Top 10 Best Urdu writers

[aikzhobi]

1. Mushtaq Ahmad Yousfi
2. Molana Yousaf Ludhyanvi
3. Naseem Hijazi
4. Qamar Ajnalvi
5. Ibn e insha
6. Mufti Taqi Usmani
7. Sadeeq Salik
8. Abul Hassan Abbasi
9. Dr. Younus Butt
10. Inayatullah Al-tamsh

 

[LordEddardStark]

I hope you are joking. No serious reader of Urdu literature would include any of these 10 in the best writers' list, except maybe Mushtaq Ahmed Yousfi. But he'll have hell of a competition to get in there.

Mufti Taqi Usmani, Maulana Yousuf Ludhyanvi or Abu Al Hassan Abbasi (who is he?) are not even considered Urdu writers by any definition, unless you are going to include religious writing in your list too.

 

[aikzhobi]

I hope you are joking. No serious reader of Urdu literature would include any of these 10 in the best writers' list, except maybe Mushtaq Ahmed Yousfi. But he'll have hell of a competition to get in there.

Mufti Taqi Usmani, Maulana Yousuf Ludhyanvi or Abu Al Hassan Abbasi (who is he?) are not even considered Urdu writers by any definition, unless you are going to include religious writing in your list too.

Have you read them?

 

[Black Zero]

Dr. Younus Butt (B-grade copy of Yousafi)


(Islamic jihadi romance category)
Naseem Hijazi
Inayatullah Al-tamsh
Qamar Ajnalvi


imo, very immature list

 

[GoUgandaCranes]

i've immense respect for shafeeq-ur-rehman. his books "himaqatain", "madd-o-jazr", "shagoofay", and "kirnain" happen to be my favorite books. that whole happy go lucky style of writing, character creation, situation creation etc. has remained with me.

insha is also someone who writes immensely and i've only read james thurber who comes close to such crisp commentary with so much natural ease.

yousufi is great but i'd rate shafeeq ur rehman over him any day.

hijazi is too black and white - us against the world kinda writer. maybe the world is out here to get us, but that doesn't really make for good reading.

read shahab, mumtaz mufti, bano qudsia, and ashfaq ahmed and it was good.

ibn-e-safi may not be considered as a literary writer but man his novels and characters are amazing. read all 102 or 103 or whatever the number of his imran series novels in a week, they were so good that i couldn't stop myself from reading them. non-stop sort of stuff. underrated now a days is he.

manto was a major taboo, when i read him, didn't find anything that could be termed as a taboo. he has written what he felt and all of it makes a lot of sense.

there are so many others too however i've such limited literary credentials so i can't even think of them all. personally, shafeeq ur rehman remains my favorite, and to this day i've two of his books write next to my pillow. i'll never get over "neeli jheel" or "mad-o-jazr". never.

 

[IAJ]

So how would you rate Ahmed Raza Khan Barelvi (ra), purely as an urdu writer?

 

[SarfiBabarHaris]

Patras Bokhari: Patras Kay Mazameen

 

[ExpressPacer]

I haven't read a lot of Urdu books but I liked Munstansir Hussain Tarrar.

 

[last_knight]

Ibn e Safi was a supreme master.

Mumtaz Mufti
Ashfaq Ahmad
Ghulam Abbas
Pitras Bukhari

On another note, Best urdu book
"Ishq ka Sheen". Many folds better than Raja Gidh. Hasn't got the fame it deserves.

 

[last_knight]

i've immense respect for shafeeq-ur-rehman. his books "himaqatain", "madd-o-jazr", "shagoofay", and "kirnain" happen to be my favorite books. that whole happy go lucky style of writing, character creation, situation creation etc. has remained with me.

insha is also someone who writes immensely and i've only read james thurber who comes close to such crisp commentary with so much natural ease.

yousufi is great but i'd rate shafeeq ur rehman over him any day.

hijazi is too black and white - us against the world kinda writer. maybe the world is out here to get us, but that doesn't really make for good reading.

read shahab, mumtaz mufti, bano qudsia, and ashfaq ahmed and it was good.

ibn-e-safi may not be considered as a literary writer but man his novels and characters are amazing. read all 102 or 103 or whatever the number of his imran series novels in a week, they were so good that i couldn't stop myself from reading them. non-stop sort of stuff. underrated now a days is he.

manto was a major taboo, when i read him, didn't find anything that could be termed as a taboo. he has written what he felt and all of it makes a lot of sense.

there are so many others too however i've such limited literary credentials so i can't even think of them all. personally, shafeeq ur rehman remains my favorite, and to this day i've two of his books write next to my pillow. i'll never get over "neeli jheel" or "mad-o-jazr". never.

