baad meñ rakhe sarāboñ ke dayāroñ meñ qadam
pahle vo saañs kī sarhad pe to aa kar dekhe
baad mein rakhe sarabon ke dayaron mein qadam
pahle wo sans ki sarhad pe to aa kar dekhe
Riyaz Latif emerged as a significant voice in Urdu poetry during the last decade of the twentieth century, and his complex but fresh poetic imagery makes him distinctive as a writer. After receiving his Ph.D. in Art History from University of Minnesota, USA, he taught art history and languages at Wellesley College and Vanderbilt University in the USA. His poems have been published in reputed literary journals in India and Pakistan. In addition to two collections of Urdu poems, Hindasa Be-khwaab Raton Ka (2006) and ‘Adam Taraash (2016), as well as a book of translations from European poets titled Mera Khoya Awazah (2014), he has published a number of critical essays, and has translated Urdu poetry and fiction into English. Originally from Ahmedabad in Gujarat, he is currently a professor at FLAME University in Pune.