Profile of Syed Azam Husain Azam
Pen Name : 'Azam'
Born : 03 Jan 1908 | Karhan, Uttar pradesh
Died : 08 Oct 1956
Relatives : Ali Abbas Husaini (Uncle)
saarā aalam hama-tan-gosh huā jaatā hai
sāz-e-hastī hai ki ḳhāmosh huā jaatā hai
sara aalam hama-tan-gosh hua jata hai
saz-e-hasti hai ki KHamosh hua jata hai
Syed Azam Hussain belonged to a distinguished family of landlords, whose members had made their mark as prominent figures in the literary circles of Urdu and Persian. Shamim Karhani, an eminent and esteemed poet was his younger brother; Ali Abbas Hussaini, a prolific short story writer and critic was his uncle. After completing his schooling from Faizabad, he went to Lucknow for higher studies and where he spent the rest of his life. In Lucknow, he would often indulge in literary discussions with Safi Lucknowi and consult him in poetry. After his passing away he became close to Aarzoo Lucknowi and would seek his advice in matters of poetry. In 1923, at the age of 18, he formally began his journey as a poet of Urdu. Since the beginning of his enterprise as a poet, he explored many forms of Urdu poetry namely, ghazal, nazm, geet, masnavi, qasida, salaam, noha, marsiya, manqabat, rubai, qataat etc. In praise of Azam’s poetry, Ali Jawad Zaidi said: “ Azam’s style of poetry is deeply rooted in simplicity and lyricism.”
His journey as a journalist began in 1929 with a monthly magazine, ‘Adab’, which he published himself. Aarzoo Lucknowi was the patron of ‘ Adab’, whereas Azam was the editor in chief. Ali Jawad Zaidi, freedom fighter, poet and litterateur said: “ Azam Hussain holds a significant place among the journalists of north India who have simultaneously contributed to the field of literature and journalism.” After the closing of ‘Adab’ due to economic reasons, he accepted the post of editor at a weekly newspaper, ‘Sarfaraz’, which touched great heights of success under his supervision. He was also the editor of a weekly, ‘Alhaadi’, which was published from Jaunpur. Later, he went on to launch his own newspapers, ‘Isteqlaal’ and ‘Roshni’. In 1956, he inaugurated, ‘Watan’ a weekly newspaper but his health restricted his professional activities and in the same year he died of asthma. He was considered a successful and distinct journalist of his times. A collection of his ghazals and nazams was published in 1981 under the title “Saaz e Khamosh”, which translates as music of silence.
