Rahi

Raghubeer Saran Divakar Rahi was a noted Urdu poet born in 1914 in Amroha in Uttar Pradesh. He was also a practising lawyer and an active political figure. He believed strongly in communal harmony and humanistic values, and these themes appeared in his poetry as well as in his public life.

Rahi’s poetry is remembered for its emotional expressiveness and sensitivity. His ghazals and couplets often reflect longing, the human condition, personal introspection, social justice, and loss. One of his famous couplets goes:

“Ab to itni bhi mayassar nahin mai khaane mein - jitni hum chhod dia karte the paimaane mein”

This reflects a sense of change, memory, and what is lost over time.

He was respected not just for his poems but for his powerful oratory. He spoke in public and in literary gatherings, and his speaking ability complemented his poetic sensibilities. At the same time, he maintained his literary craft, composing in traditional Urdu poetic forms with refined use of language and imagery.

During his life, he lived through major events in Indian history (pre- and post-Independence), and they influenced him. His work represents both the personal and the societal. His poetry continues to be recited and appreciated in Urdu literary circles in India.

Rahi passed away in 1968. Though he did not achieve the same wide fame as some of his more widely published contemporaries, his work continues to survive through anthologies, shayari recitals, online collections of couplets and ghazals. His legacy is of a poet who balanced inner feeling, social conscience, and classical poetic form in Urdu.