Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Renowned Urdu poet, journalist, literary critic, dramatist and short story writer Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi was remembered on the occasion of his birth anniversary on Monday. Born on November 20, 1916 in the village Anga of Khushab, his birth name was Ahmed Shah Awan.
He got his early education from a high school in Campbellpur in 1931, (now Attock), around the time when he wrote his first poem. He studied at Government College Attock. Later, he studied at Sadiq Egerton College in Bahawalpur. He graduated from the University of the Punjab, Lahore in 1935.
He wrote 50 books on poetry, fiction, criticism, journalism and art.
He was a major figure in contemporary Urdu literature. His poetry was distinguished by its humanism, and his Urdu afsana (short story) work is considered by some second only to Munshi Prem Chand in its depiction of rural culture.
He was also the editor and publisher of the literary magazine Funoon for almost half a century.
He received awards such as the Pride of Performance in 1968 and Sitara-e-Imtiaz in 1980 for his literary contribution. He died on 10 July 2006 of complications from asthma at Punjab Institute of Cardiology in Lahore.
