AMU Prof becomes Chairman of Qatar based literary organisation

Aligarh : The prestigious literary award of the sub-continent, ‘Majlis-e-Frogh-e-Urdu Adab’ will now have a new Chairman on the Indian Jury.

Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) faculty member, Prof M Shafey Kidwai has been appointed as the Chairman of the renowned Qatar based literary organisation—which until recently had the late Indian theorist, literary critic, and Urdu scholar, Prof Gopi Chand Narang on the honorary post.

“The ‘Majlis-e-Frogh-e-Urdu Adab’ sets forth a platform to encourage fresh litterateurs in the domain who are mentored by experienced writers and poets with distinctive styles and practices. As the Chairman of the Adab Aalmi Award Jury Committee from India, one of the important roles will be to acknowledge those adept at the art”, said Majlis Chairman, Mr Mohammad Atiq.

Extending congratulations, AMU Vice Chancellor, Prof Tariq Mansoor said: “I am pleased to see that Prof Kidwai has been chosen to head the jury of a prestigious award. The university community is celebrating the dedication he has shown on the way to a well-deserved and earned success”.

Prof Kidwai is a known scholar, academic, bilingual critic, translator and author.

He has been writing for a number of reputed Urdu and English journals. His reviews and articles regularly appear in The Hindu, The Hindustan Times, The Indian Express, The Outlook, The Book Review, The Indian Literature, The Frontline and others.

He has authored five books in English and eight in Urdu and published more than 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals.

He is a recipient of the Sahitya Academy award (2019), Kalinga Literary Award (2021), Iqbal Samman (highest literary award of Madhya Pradesh Government, 2018) and Amir Khusro award (highest literary award of Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy, 2017).

Prof Kidwai has been teaching communication studies, film studies, broadcast journalism, sports journalism and Urdu journalism for over 35 years at the Department of Mass Communication, AMU.