Bookstores tell a tale of dying Urdu

HYDERABAD: Sayed Nizamuddin, an adept bookseller is quick to offer any book on demand to his customer from the lakhs of latest books on business, science, engineering or English fiction. But to locate the Urdu stories of Alif Laila, Ali Baba Chalis Chor, Sindabad Jahazi, Akbar Birbal Ke Latife (jokes), Ghalib Ki Shayari and Razia Begum's biography he struggles hard amidst the heap of dusty and buried books. Another shopkeeper, Anwarahullah Ansari too has a blank look when asked for the once revered novels such as Saleem Ke Zakhm by Noshaba Sadiqui or Chilman Chilman Teri Dazzali by Dheeba Khanam, while the bookstore placard "Ansari Book Stall: All latest competitive general and fiction books available" stares at the customer. The buried and lost books amongst the heap are symbolic of the status of Urdu language in the city.

The city has had Urdu as its official language but the demand for Urdu language is witnessing a sharp decline. From students opting for Urdu medium to the availability of Urdu books, Urdu has largely been marginalised to the Old City. With sales dipping, Urdu literature and poetry that was an addiction earlier, is becoming a rare sight. Though these books are fast disappearing from the shelves of most bookstores, a few do save space for Urdu books, in the form of school textbooks or religious texts. Mohammad Javed, manager of Himalaya Book World says, "Although there is a great fervour for Urdu books, it is largely for religious books like the teachings of Prophet Mohammad, Noorani Ratein, Noorani Salaam and Yassarnal Quran. Mazhabi Kitabein (religious books) sell a lot and it's a good business."

While some shopkeepers are happy and satisfied with the rising sale of religious books, there are others who believe that there is much more to Urdu language than religious texts. "There are a large number of Urdu books, from fascinating fairy tales and magical stories to absorbing shayari by great writers to thought provoking novels. Why is Urdu script associated with religious texts only," asks M Q Farooqi, the 60-year-old Nuh Book Stall owner and a great lover of Urdu books who nostalgically slips a decade back to remember the craze Urdu magazines like Sadabahar , Sadrang and Hazaarrang would generate. While some shopkeepers due to their lost love for the language still manage to dig the tales of 'Alauddin aur Jaduyee Chirag,' 'Rustam wa Sohrab' and 'Tipu Sultan' and Sher Shah Suri's biographies, their numbers are restricted to only a few and mostly pushed to the vicinity of Old City. The reasons for Urdu scripts fast disappearing from Hyderabad's bookshelves are many. Farooqi says, "Today Urdu no longer provides the economic advantage. Unlike English, Hindi or regional languages, studying in a Urdu medium does not give an edge while seeking employment."

Popular bookstores predictably see no reason to stock them. "We have seven stores in the city, with each having a collection of over a lakh books but we don't have a collection of Urdu books as they are not much in demand," says Tayyab, a staff member of Universal Book Store. Booksellers note they stock books in English and Telugu as Urdu books are neither in fashion nor in demand. Md Azhar adds, "With fast paced technology, the other mediums of entertainment have taken over and the interest in Urdu fiction is fast subsiding due to coming of other popular sources of entertainment such as TV and multiplexes. The feel and interest for the Urdu language is missing."

However, there are some who are optimistic of its revival phase. Ali Zaheer, a consultant in National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language says: "There needs to be proper outlets for promotion of Urdu books. During exhibitions there is a huge sale of all sorts of Urdu books which proves that there is a huge demand for Urdu books among people. The only thing is that they should be made more accessible. Also, if Urdu writers are given more respect and their due royalty, this language would flourish."

The renaissance of Urdu

A LOT OF STUDENTS ARE TAKING UP COURSES IN URDU LANGUAGE FOR THE BEAUTY AND POWER IT. NIKITA GOUD REPORTS in The Times of India (Education Times) Hyderabad Edition, 15th September 2008

Despite the growing popularity of western languages in our country, Urdu, the lingua franca of India, has retained its charm. More and more organisations and universities are working towards the progress of Urdu as a language and Urdu literature. Its beauty has appealed even to the westerners who are now taking to the language. "Urdu is not a language that ends in India or Pakistan.With its rich culture and beauty it has crossed borders.We have research scholars coming from all over the world to do their advanced research in Urdu literature," says Syed Rafiuddin Quadri, Incharge secretary, Aiwan-e-Urdu, Hyderabad.

There are several universities and organisations in Hyderabad that offer courses in Urdu. One such organisation is 'Idara-e-adabiyat-e-Urdu' with over 218 centres in Andhra Pradesh alone.They conduct classes and examinations at different levels.This organisation was started with an aim to promote Urdu literature. Alongside coaching centers, they also have libraries housing a huge collection of books and offer museum facilities.

Though there has been a tremendous drop in the number of students enrolling for these courses, each year, the Urdu experts predict a positive change in the near future, as several youngsters, today, are opting to learn the language. "I always wanted to learn a new language and the obvious choices seemed to be French, Spanish or German. It was after I watched the movie 'Jodha Akbar' that I decided to take up Urdu for its beauty and power. It did seem a little unconventional, but, so great was its appeal that I couldn't help but decide against all other options," says Sameer, a software professional, who is now doing a course for beginners in Urdu.

With Urdu dominating the Bollywood film and music industry, there are several opportunities for Urdu scholars with a flair for poetry and writing, to make it big in the industry. "There is always a dearth of talent in our ever growing film industry. Most of our students who take up Urdu seriously, do so with an aim of getting into the industry as script writers, dialogue writers and lyricists," says Syed Moin Uddin Ahmed, a retired Urdu professor. The options do not end there.With the increasing popularity of Urdu in India and abroad, there are several job opportunities for proficient Urdu scholars in the teaching stream. "Many of our students have touched great heights.They make a great living out of teaching Urdu in Western countries and in India," adds Syed Rafiuddin Quadri, Incharge Secretary, Aiwan-e-Urdu.

There are also, other organisations like Siyasat, which have come up with various programs to teach Urdu.They offer courses in spoken Urdu as well and encourage people from all backgrounds and cultures to be a part of these programs. Urdu, they believe, is not a language of the Muslims or of people belonging to any particular religion or region, but, a language of the common man that took birth in India during the Muslim reign and considered a symbol of fraternity.

For the purists, who don't just believe in the progress of Urdu as a language but also in Urdu as a medium of Education, there are universities like the Maulana Azad National Urdu University, Gachibowli. They offer BA, BCom, BSc, polytechnic, BEd, MEd and DEd courses.They also conduct UPSC civil services APPSC group I and II examinations. Anyone who has qualified the 'fazil' examination or its equivalent from a recognised university is eligible to apply for the bachelors program. Students who complete any of these courses successfully are eligible to apply for several central and state government jobs in the police force, military, civil services, education department etc.

However, experts complain that the importance being given to English language has discouraged many youngsters from choosing Urdu as their medium of education. When asked about the measures to be taken to conserve Urdu, Prof Qutub Khan says, "Hyderabad, being the city of Nawabs, has always had a rich Urdu influence. It is our privilege and duty as Hyderabadis to retain the popularity of Urdu and to work towards the progress of its rich literature."