10 Most Talented Poets From Uttar Pradesh Who Have Mesmerized The World With Their Work

Uttar Pradesh is a part of the country that has always gifted us with some of the most beautiful-minded poets of all time. Be it in Hindi, Urdu or the regional languages, the poets of Uttar Pradesh have touched the hearts of poetry lovers with their verses that articulate the sublimity of emotions that we seek validation for.

For all those who find solace in written words, here’s a list of some of the finest poets ever to have come out of Uttar Pradesh.

1. Surdas

The blind artist from 15th century India, Surdas is known for his prolific contributions to devotional poetry of India. A literary genius and a gifted composer, Surdas, is believed to have written 100,000 songs which are compiled under the name “Sursagar”. Only 8000 of them could be recovered and they’re all written as hymns of Lord Krishna.

Here goes a few lines from The deeds of Kahna –

There is no end to the deeds of Kanha:
true to his promise, he tended the cows in Gokula;
Lord of the gods and compassionate to his devotees, as poor
he came as Nrisingha
and tore apart Hiranyakashipa.
When Bali spread his dominion
over the three worlds,
he begged three paces of land from him
to uphold the majesty of the gods,
and stepped over his entire domain:
here too he rescued the captive elephant.
Countless such deeds figure in the Vedas and the Puranas,
hearing which Suradasa
humbly bows before that Lord.

 

2. Tulsi Das

Acclaimed as one of the greatest poets in the world, Tulsi Das is often considered the reincarnation of Valmiki. The saint-poet and philosopher’s biggest contribution to the literary and world is perhaps, the composition of the Hanuman Chalisa. As you read his poems, you can find the depths of the reflections of Goswami Tulsi Das as he spent his time by the banks of Ganges in Varanasi…

Only the saints
who know the body’s heart
have attained the Ultimate, O Tulsi.
Realize this, and you’ve found your freedom.

While teachers trapped in tradition
know only the mirage
in the mirror.

 

3. Valmiki

Valmiki is considered to be the first poet of India and his incredible work, the epic verses of Ramayana is the first ever poetic work of India. It is quite intriguing to know how Valmiki, who was a robber in his early life turned into a sage who composed the most magnanimous epic that has ever been written.

Here’s an extract of the epic which talks a mother’s blessings:

Tears of sorrow and of suffering flowed from Queen Kausalya’s eye,
As she saw departing Sita for her blessings drawing nigh,

And she clasped the gentle Sits, and she kissed her moistened head,
And her tears like summer tempest choked the loving words she said:

‘Part we, dear devoted daughter, to thy husband ever true,
With a woman’s whole affection render love to husband’s due!

 

4. Ved Vyasa

Many are of the belief that the author of the biggest, most complex and enriched epic in the world, Mahabharata, was born in an island in Yamuna near Kalpi, Uttar Pradesh. In the incredibly magnanimous scale of the 200,000 line verses of epic, Ved Vyasa himself was a character as well.

Here’s how he describes the advent of Karna:

Now the feats of arm are ended, and the closing hour draws nigh,
Music’s voice is hushed in silence, and dispersing crowds pass by,

Hark! Like welkin-shaking thunder wakes a deep and deadly sound,
Clank and din of warlike weapons burst upon the tented ground!

Are the solid mountains splitting, is it bursting of the earth.
Is it tempest’s pealing accent whence the lightning takes its birth?

Thoughts like these alarm the people for the sound is dread and high,
To the gaze of the arena turns the crowd with anxious eye!

 

5. Amir Khusrau

The thirteenth century poet and musician who was born in Patiyali in Kasganj, Uttar Pradesh is known for his ethereal verses in both Persian and Hindi. Not only was he a spectacular poet, but was also known for founding the ghazal style of singing, which is still widely practiced in India and Pakistan.

Here’s a few words from Khusrau’s couplets:

Oh Khusrau, the river of love runs in strange directions.
One who jumps into it drowns, and one who drowns, gets across.

The creaking of the chain of Majnun is the orchestra of the lovers,
To appreciate its music is quite beyond the ears of the wise.

If I cannot see her, at least I can think of her, and so be happy;
To light the beggar’s hut no candle is better than moonlight.

My heart is a wanderer in love, may it ever remain so.
My life’s been rendered miserable in love, may it grow more and more miserable.

 

6. Kabir

The fifteenth century saint and mystic poet was probably the first secular and liberal thinking intellectual of the nation who had always questioned religion – be it Hinduism or Islam. Although, he had faced many a threats by followers of both religion, upon his death, both Hindus and Muslims who were inspired by his verses claimed him to be theirs.

The simple words of Kabir that man is yet to comprehend:

Where do you search me?
I am with you
Not in pilgrimage, nor in icons
Neither in solitudes
Not in temples, nor in mosques
Neither in Kaba nor in Kailash
I am with you O man
I am with you

 

7. Ghalib

He was the last of the Mughal poets and undoubtedly one of the most influential of them. The pathos in Ghalib’s verses are nectar to the ears but they hold the deep and profound understanding of existence. Born in Agra, Ghalib had been writing poems since the tender age of 11. He was married off at 13 which he often regarded as the second great imprisonment – the first being his own self.

Here are a few lines from Ghalib’s poetry:
Thousands of desires, each worth dying for…
Many of them I have realized…yet I yearn for more…

Why should my killer (lover) be afraid? No one will hold her responsible
For the blood which will continuously flow through my eyes all my life

We have heard about the dismissal of Adam from Heaven,
With a more humiliation, I am leaving the street on which you live…

Oh tyrant, your true personality will be known to all
If the curls of my hair slip through my turban!

 

8. Kaifi Azmi

Another legend of the recent years, Kaifi Azmi was born in Agra on May 19, 1919 and grew up to be one of the most eminent poets of the country. The biggest contribution of Kaifi Azmi was introducing Urdu poetry to the realm of Indian motion pictures.

Although Azmi started, like most Urdu shayars, with verses on romance and love, his association with the Progressive Writers’ Movement and Communist Party influenced his writing immensely towards the direction of socially relevant verses.

Have a glance at some fine lines of Kaifi Azmi:

Don’t worry, don’t open the doors of kindness
I will call out for a while, then go away,
In this very lane where the moon once bloomed
I will spend a dark night, and go away.

 

9. Majrooh Sultanpuri

He was one of the last of the soulful lyricists of Indian cinema during the 1950s and 1960s. His lyrics in Hindi are today a part of the evergreen memories of the yesteryear but his poetry in Urdu is also a rich part of the Indian literary culture. Born in Sultanpur, UP, he is considered to be one of the best avant-garde poets of the nation.

Here are his words for you:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d6kb8f2h4c&feature=youtu.be

 

10. Harivansh Rai Bachchan

He was one of the chief names in the romantic upsurge during the early 20th century of Hindi literature. Originally known as Harivansh Rai Srivastava, who later took the name Bachchan was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his immeasurable contribution to Indian literature.

Check Amitabh Bachchan, his son, recite his poetry:

These are just a few of the countless number of incredibly gifted poets from Uttar Pradesh.

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