Akhtar ul Iman

Akhtar ul Iman اختر الایمان
Born	12 November 1915 Qila Patthargarh, Najibabad, Bijnor district
Died	9 March 1996(1996-03-09) (aged 80) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Resting place	Bandra Qabristan, Mumbai
Nationality	Indian
Education	Master of Arts degree in Urdu Literature
Alma mater	Zakir Husain Delhi College Aligarh Muslim University
Occupations	Poet screenwriter
Employer(s)	Freelance and B.R. Films assigned cine writer (1960–1980)
Known for	Urdu Nazm, poet screenwriter and playwright
Spouse	Sultana Iman
Children	4
Signature

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Progressive Writers' Movement
Members Urdu writers Sajjad Zaheer Ahmed Ali M. D. Taseer Hajrah Begum Rashid Jahan Razia Sajjad Zaheer Abdul Aleem Faiz Ahmad Faiz Majaz Ahmad Faraz Ismat Chughtai Saadat Hasan Manto Kaifi Azmi Jan Nisar Akhtar Shamim Karhani Shahid Ahmad Dehlvi Josh Malihabadi Sahir Ludhianvi Majrooh Sultanpuri Ghulam Mustafa Tabassum Ali Sardar Jafri Akhtar ul Iman Majnun Gorakhpuri Firaq Gorakhpuri Sibte Hassan Habib Jalib Ale Ahmad Suroor Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi Akhtar Husain Fikr Taunsvi Habib Tanvir Salma Siddiqui Krishan Chander Khatir Ghaznavi Muhammad Ali Siddiqui Sulaiman Areeb Hameed Akhtar Shaukat Siddiqui Salaam Machhalishahari Aziz Qaisi Khawar Rizvi Hajra Masroor K. A. Abbas Mohiuddin Qadri Zore English writers Mulk Raj Anand Debiprasad Chattopadhyaya Bengali writers Somen Chanda Pramod Ranjan Sengupta Bishnu Dey Punjabi writers Amrita Pritam Ahmad Rahi Hindi writers Premchand Kashmiri writers Mahjoor Rehman Rahi Dinanath Nadim Amin Kamil Pran Kishore Kaul Ghulam Nabi Khayal Ghulam Rasool Santosh Marathi writers Mama Varerkar
Notable works Angarey Atish Paray Twilight in Delhi Manto Ke Afsanay Dhuan
Related Organisations Communist Party of India Indian People's Theatre Association
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Akhtar ul Iman (12 November 1915 – 9 March 1996) was a noted Urdu poet and screenwriter in Hindi cinema, who had a major influence on modern Urdu nazm.^[1][2]

He won the Filmfare Award for Best Dialogue in 1963 for Dharmputra and 1966 for Waqt. He was awarded the 1962 Sahitya Akademi Award in Urdu, for his Poetry Collection, Yadein (Memories), by Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters.^[3]

Born on 12 November 1915 in Qila Patthargarh, Najibabad, in the Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh in 1915.^[1][4] He was brought up in an orphanage.^[5][6] He gained his initial education at Bijnor, where he came in contact with poet and scholar Khurshid ul Islam, who taught at Aligarh Muslim University and developed a long association with Ralph Russell. He graduated from the Zakir Husain College at University of Delhi^[7] and completed his master's in Urdu degree from Aligarh Muslim University.^[5]

He first joined All India Radio as a staff artist. Then Iman joined the Filmistan Studio as a dialogue writer in 1945.^[8][4]

He preferred nazm over more popular ghazal as a mean of poetic expression. Akhtar ul Iman's language is "coarse and unpoetic". He uses "coarse" and mundane poetic expressions to make his message effective and realistic.^[9]

He left behind a substantial legacy for new generation of poets to follow which explores new trends and themes in modern Urdu poetry giving a new direction to the modern and contemporary Urdu nazm with emphasis on philosophical humanism.^[1][6]

• Iss Aabad Kharabe Mein (Urdu)-published by Urdu Academy, Delhi, India. Autobiography of a famous Urdu writer of India.^[6]

He has published eight collections:

• Girdaab (1943)^[10]
• Aabjoo (1944–1945)
• Tareek Sayyara (1946–47)
• Yaden (1961)^[3]
• Bint-e-Lamhaat (1969)
• Naya Ahang (1977)^[6]
• Sar-o-Samaan (1982)^[4]
• Zameen Zameen (1983–1990)
• Kulliyaat-e-Akhter-ul-Iman (2000)^[4]

Play

• Sabrang (1948): a one-verse play.

