Syed Iftekhar Hussain is generally considered to be a poet associated with the Progressive Writers Movement but he did not ever allow its ideology overpower his poetry. He was born in a place called Imlipur in Azamgarh. He belonged to family of deep religious conviction. His father Syed Abdul Hameed was the Imam of a mosque in Mumbai. Azmi, however, was not influenced by religious thoughts and he chose to follow the Marxist ideology instead. First, he sought counselling on his poetry from Kaifi Azmi who was a friend and also came from the same place. Although he published his first collection entitled Kun but he could not publish the second one that had been collected and entitled Unkahi as death claimed him on 12 March 1977.