KARACHI: Distinguished Urdu poet and critic Syed Sarwer Javed Rizvi, known as Sarwer Javed in literary circles, died here on Friday evening. He was 73.

Mr Javed was born on Feb 22, 1947 in Buland Shehr, India. After independence his father Syed Nadeem Barni, who was also a poet and used to recite poems alongside the likes of Jigar Muradabadi at mushairas, migrated with his family to Pakistan. Mr Javed obtained two postgraduate degrees: he did masters in mathematics and economics. He taught at several educational institutions and was associated with journalism, too, for a considerable time. Growing up in the 1960s, he was a politically aware individual and was part of the National Students Federation from his school days.

Mr Javed published two collections of poems and two books on criticism. His first collection Hijr ke aadmi hain hum garnered critical acclaim as did his second Khwab badal gaey merey.

A critic of high merit, Mata-i-nazar was his first attempt at writing critical essays, and his second Urdu nazm ki azeem riwaet is considered to be one of the finest books on the tradition and growth of Urdu nazms.

Among the literati, Mr Javed was known for his candid comments, a trait that did not necessarily go down well with many of his contemporaries. When it came to giving an opinion on a literary issue, he would never beat around the bush and would call out anyone who did that. The most endearing characteristic of his personality was the wholehearted way with which he encouraged the younger crop of poets and writers. If he found a spark of creativity in them, he would urge them to go ahead and publish their work.

Mr Javed was a top-notch poet, and quite a few of his couplets and verses have attained great popularity. The following is one of his ghazals:

Shikast-i-ishq ka qissa naya nahin rakhtey
Magar hum is ke siwa tajraba nahin rakhtey
Hain aik umr se be khanaman-o-be manzil
Keh hum siwaey safar muda’a nahin rakhtey
Aziyaton ke ilawah hamari umr ke loag
Muhabbaton se koi wasta nahin rakhtey
Chaley hain sath jo barson to yeh khula Sarwer
Keh hamsafar bhi safar aik sa nahin rakhtey

[I don’t have a new tale of broken love to tell But I have nothing else to say From time immemorial I’m without destiny
Because all I want is the journey
The likes of me, with love and all things lovely
Have a relationship based on agony and pain
After walking alongside beloved for years, Sarwer
I realised even co-travellers don’t embark on the same journey]

Mr Javed’s family sources said his funeral was expected to take place by Saturday (today) afternoon.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2020