Try "Ishq ka Sheen"

 

[CricketCartoons]

So Manto doesn't feature among the top 10? Always knew. His work is sold on railway stations in north india.

 

[LordEddardStark]

Have you read them?

No I have not. Religious books are not particularly my cup of tea.

 

[kaptaan.talli]

No manto? lol

 

[Mian]

No mention of Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi, Insha g, Patras and Ashfaq Ahmed? Any urdu writers list without them shouldn't be taken seriously.

 

[LordEddardStark]

Prose writers as per my personal preference.

1. Manto
2. Qurat ul Ain Haider
3. Prem Chand
4. Krishn Chandar
5. Ismet Chughtai
6. Shaukat Siddiqui
7. Mumtaz Mufti
8. Mushtaq Ahmed Yousfi
9. Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi
10. Rajindar Singh Bedi
11. Abdullah Hussain
12. Shafiq ur Rehman
13. Patras Bukhari
14. Ghulam Abbas
15. Ashfaq Ahmed

 

[Jin Chacha]

Had some huge Ibn-e-Safi fans in my family but never got around to reading them. Anyone read the English translations of his novels? Would ideally like to read the originals but I doubt I can find them outside Pakistan.

Also on the topic of detective novels anyone here remember Ishtiaq Ahmad? Not really top ten (or even top thousand) material but he has to be the most prolific urdu writer ever. Used to come up with a new novel every month. Had some pretty nasty and extreme views though.

 

[Black Zero]

Had some huge Ibn-e-Safi fans in my family but never got around to reading them. Anyone read the English translations of his novels? Would ideally like to read the originals but I doubt I can find them outside Pakistan.

Also on the topic of detective novels anyone here remember Ishtiaq Ahmad? Not really top ten (or even top thousand) material but he has to be the most prolific urdu writer ever. Used to come up with a new novel every month. Had some pretty nasty and extreme views though.

One of my grade 9 class fellow was massive fan of Ishtiaq Ahmed and and when one day teacher asked the class about their future plans, my this class fellow said "Jassos" and I loved it as everyone else was saying doctor/teacher/sportsman. His family got sick of his obsession but he left his home and went straight to Ishtiaq's place and lived (and helped with research/writing) for couple of months before he returned home.

 

[Jin Chacha]

His family got sick of his obsession but he left his home and went straight to Ishtiaq's place and lived (and helped with research/writing) for couple of months before he returned home.

Now that is some commitment. While I don't agree with the views he propagated nor rate his novels very highly, one has to accept that there have been few if any Pakistani authors who wrote for children and had a fan following like Ishtiaq Ahmad.

 

[aikzhobi]

Actually my list was on behalf of Urdu literature talent. I have read Farsi (Persian) and Arabic also. So in my opinion these were some best Urdu literature writes. You all have your own choices, its your right.

 

[Obaidd]

My fav Urdu authors and books
Yusufi: Aab e gum, Khakim badhan, zargazasht
Manto: Mantonama
Shafeequrrehman: Himaqatein, Shagoofay
Patras: Patras ke mazameen
Ibn-e-Insha: Urdu ki akhri kitab

 

[Obaidd]

i've immense respect for shafeeq-ur-rehman. his books "himaqatain", "madd-o-jazr", "shagoofay", and "kirnain" happen to be my favorite books. that whole happy go lucky style of writing, character creation, situation creation etc. has remained with me.

Happy go lucky, no real tension, just fun. Cricket would also feature in his work. I found his books in my home growing up, and this was my intro to Urdu literature.

insha is also someone who writes immensely and i've only read james thurber who comes close to such crisp commentary with so much natural ease.

Only read Urdu ki akhri kitab found it very funny.

yousufi is great but i'd rate shafeeq ur rehman over him any day.

Yusufi is my favourite. He’s mad funny but there’s also some sadness in his work like aab e gum where he explores different characters living in a nostalgic past. I think I’ve read all his books.

hijazi is too black and white - us against the world kinda writer. maybe the world is out here to get us, but that doesn't really make for good reading.

