak, Wali Muhammad Toofan and a few others who faced hardships owing to their radical thoughts in their writings.
The third generation boasted of revolutionary poets like Rahmat Shah Sail and Prof Dr Sahib Shah Sabir. Pashto poets and writers have been closely watching the tragic drama being staged on their land since long.
Being sensitive souls, poets are the harbingers of peace, humanism and harmony. Ali Akbar Sial, an Islamabad-based senior Pashto poet and author of several books, is one of them.
He is the moving spirit behind the Pakhtun Cultural Association (PCA) Islamabad, a literary-cum-cultural organisation. Sial, hailing from Malakand, has been playing a pivotal role in literary and intellectual circles of the capital.
Being poet with a unique style, Akbar Sial has been advocating love, peace and Pakhtun unification in his verses. His maiden Pashto poetry collection had come out in 1995. “Rangoonah” was another of his poetry title that received an encouraging response from the poetry lovers.
Way back in 2000, he brought out “Pa Jung De Or Olagee” (To hell with war). With it, Sial earned widespread popularity in the Pakhtun literary circles as it was the voice of every sensitive Pakhtun. But when enough bloodshed stained the land of Pakhtuns, Sial dared to pen down “Da Parharoonah Bah Gandal Ghawarree (These wounds need to heal) that hit the stalls in 2005.
It was followed by “Ukhkay Ukhkay Muskaytub” (The tearful smile) in 2008 and “Zamung Pa Kalee Ke Shar Ma Jurrawai” (Don’t create disturbance in our village) published in 2009. His recent publication “Pa Guldaru De Warawal Orunah” (Raining bombs on floral valleys) is yet another of his bold attempt. All his poetic collections yearn for peace in the region. His new book contains ghazals as well as nazms, in both literary forms. He has excelled in versifying the adverse effects of war in a fitting manner.
In a poem titled “Da Pakhtunkhwa Sael” (A visit to Pakhtunkhwa), Abkar Sial takes us on a round trip of the enchanting valleys and charming natural sites of Swat, Dir, Malakand, Chitral and Buner.
He tells the readers that these places had never experienced barbarism, militancy and terrorism being the abodes of the followers of Buddha.
Pakhtuns, he says, are peaceful, hospitable and tranquil, war has never been their option and their glorious past, golden traditions and social values speak of their intrinsic humanistic qualities.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrin...7&dt=1/29/2012
Then came the British era when Pakhtun folk poets, mostly , spoke vehemently against their tyranny and oppression. The Pashto poets affiliated with Khudai Khidmatgar Tehrik of Baacha Khan including Fazal Mahmood Makhfi, Abdul Akbar Khan Akbar, Shad Muhammad Maigay and many others played active role to resist British colonial rule.
The second, but very vocal nationalist generation of poets included Qalandar Momand, Ajmal Khattak, Wali Muhammad Toofan and a few others who faced hardships owing to their radical thoughts in their writings.
The third generation boasted of revolutionary poets like Rahmat Shah Sail and Prof Dr Sahib Shah Sabir. Pashto poets and writers have been closely watching the tragic drama being staged on their land since long.
Being sensitive souls, poets are the harbingers of peace, humanism and harmony. Ali Akbar Sial, an Islamabad-based senior Pashto poet and author of several books, is one of them.
He is the moving spirit behind the Pakhtun Cultural Association (PCA) Islamabad, a literary-cum-cultural organisation. Sial, hailing from Malakand, has been playing a pivotal role in literary and intellectual circles of the capital.
Being poet with a unique style, Akbar Sial has been advocating love, peace and Pakhtun unification in his verses. His maiden Pashto poetry collection had come out in 1995. “Rangoonah” was another of his poetry title that received an encouraging response from the poetry lovers.
Way back in 2000, he brought out “Pa Jung De Or Olagee” (To hell with war). With it, Sial earned widespread popularity in the Pakhtun literary circles as it was the voice of every sensitive Pakhtun. But when enough bloodshed stained the land of Pakhtuns, Sial dared to pen down “Da Parharoonah Bah Gandal Ghawarree (These wounds need to heal) that hit the stalls in 2005.
It was followed by “Ukhkay Ukhkay Muskaytub” (The tearful smile) in 2008 and “Zamung Pa Kalee Ke Shar Ma Jurrawai” (Don’t create disturbance in our village) published in 2009. His recent publication “Pa Guldaru De Warawal Orunah” (Raining bombs on floral valleys) is yet another of his bold attempt. All his poetic collections yearn for peace in the region. His new book contains ghazals as well as nazms, in both literary forms. He has excelled in versifying the adverse effects of war in a fitting manner.
In a poem titled “Da Pakhtunkhwa Sael” (A visit to Pakhtunkhwa), Abkar Sial takes us on a round trip of the enchanting valleys and charming natural sites of Swat, Dir, Malakand, Chitral and Buner.
He tells the readers that these places had never experienced barbarism, militancy and terrorism being the abodes of the followers of Buddha.
Pakhtuns, he says, are peaceful, hospitable and tranquil, war has never been their option and their glorious past, golden traditions and social values speak of their intrinsic humanistic qualities.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrin...7&dt=1/29/2012
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