He looks frail but his voice carries the same zest and drive it did more than a decade ago, when I first heard him at an informal writer’s confluence he had organised in his bungalow at Allahabad, in the honour of visiting Pakistani novelist Intezar Hussain. The command was over language, one of the finest in the world, that rose beyond the physical and mental boundaries to a state of literary and intellectual ecstasy.
The evening came afresh on after 14 years, in a rare exchange of dialogue over a cup of tea, brewed by the man, who flung himself on the chair complaining of growing age and failing health. A literary genius, poet and theorist, Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, who has nurtured a whole generation of Urdu writers since the 1960s, and founded the new movement in Urdu literature is hopeful that Urdu, though deserted by the people, who once used and patronised it, may find a new lease of life.
Faruqi, editor of Shabkhoon and a former civil servant, was in Bangalore to attend the sixth national council of state Urdu academies. He spoke to Bala Chauhan of Deccan Herald about the status of Urdu and Muslims in India. Excerpts:

Urdu is one of the finest languages in the world but why has it not been popularised?
Urdu received its first setback when it was deserted by Hindus, who spoke it, after Independence. Then it was also neglected by Muslims. They were looking for only short term gains. The language somewhere started being identified as a Muslim issue. Now, there are too many prejudices against Urdu. People say Urdu is a beautiful language but don’t do anything to popularise it. They don’t teach it.

You were the first person to challenge the definition of Urdu as lashkar (army)…
Yes, it is normally held that Urdu means army (lashkar). It is not true. Urdu is a Turkish word, which means hoard. During Mughal emperor Akbar’s period, it referred to a place where he camped, which included his court hall, market place, etc. In 1585 he left Fatehpur Sikri. Thereafter he had a rolling headquarters, which was referred as Urdu. In 1648 Shahjahan made Delhi his headquarters and called it Urdu-e-mohalla-Shahjahanebad. By the end of the 18th century, when Persian supremacy ended, people adopted Dehlavi, also called Rekhta or Hindvi as the language of Shahjahanebad. It was later shortened to Urdu.

Why do you think Urdu never picked up in India?
Because it was not encouraged, especially in regions where it was spoken most, and even where Muslim population was dominant. If Urdu has survived in India it is because of states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, Hyderabad which adopted, retained and promoted it despite the fact that they were non-Urdu speaking states. In Karnataka there are 4,000 Urdu primary schools but there’s not a single school in Uttar Pradesh, the so called cultural mainland of Muslims. I blame even Muslims for the downslide of Urdu. They themselves gave up the language. It’s not the poverty of language, but the poverty of speakers, who left the language. It’s their loss. Also, the notion is that learning Urdu is of no use because it doesn’t qualify one for the job market. Why are you targeting Urdu only? One should find out how many Hindi-medium candidates have got jobs in the market. It’s a mindset.

Why have we always had a Muslim stereotype?
The typical image of a Muslim is that he wears a cap and pajama above his heels, has a flowing beard and beats up his wife. Muslims are blamed for plural marriages. Look at national statistics. You will find more plural marriages and instances of domestic violence among Hindus. And now every Muslim is a suspect terrorist. People have forgotten that the first officer who died in an armed conflict for the country was Brigadier Usman and the officer who was decorated with the Param Vir Chakra after the 1971 war was Abdul Hameed. It’s a mindset that Muslims are violent. Why doesn’t media combat it? We have lived in the country for 1,200 years but we are still seen as secondary citizens.

Why hasn’t the Muslim leadership taken the initiative?
Even they have failed the community. Before 1940, even the Muslim League didn’t want a separate state for Muslims. And Muslims did not know what their fate would be after the Partition. They were always content with short term gains, which has been a big reason for the regression.

What about the politicians?
I hold the Congress responsible for ruining the lot of Muslims. There’s a strong Hindutva streak in them. In 1948, Sardar Patel declared that no Muslim should be employed in police service. Indira Gandhi cancelled the rule in 1971 declaring it as a Congress move. But who did it first? The Babri Masjid issue cropped up first in 1949 when Pt Govind Ballabh Pant, a Congressman, clandestinely kept an idol in the Masjid. The monument was locked in 1950 and opened during Rajiv Gandhi’s time. The first anti-Muslim pogrom took place in 1969, under the Congress government. Some 12 Muslims were killed in Ahmedabad. Even the Malliana riots in Meerut, UP, took place under the Congress government.

How is to be a minority, especially a Muslim in India?
I empathise with the anger in the community. Our presence is demonised and vilified.