• Zamistan Sard Mehrika (Urdu)- Last Poetic Collection of an unforgettable Urdu poet. Compiled and edited by Sultana Iman and Bedar Bakht.
• Query of the Road – Selected Poems of Akhtar-ul-Iman with Extensive Commentary by Baidar Bakht^[4]

His contribution to Hindi cinema is significant, keeping in mind the number of landmark and hit movies he has contributed as a script writer (dialogue, story and screenplay). His first landmark movie was Kanoon (1960 film), which became a big hit despite the fact that it had no songs or comedy sequences. Other important movies to which he contributed as a script writer were Dharmputra (1961) – for which he received a filmfare award – Gumrah, Waqt, Patther ke Sanam, and Daagh.^[11]

The one movie which has his lyrics is Bikhare Moti.

Literary awards

• 1962: Sahitya Akademi Award – Urdu: Yadein (Poetry)^[3][5][11]

and Numerous other literary awards.

• Filmfare Award
  • 1963: Best Dialogue: Dharmputra^[10]
  • 1966: Best Dialogue: Waqt^[10]

• Vijay (1988) – writer
• Chor Police (1983) – writer^[10]
• Lahu Pukarega (1980) – director
• Do Musafir (1978) – writer
• Chandi Sona (1977) – writer^[10]
• Zameer (1975) – writer
• 36 Ghante (1974) – writer
• Roti (1974) – writer^[10]
• Naya Nasha (1973) – writer
• Bada Kabutar (1973) – writer^[10]
• Daag (1973) – writer
• Dhund (1973) – writer
• Joshila (1973) – writer
• Kunwara Badan (1973) – writer
• Dastaan (1972) – writer
• Joroo Ka Ghulam (1972) – writer
• Aadmi Aur Insaan (1969) – writer^[10]
• Chirag (1969) – writer
• Ittefaq (1969) – writer
• Aadmi (1968) – writer
• Hamraaz (1967) – writer
• Patthar Ke Sanam (1967) – writer^[11]
• Gaban (1966) – writer
• Mera Saaya (1966) – writer
• Phool Aur Patthar (1966) – writer^[10]
• Bhoot Bungla (1965) – writer
• Waqt (1965) – writer^[11]
• Shabnam (1964) – writer
• Yaadein (1964) – writer
• Aaj Aur Kal (1963) – writer
• Akeli Mat Jaiyo (1963) – writer
• Gumrah (1963) – writer^[11]
• Neeli Aankhen (1962) – writer
• Dharmputra (1961) – writer^[11]
• Flat No. 9 (1961) – writer
• Barood (1960) – writer
• Kalpana (1960) – writer
• Kanoon (1960) – writer^[11][10]
• Nirdosh (1950) – writer
• Actress (1948) – writer
• Jharna (1948) – writer

Akhtar ul Iman died on 9 March 1996 in Mumbai at age 80.^[4][6] He also was the father-in-law of actor Amjad Khan.^[10]

• Akhtar Ul Iman by Ghulam Rizvi 'gardish'. Sahitya Akademi Publications. ISBN 81-260-0920-9.

• Rajadhyaksha, Ashish (1999). Encyclopaedia of Indian cinema. Internet Archive. London : British Film Institute. ISBN 978-0-85170-669-6.

• Akhtar ul Iman at IMDb
• Verses of Akhtarul Iman
• Nazm of Akhtarul Iman
• [1] Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology By K. M. George, Sahitya Akademi
• Akhtar ul Iman - Archived