Not my style. Read maybe one famous book by this guy, didn’t find it interesting.

read shahab, mumtaz mufti, bano qudsia, and ashfaq ahmed and it was good.

Shahabnama too was found in my home and my parents/uncles had read it so I tried reading too. Great but I’d always be most interested in that famous chapter ‘bamla kumari ki bechain rooh’.

Read Ashfaq Ahmed’s Shehar e Arzoo. Painfully sad but good read. Mufti, bano, intezar, etc., I’d have read some afsanay from them but not full books.

ibn-e-safi may not be considered as a literary writer but man his novels and characters are amazing. read all 102 or 103 or whatever the number of his imran series novels in a week, they were so good that i couldn't stop myself from reading them. non-stop sort of stuff. underrated now a days is he.

Not familiar with him.

manto was a major taboo, when i read him, didn't find anything that could be termed as a taboo. he has written what he felt and all of it makes a lot of sense.

People underestimate his political writings. Stuff like ‘Chacha Sam ke naam khat’ is still relevant.

there are so many others too however i've such limited literary credentials so i can't even think of them all. personally, shafeeq ur rehman remains my favorite, and to this day i've two of his books write next to my pillow. i'll never get over "neeli jheel" or "mad-o-jazr". never.

Sounds like you are really well read. Do you still read Urdu books? I haven’t really in a while.

 

[GoUgandaCranes]

Happy go lucky, no real tension, just fun. Cricket would also feature in his work. I found his books in my home growing up, and this was my intro to Urdu literature.


Only read Urdu ki akhri kitab found it very funny.


Yusufi is my favourite. He’s mad funny but there’s also some sadness in his work like aab e gum where he explores different characters living in a nostalgic past. I think I’ve read all his books.


Not my style. Read maybe one famous book by this guy, didn’t find it interesting.


Shahabnama too was found in my home and my parents/uncles had read it so I tried reading too. Great but I’d always be most interested in that famous chapter ‘bamla kumari ki bechain rooh’.

Read Ashfaq Ahmed’s Shehar e Arzoo. Painfully sad but good read. Mufti, bano, intezar, etc., I’d have read some afsanay from them but not full books.


Not familiar with him.


People underestimate his political writings. Stuff like ‘Chacha Sam ke naam khat’ is still relevant.


Sounds like you are really well read. Do you still read Urdu books? I haven’t really in a while.

I still read Urdu books but not as much as before. It's easier to watch shows or movies now as compared to reading books & over the years I've also developed a taste for more meticulous and detailed oriented literature like Tolkien's work & it's hard to find parallels of that in Urdu literature. Will still say that reading a good Urdu book and understanding the minor nuances that make language beautiful are a great experience and nothing compares or comes close to that.

If you are taking recommendations & you like light detective kind of stuff, you should read Ibn-e-Safi. His "Imran Series" is probably one of the best young adult fiction series that we have produced. All of it is online and doesn't require a lot of time so it's something that can be taken up by anyone.

Your taste in books is pretty similar to mine so I feel it'll be fun for you.

 

[Obaidd]

I still read Urdu books but not as much as before. It's easier to watch shows or movies now as compared to reading books & over the years I've also developed a taste for more meticulous and detailed oriented literature like Tolkien's work & it's hard to find parallels of that in Urdu literature. Will still say that reading a good Urdu book and understanding the minor nuances that make language beautiful are a great experience and nothing compares or comes close to that.

If you are taking recommendations & you like light detective kind of stuff, you should read Ibn-e-Safi. His "Imran Series" is probably one of the best young adult fiction series that we have produced. All of it is online and doesn't require a lot of time so it's something that can be taken up by anyone.

Your taste in books is pretty similar to mine so I feel it'll be fun for you.

Urdu ki kia baat hai. I absolutely loved reading all these great authors. My favourite type of nasr in Urdu is afsana. I have read a handful of afsana collections and Manto just takes you somewhere else and then leaves you there because afsana ends so quickly.

Tolkien is the kind of work I just can’t handle reading. Too much detail in a work of fiction for my liking. But then if that is your interest I definitely appreciate that. Was talking to a guy reading Homer but I won’t touch that stuff because I only like to start reading what I know I can finish.

Thanks for suggesting Imran series. I will try a short story out and let you know.