Over the past three centuries, Urdu has produced an immensely diverse set of poets. There is the simple yet appealing lover-next-door in Mir, the brilliant philosopher and thinker in Ghalib, excellent wordsmiths in Dagh and Josh, a revivalist and messenger in Iqbal, and a freedom fighter in Hasrat. The role of the critical rationalist and revolutionary was filled by Faiz.
It is the poet's task to find, invent and create a special language that alone will be capable of expressing his personality and sentiments. Born in 1911 in Punjab, Faiz Ahmed Faiz was to become such a master. It is crucial to recognise the importance of his work in the evolution of contemporary Urdu poetry – both what he had inherited from tradition, and what he added to it, through the analysis of his period's socio-political conditions.
Of course, all great poets would have been influenced by their contemporary political contexts. In giving voice to the reality around them, however, poets tend to use indirect expression, through metaphors and symbols. In this process, dominant literary traditions have often been brushed aside. Faiz drew his inspiration less from classical models of perfection and more from the varied and vital nature of human beings, their attitudes and behaviour; he also explored new avenues of intellectual thought. His poetic collection is subsequently infused with a kind of rebellion against established convention and decadent societal practices.
In the last years of the 19th century, a new style and attitude arose as a reaction against formalism and traditionalism. 'Progressivism' created a desire of rationality, originality and curiosity in literature and initiated much of modern political activity. This had a profound impact on Faiz. He conceived the universe as something more mysterious, meaningful and rational, and very unlike a machine. In his poetry, readers can discern a transfer from the universe conceived as a machine, to the society conceived as a well-knit organisation.