“Firaq” Gorakhpuri: Poet vs. “Critic” (Urdu)

Abstract

Born Raghupati Sahay in a Hindu Kayastha family, “Firaq” (Quest) Gorakhpuri (1896–1982) is among the finest Urdu poets of this century. Active in the Gandh-led independence movement, he tried to combine Marxism, Gandhism and English Romantic thought with the classical traditions of Urdu poetry. From 1930 to 1957 he taught English literature at Allahabad University Firaq’s poetry is marked by its uninhibited depiction of heterosexual love and female beauty.