Azhar Nawaz on How He Wanted to Sing, But Became a Poet | Rekhta Room | Season 1 | Episode 3

Azhar Nawazon on How He Wanted to Sing, But Became a Poet | Rekhta Room | Season 1 | Episode 3 . He never sat down to learn meter. He learned it by singing ghazals as a boy. In this Rekhta Room session, poet Azhar Nawaz talks to Faisal Fehmi about how he got here. He grew up in Anjan Shaheed, a village in Azamgarh, in a household already full of poetry, with a father who taught Urdu and an elder brother who wrote. But his own passion was singing. His father encouraged him to recite ghazals in tarannum, and that habit gave him a natural ear for behar long before he wrote a line of his own. He studied English Literature at Jamia Millia Islamia and completed his PhD at Aligarh Muslim University. On the craft itself, he's refreshingly plain. He doesn't believe in trance-like inspiration. He watches for paradoxical situations in ordinary life, notes them down, and shapes them into couplets later, with real attention to word choice. He also talks about sketching, painting, and his taste in films, Hollywood mystery and thriller, along with Korean and Japanese cinema. The session ends with a rapid-fire round on famous poets and a recitation of one of his known ghazals, including the couplet on the "Qissa-e-Taakhir", the story of delay. . Chapters: 00:00:00 Meet Azhar Nawaz: A Modern Voice in Urdu Poetry 00:01:25 From Anjan Shaheed to PhD: Azhar’s Academic Journey 00:05:27 Musical Roots: How Tarannum Shaped His Poetry 00:08:45 The Secret to Writing Poetry in Perfect Meter 00:12:15 Hobbies: Sketching, Music, and Mystery Movies 00:13:55 Is Poetry Inspiration or Craft? Azhar Explains 00:18:05 Rapid Fire: One Word Reactions to Legendary Poets 00:20:50 Ahmad Faraz vs. Jaun Elia: Who Would He Befriend? 00:22:15 The Ultimate Choice: Mirza Ghalib or Mir Taqi Mir? 00:23:45 Azhar Nawaz Recites His Famous Ghazals . About Rekhta Room Rekhta Room is where Urdu finds its voice, one conversation at a time. Presented by Rekhta Foundation, the world's largest platform for Urdu language and literature, Rekhta Room is an intimate show that brings together celebrated poets, powerful new voices of the young generation, and beloved artists and celebrities who carry Urdu in their heart and craft. Each episode is a deep, unhurried conversation between our host and a guest, an honest exploration of their life, their journey, and the work that defines them. These aren't just sit-down interviews. A guest might break into shayari mid-conversation, sing a few lines unplugged, or read something they've never shared before. You never quite know where an episode will go. Some of our guests have spent fifty years with Urdu. Some are just getting started. All of them have a story worth an hour or less of your time. . About Jashn-e-Rekhta Jashn-e-Rekhta is the world’s largest cultural festival celebrating the beauty, depth, and living spirit of the Urdu language. Held annually, it brings together poets, musicians, writers, thinkers, and artists from across the world to create a space of poetry, music, conversations, and storytelling. From soul-stirring mushairas and spellbinding musical evenings to intimate dialogues and immersive cultural experiences, the festival is where language turns into emotion and heritage finds a contemporary voice. More than a festival, Jashn-e-Rekhta is a movement that keeps Urdu alive, relevant, and deeply connected across generations. . #azharnawaz #rekhtaroom #urdupoetry #shayari #urdushayari #urdughazal #amu . About Rekhta Foundation: Rekhta Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation committed to preserving, promoting, and celebrating the Urdu language and its rich literary and cultural legacy. Through digital archives, learning platforms, publications, festivals, and community initiatives, the Foundation works to make Urdu accessible and meaningful for audiences worldwide. By bridging classical traditions with modern platforms and voices, Rekhta Foundation ensures that the language continues to inspire, connect, and evolve with time. . IMPORTANT COPYRIGHT NOTICE © Rekhta Foundation. All rights reserved. Unauthorised downloading, clipping, re-uploading, or reuse of this content (audio/video/visuals) is strictly prohibited without written permission. . External Links: Website: https://rekhta.org/ Instagram:   / jashnerekhtaofficial   Rekhta Books: https://rekhtabooks.com/ Rekhta Learning: https://rekhtalearning.com/