پیر علی محمد راشدی کی اردو ادبی خدمات کا جائزہ AN OVERVIEW OF URDU LITERARY SERVICES RENDERED BY PIR ALI MUHAMMAD RASHIDI Section Urdu Literature

Abstract

Some God gifted personalities are exceptional in erudition and scholarship who stamp indelible imprints on the sands of time, Pir Ali Muhammad Rashidi was one of them. Though he had not acquired formal education from school, college or universities, yet he was a leading learned man of his time. He was well versed in Arabic, Persian, Urdu, English and Sindhi languages. What to talk of his command over Urdu language, even Urdu speaking scholars were envious of his chaste Urdu language and their laudatory remarks exist in many books of literature and journalism. He was both an accomplished literary figure and a renowned Journalist. He still occupies an outstanding place in Urdu literature as a writer and a journalist. His literary and journalistic works such as “One Unit” and “Roodad-e-Chaman” carry much weight and value even today with reference to current social political economic conditions of our country. The book “Roodad-e-Chaman” consists of 23 articles on political perspective of Pakistan. His columns in Daily Jang were also worth reading. He wrote a weekly column in Daily Jang from Hong Kong from 1963 to 64 under title “Maktoob-e-Mashriq-e-Baeed”. He again started writing a weekly column “Mashriq o Maghrib” in daily Jang from 1964 to 87. He continued to write a daily comical column under a title “Waghera Waghera” from 1964 to 87, in which he revealed a many mystery. He was such an insightful journalist and popular that he was given a title of the spokesperson of the society. His contribution in weekly magazine “Akhbar-e-Jahan” was quite commendable. There would be no more to endow him with a title of “Father of Urdu Journalism” for his insight and political acumen and lifelong contribution in Urdu papers, magazines and other publications.