Qamar Badayuni

Qamar Badayuni, whose real name was Munshi Qamarul Hasan, was born on 1 March 1876 in Badayun, a historic town in Uttar Pradesh. He lived his life largely in Badayun, where he also died on 1 July 1941. As a poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Qamar worked in the classical tradition of Urdu poetry. His pen name “Qamar” is how he is best known to readers.

His poetry is marked by elegance of language, classical diction, and traditional forms. He composed ghazals, couplets (sher), nazms, following the conventions of meter and rhyme typical of his period. Though perhaps not as widely remembered today as some of his contemporaries, his work remains in collections of Urdu poetry and is respected for its craftsmanship and classical style.

Qamar Badayuni witnessed significant historical and cultural changes in India during his lifetime, including the period of British colonial rule, growing movements of reform and awakening, and the tensions those created in literary circles between classical and new styles. Despite this, he appears to have maintained a commitment to traditional poetic values: precision of language, refined expression, and emotional restraint.

Today his poems are preserved on sites dedicated to Urdu poetry, and his verses continue to be read by those interested in the classical Urdu heritage. His life and works are a part of the literary history of Badayun, a city that has produced many Urdu poets and has been a center of Urdu literary culture.