JEDDAH — Mukhtarunnisa, or popularly known as Gulnar Afreen, is a common man's poetess, although her diction and style also appeal intellectuals. Born on August 15, 1947 in Tonk, Rajasthan, Afreen's family migrated to Karachi, Pakistan in 1951. Like her father Sahebzadah Mateenullah Khan Wasiq Tonki, Afreen instead of siding with the feudal fought for the rights of the underprivileged. Her poetry also largely talks about love, sympathy, hate and human fear. In Indian literary circles she was called a rebel poetess for her eloquent expressions when painting the painful conditions of the distressed. Afreen without mincing words refuted this and said that her approach is realistic in highlighting the people's pathetic conditions like any natural poet. She has participated in many international “Mushairah's (poetry symposium)” in India, Pakistan, Europe and America during her poetic career spanning more than five decades. A few couplets penned by Afreen are — Kis shakhs ne likhkhi hai biyaze ghame hasti Mere hi fasane men mera naam na aaya Mere bachche mera sarmayae jaan hain Gulnar Hai meri zaat bhi taqseem kai zaaton mein Paaon mein bhanwer bandh ke maujon se ulajhti Kashti ke muqabil koi toofan to hota Afreen is a fan of Ghazal maestro Mir Taqi Mir. Among the contemporary poets she likes Mustafa Zaidi, John Elia, Professor Manzoor Hussain Shore, Rais Amrohvi, Qabil Ajmeri and Ustaz Qamar Jalali. Poetry runs in Afreen's family. Her grandfather Ehsanullah Khan's couplet that is admired by many Urdu lovers is — Unhen dekho woh rukhsat ho rahe hain Mujhe dekho main rukhsat kar raha hoon His father Wasiq Tonki too was a poet and was popular in Pakistani Urdu literary circles. According to Afreen, her ancestors Nawab Muhammad Amir Khan came to Tonk from the Frontiers; they were Yusufzai Pathans. In 1806, Amir Khan conquered it from Balwant Rao Holkar. Later, the British government took over from Amir Khan. As per the treaty of 1817, British government then returned it back to Amir Khan. Tonk was founded in 1818 by Amir Khan who was granted land by the ruler of Indore. Tonk is very famous center of Urdu poetry and literature in Rajasthan. Famous romantic poets like Akhtar Sheerani, Makhmoor Saeedi, Jauher Saeedi and famous Professor Inayet Ali Khan belong to this princely state. Afreen, who has a son and a daughter living in Canada, has lived in the Kingdom for quite some time. Her late husband Syed Nasir Hussain Zaidi was an engineer who worked at the Jeddah Airport; she has also lived in Riyadh and Dammam. “We used to organize “Mushairah's” and literary functions in which many guest and local poets from the subcontinent participated,” reminisced Afreen who was here in the Kingdom for Umrah. She said she missed all those who became her friends when she lived in the Kingdom. Afreen believes that Islam has provided women with the most secured and respectable place in human history, giving them all the rights that no other religion had ever imagined. — SG
