Tabish Mehdi

Tabish Mehdi (3 July 1951 – 22 January 2025) was an Indian poet specialising in naʽat, a literary critic, journalist, and author who made contributions to Urdu literature. His literary career spanned several decades, during which he worked in the fields of poetry, literary criticism, and research. His writings have been described by some commentators as reflecting intellectual depth and creativity. Mehdi's work has been acknowledged for its role in Urdu literary circles.

Early life and education Tabish Mehdi was born on 3 July 1951 in Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India.

His literary mentors included Shahbaz Amrohi (disciple of Afaq Kazmi), Bilali Aliabadi (disciple of Shafiq Jaunpuri), Sarosh Machhlishahri (student of Arzoo Lakhnavi), Abu-al-Wafa Arif Shahjahanpuri (disciple of Riyaz Khairabadi), and Amir Usmani.

Affiliation with academic and literary institutions From June 1991 to 3 July 2009, Mehdi worked as an editor at Markazi Maktaba Islami Publishers, New Delhi. He was a founding member of Abul Kalam Azad Inter College (Pratapgarh) and Idara Adab-e-Islami Hind. He was also a member of the Islamic Literary Society (India) and Darul Dawah Educational Foundation (Delhi). Additionally, he served as the chairman of Adabiat-e-Aaliya Academy (Lucknow), a former vice-president of Idara Adab-e-Islami Hind, and an honorary advisor and editorial board member of the quarterly Karwan-e-Adab (Lucknow). Additionally, he was recognized by the academies of Bengal, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and various local institutions for his books. All India Radio's Urdu Service, Urdu Majlis, Doordarshan, Jain TV, Sahara TV, and Zee Salaam frequently invited him to present his work.

Literary works Mehdi wrote several works in poetry, criticism, and analytical writing, including Abūlmujāhid Zāhid: fikr aur fan, Kankar bolte hen̲: shiʻrī majmūʻah, Muʻallim-i insāniyat ṣallalláhu ʻalaihi va sallam, Naqd-i g̲h̲azal, Rabāb Rashīdī: ek suk̲h̲an var piyārā sā, Shafīq Jaunpūrī, ek mut̤ālaʻah (2002), Ṣubḥ-i ṣādiq: ḥamd, naʻt, manqabat, Tasawwuf yeh hai!, T̤ūbá and Urdū tanqīd kā safar: Jāmiʻah Milliyah Islāmiyah ke tanāẓur men̲. His other publications include:

Naqsh-e-Awwal (1971) Lama‘at-e-Haram (1975) Ta‘beer (1989) Jamaat-e-Islami Haqeeqat ke Aaine Mein (1981) Sall-e-Ala Sall-e-Ala (1992) Urdu Tanqeed Ka Safar (1999) Woh Galiyan Yaad Aati Hain (2007) Hali, Shibli aur Iqbal (2017) Mu'allim-e-Insāniyat (2019) Mutshid-e-Thānwi (2019) Ghazal Khwani Nahin Jati (2020)

Personal life and death On 18 May 1979, Mehdi married Razia Usmani, the granddaughter of calligrapher Ishtiaq Ahmad Usmani and the daughter of Mumtaz Ahmad Usmani, from Deoband. The couple had seven children, including two sons, Shah Danish Farooq Falahi and Shah Ajmal Farooq Nadwi, and four daughters, Sameena Tabish Salehati, Tooba Kausar Salehati, Yamna Kulsoom, and Naeema Kulsoom.