Munir Niazi
(H/DR Adeeb Ahmed, Karachi)
Munir Ahmad, better known as
Munir Niazi, SI (1928–2006) was one of the best-known and admired Urdu poets
from Pakistan who also produced good poetry in the Panjabi language.
Niazi was born in Khanpur on 19 April 1928, a village near Hushiyarpur, India.
He hails from the famous Niazi tribe. He was initially educated at Khanpur and
after the partition of India he migrated to newly independent Pakistan and
settled in Sahiwal, where he passed his matriculation. He earned an intermediate
degree from S.E. College, Bahawalpur and a B.A. from Diyal Singh College in
Lahore, Pakistan.
Munir Niazi launched a weekly, Saat Rang, from Sahiwal in 1949. He wrote
numerous songs for films and made his name as the foremost movie song writer of
Pakistan. He also wrote for newspapers, magazines and radio. In 1960 he
established a publication institute, Al-Misal. Lately he was associated with
Lahore Television and lived in Lahore till his death.
Taiz Hawa Aur Tanha Phool, Jungle mein Dhanak, Dushmanoon Kai Darmiyan Sham and
Mah-e-Munir are his popular Urdu publications. In Punjabi he has published Safar
di Raat, Char Chup Cheezan and Rasta Dasan Walay Tarey. His effective imagery
conveys pictures in few words. He has experimented with poetic forms and has
tried to create a new style, rhythm and diction in Urdu poetry. Innocence,
mythology, nostalgia, dreams, eroticism, and romance are some of his most common
themes.
Munir Niazi died of respiratory illness on 26 December 2006 in Lahore.