The subtle poetry of Mirza Ghalib, the famed Urdu shayarof Delhi, have long amazed listeners in ghazal evenings and poetry recital sessions. Now, his wise words are broadcast on radio shows, and shared on Facebook pages dedicated to Urdu poetry. The online world is full of visually un-appealing wallpapers with his poetry written on them. Why not render a more artistic look to his written word? How about blending the art of calligraphy with Ghalib’s poetry?Welcome to the word of Urdu poetry art, and Urdu calligraphy art frames, where the philosophical gems of several great Urdu poetslike Allama Iqbal, FiraaqGorakhpuri, Josh Malihabadi, Jaun Elia, and of course, Mirza Ghalib, are written in calligraphic style, mostly with a picture of the poet alongside.
The calligraphic style employed for transcribing Urdu is Nast’aliq, which originated in Iran in the 15th century. In the Nast’aliq font, letters slope from right to left, giving a ‘hanging’ or ‘ta’liq’ appearance. It was initially devised to pen in Arabic but with time, it started being used predominantly for writing in Farsi (Persian), Urdu, Punjabi, Kashmiri and Pashto. Nastaliq font was used in writing court papers, including in the Mughal courts in India for official purposes.
It is the mainstyle used for writing Urdu in India and Pakistan. Even though Urdu, as it is partly derived from Arabic, can be written in other calligraphic styles like Diwani, Tughra and Thuluth, which are chiefly used for Islamic calligraphybutit looks most suitable in Nastaliq.Perhaps because Urdu derives from Persian too, it looks more suitable in the Nastaliq style. Also, because it has always been written in Nastaliq.
Nastaliqis compatible with Urdu poetry because it is less grand than other fonts and therefore occupies little space. Thus, you can write a full eight-line Urdu ghazal on a small sheet of paper and paste it on your walls.
Can Urdu poetry art or Urdu calligraphy art frames be included in the larger category of Islamic calligraphy art? Technically, it shouldn’t be included, as the subject matter of Urdu poetry is non-religious, and therefore, people of different religions can relate to it as well. However, considering the updated definition of Islamic art by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, USA, the term ‘Islamic art’ encompasses all the visual arts that were created in the territories where Islam was the majority religion or the religion of the ruling class. The term “Islamic art” therefore includes not just works created by Muslim artists, artisans, and architects or for Muslim patrons. It includes works created by Muslim artists for patrons following any religion, including—Christians, Jews, or Hindus—and the works created by Jews, Christians, and others, living in Islamic lands, for patrons, Muslim and others. And thus, Urdu poetry art and Urdu calligraphy art frames are often included in the larger category of Islamic art even thoughpuritans on either side would disapprove of the inclusion, and would prefer to refer to them separately.
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