Ghalib : The Man, The Times

· Penguin Random House Audio · Narrated by Vikrant Chaturvedi
3 reviews
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8 hr 54 min
Unabridged
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A brilliant biography of one of India’s greatest poets
Mirza Mohammad Asadullah Khan Ghalib began writing poetry in Persian at the age of nine and the pre-eminent poet of the time, Mir, predicted a great future for the precocious genius when he was shown his verse. But success and material rewards did not come to Ghalib easily, for the times were against him, and he did not suffer fools gladly even if they occupied positions of importance.
Ghalib was at the height of his powers when events took a turn for the worse. First came the decline of the Mughal court, then the rise of the British Empire and, finally, the Revolt of 1857. Though Ghalib lived through the upheavals and purges of the Revolt, in which many of his contemporaries and friends died and his beloved Delhi was irrevocably changed, he was a broken man and longed for death. When he died, on 15 February 1869, he left behind some of the most vivid accounts of the events of the period ever written. In this illuminating biography Pavan K. Varma evocatively captures the spirit of the man and the essence of the times he lived in.
A brilliant biography of one of India’s greatest poets Mirza Mohammad Asadullah Khan Ghalib began writing poetry in Persian at the age of nine and the pre-eminent poet of the time, Mir, predicted a great future for the precocious genius when he was shown his verse. But success and material reward...

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About the author

Pavan K. Varma studied history at St. Stephen s College, Delhi and took a degree in law from Delhi University. A member of the Indian Foreign Service, he has served in Moscow, in New York at the Indian Mission to the United Nations, in London, where he was Director of the Nehru Centre, and as India s High Commissioner in Cyprus. He is at present India s Ambassador in Bhutan.

Pavan K. Varma s books include Ghalib: The Man, The Times; Krishna: The Playful Divine; The Great Indian Middle Class; The Book of Krishna and Being Indian: Why the 21st Century Will Be India s, all published by Penguin. He has also translated Gulzar (Selected Poems), Kaifi Azmi (Selected Poems), and Atal Bihari Vajpayee (21 Poems) into English for Penguin
Pavan K. Varma studied history at St. Stephen s College, Delhi and took a degree in law from Delhi University. A member of the Indian Foreign Service, he has served in Moscow, in New York at the Indian Mission to the United Nations, in London, where he was Director of the Nehru Centre, and as Ind...

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