Basir Sultan Kazmi

Born in Pakistan (1955) Basir Sultan Kazmi is a poet in the ghazal tradition of his illustrious father Nasir Kazmi (1925-1972).  He studied and taught English Literature at the Government College Lahore. He edited Ravi (1974) and was the office bearer of the college literary and dramatic societies. He moved to the UK in 1990 and did his M.Ed (1991) and M.Phil (2000) from the University of Manchester and PGCE in English (1995).  From 1991-92 he was the news editor/reader for the BBC’s Asian Programme. In 1992 he won the North West Playwrights Workshop Award. From 1993-96 he was a Literature Adviser to the North West Arts Board. His plays were performed at many Northern theatres, and he has been conducting poetry/drama workshops all over the UK in high schools, colleges, and two universities (Bradford & Chester).

Basir’s collected works Shajar Honay Tak Kulliyat-e-Basir Sultan Kazmi (2015) includes four collections of poetry: Mauj-e-Khayal (1997), Chaman Koi Bhi Ho (2009), Hawa-e-Tarab (2015), Chaunsath Khanay Chaunsath Nazmein (2015), a long play, Bisaat (1987) and three short plays.

An English translation of Basir’s long play Bisaat was published as The Chess Board (1997) and a translation of his poetry was published as Passing Through (2014). Translations of his ghazals and poems have also appeared in many magazines and anthologies in the UK, including A Little Bridge (1997)  and Generations of Ghazals (2003).  Basir has also written extensively on his father's life, personality, and poetry. His poem, ‘Taking Time,’ selected by the Poems for the Waiting Room project (2001), was displayed in UK hospitals and clinics. One of his couplets, with English translation (‘The true-hearted can settle — no matter which land./A flower wants to bloom, wherever its garden.’), was carved in stone and installed at McKenzie Square in Slough in 2008. Basir has been awarded an MBE (2013) for services to literature as a poet. He has recited his poetry in several cities in Britian, Europe, Pakistan, India, the Middle East, and the USA. He currently teaches in Manchester. Basir’s play Bisaat has recently been included in the A Level syllabus.

According to Debjani Chatterjee MBE, “Basir Sultan Kazmi’s poetry is distinguished by its craftsmanship, elegance, and lyrical imagery. It is poetry that is rooted in the richness of Urdu tradition but also looks outwards to world literature.”