Poet
Naseer Turabi
Biography
Naseer Turabi (15 June 1945 – 10 January 2021) was one of Pakistan's most celebrated Urdu language poets, and the son of the legendary Shia scholar and orator Allama Rasheed Turabi. His ghazals became cultural touchstones of Pakistani literature and television, his verse reaching millions through some of the most beloved dramas of the modern era.
Early Life
Born in Hyderabad Deccan on 15 June 1945, he migrated to Karachi with his family following the partition of India in 1947. He completed his basic education in 1962 and earned a Master's degree in Mass Communications from the University of Karachi in 1968. He was friends with fellow literary giants Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Nasir Kazmi, and Mustafa Zaidi, moving in the most distinguished circles of Urdu letters from an early age.
Literary Career
Turabi began writing poetry in 1962. His ghazals combined a classical command of Urdu prosody with a deeply personal emotional register, exploring themes of love, loss, memory, longing, and socio-political consciousness. Playback singer Ahmed Rushdi played a significant early role in bringing his work to wider audiences.
His most celebrated poem, "Woh Hamsafar Tha" — written as a response to the fall of Dhaka in 1971 — became one of the most recognized pieces in modern Urdu poetry. When the iconic drama series Humsafar used it as its theme song in 2011, rendered by Abida Parveen, the poem reached an entirely new generation and accumulated millions of YouTube views — the maximum for any Pakistani poetry in the shortest duration. He also wrote the lyrics for the theme songs of Zindagi Gulzar Hai, Mol, Khwab Saraye, and Yaqeen Ka Safar.
He served in numerous distinguished roles including Executive Member of the Pakistan Writers Guild (1978-83), Member Syndicate of Karachi University (appointed by the Governor of Sindh), and Adviser at Hamdard University developing curricula for Urdu programs. In 2020, he was awarded the Allama Iqbal Award for Urdu Poetry by the Pakistan Academy of Letters.
Death
Naseer Turabi died on 10 January 2021 in Karachi at the age of 75, due to a heart attack and respiratory issues. He was buried at Wadi-e-Hussain graveyard in Karachi.
Notable works
Aks-e-Faryadi (2000), Laraib (2016), Shairiyat, Lughat-ul-Awam
Bibliography
4 works
- Aks-e-Faryadi (2000)
His debut and most celebrated poetry collection. Includes the iconic ghazal "Woh Hamsafar Tha," written in response to the fall of Dhaka in 1971, later used as the theme of the drama series Humsafar (2011) and rendered by Abida Parveen.
- Shairiyat
A reflective work exploring the theoretical foundations and aesthetics of Urdu poetry, including Turabi's insights into poetic structure, form, and metaphor. Prescribed by the Board of Secondary Education Sindh in the Intermediate syllabus.
- Laraib (2016)
A collection of devotional poetry including na'at, manqabat, and salaam, paying tribute to sacred Islamic figures through lyrical verse.
- Lughat-ul-Awam
A dictionary of colloquial Urdu expressions and vernacular idioms, offering a sociolinguistic perspective on common speech and evolving popular usage.
Videos
Family tree
Salman Turabi
Aleya Turabi
Batool Turabi
Taha Turabi
Tahira Turabi
Naseer Turabi
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This profile was compiled from publicly available sources including Wikipedia. All biographical information is attributed to its original sources.