KARACHI, Dec 5: Wajid Ali Shah: shaeri aur marsiay, a historical document, researched and written by Dr Syed Manzer Hussain Kazmi, was launched by the literary committee of the Pakistan Arts Council on Thursday.
Presided over by Dr Farman Fatehpuri, the ceremony was addressed by provincial minister Mr Rauf Siddiuqi, Prof Saher Ansari, Prof Raes Alvi, Shafeequr Rehman Piracha, Prof Anis Zaidi, Prof Sibte Jaafer and the author himself.
Mr Rauf Siddiqui, who came late and had to leave early due to his official engagement, spoke first. He praised Dr Kazmi for his services in the field of education and his most valued book on homeopathy. But he had his reservations about the personality of the ruler of Oudh, Wajid Ali Shah, and wanted historians to reasses his role in history. Known for his large harem, his indulgence in dance, theatre, music and poetry, the King easily bowed down before the wily foreigners, since he had lost courage to fight back. Our misery in the present times, Siddiqui said, could be traced to such week-kneed rulers.
After Mr Siddiqui left, other speakers came to defend Wajid Ali Shah, “a victim of conspiracy hatched by socalled historians engaged by the East India Company to defame and later dethrone the ruler of Oudh”.
Dr Farman Fatehpuri praised the writer for his erudition, and for producing a highly researched book in a fascinating prose. He traced the history of those times and also the chronology of events; the rulers of Mysore — Nawab Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, the war of Plassey and the defeat of Nawab Siruddula and finally the deposition of Wajid Ali Shah.
The imperialist and expansionist forces were known to defame a ruler first, paint him black and thus “justify” his removal from the throne, Dr Farman said and found similarity in the case of Iraq in the present times “chargesheeted” in the similar way” by the US.
Prof Saher Ansari recalled the poetry, particularly the masnavi Huzne- Akhtar, that Wajid Ali Shah wrote, and also a marsia in the same poetic form and several elegies in the form of ‘mosaddas’. A creative writer as Wajid Ali was, he wrote the first Urdu drama, known as ‘rahas, introduced the art of stage setting and also acted in his plays. His planned ‘character assissenation’ however, failed to defame him for long and history had upheld him as a capable ruler and a creative person. The ruler of Oudh was honest and generous enough to acknowledge the greatness of his predecessors and had said:
Moonis, Anis Unse, sabhi tajdar hoon
Jo zakir-i-Husain hain voh tajdar hoon
Prof Anis Zaidi, recalled an earlier work on Wajid Ali Shah by Mirza Ali Azher Balras. Zaidi said Wajid Ali Shah, apart from his role as an able manager of the state, organised his army and improved its discipline. He had authored around one hundred books including two in Arabic and seventeen in Persian. When removed from the throne, he preferred retreat over a bloody fued and killing of his people. He said.
Daro divar pa hasrat say nazer kartey hain
Khush raho ahl-i-waten hum to safer kartey hain
Shafeequr Rehman said the Arts Council humming with creative activities was the most suited place to remember Wajid Ali Shah. “We find him here at every corner and no cultural history can be compiled without including the contribution of Wajid Ali Shah”. It should also be noted, Piracha said, that the excessive creative activities carried out by the Oudh ruler also provided catharsis to him and the people in the face of the Company’s overbearing behaviour. The elegies inspired them to recall the martyres of Karbala and bravely face the situation. Mr Piracha, a devout pupil of Dr Kazmi as a college student, praised him for his teaching method.
Raes Alvi, who was a junior to Dr Syed Manzer Husain Kazmi at Sirajuddaula College, praised him for his creative cultural activities. Wajid Ali Shah, he said, represented the most polished and sophisticated society of the subcontinent where a ruler was a poet, a writer, a stage and opera actor, a choreographer and also a caring person popular among his people.—H.A
