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By Dr. Premi Romani
Sham Lal Aima
was a well-known short story writer, a poet of good merit and a good social
worker of his time. His name, like many others—Vishwanath Dhar Mah. Jummuvi,
Dina Nath Dilgir, Tara Chand Saliq, Zanardan Teng Sagar, Sham Lal
Wali Tirath Kashmiri, Dina Nath Shahid, Nand Lal
Kaul Begarz, Ganga Dhar Dehati, Jia Lal Bhan
Barq Kashmiri etc. remain buried in the debris of time.
He was born
in 1899. The family originally lived at Drabiyar, but shifted before 1947 to
Rangteng, Ali Kadal. The family atmosphere was well disposed to the pursuit of
literature. Eminent litterateurs of the time and others who dabbled in
literature would often meet at his house and deliberate on literary themes.
Quite early in his life he developed taste for Urdu and Persian literature and
passed many examinations in these.
Sham Lal
Aima served in the State Education Department. He was a gifted teacher, knew the
basics of scouting and took great interest in teaching his students. He served
for many years in the Model School, Srinagar. In the company of such luminaries-Prem
Nath Bazaz, Prem Nath Pardesi, Dina Nath Warikoo 'Shahid', Ghulam Hyder Chisti,
he designed and prepared books for school children. For this work he was
applauded by Khwaja Ghulam Saydeen, a great educationist. Sham Lal Aima called
students a great treasure and worked hard for them. He evolved and implemented
new techniques to make teaching effective. His playway methods created eagerness
and curiosity among the learners. During one of his visits to the Valley, Pt.
Jawahar Lal Nehru was highly pleased with Aima when he watched his performance
in the programme and classroom. His consensual approach endeared him to others,
he was looked as a good friend and a guide.
Dr. Brij
Premi, son of Pt. Sham Lal Aima writes in this book Zauq-e-Nazar in 'Zauk-e-Nazar',
says that Sham Lal and Pt. Nand Lal Kaul Talib, a famous Urdu poet were
classmates. It was Pt. Nand Lal Talib who encouraged and helped him to compose
poetry.
Some excerpts from Aima's poetry.
Drowned in grief and sorrow how I am
Exchange a glance, lonely I feel
Pangs of sorrow, how these pierce,
My sorrows increase, lonely I feel,
Part the ways, your choice has been,
That warmth of love, it has gone,
Come to me, see how sad I am.
Crying hoarse I have been cruel you are,
Everything drowned in sorrow I ache,
Why so? No mercy you can show?
This is, what one calls, the feelings are
frozen.
Pt. Sham Lal was a gifted writer. He wrote
short stories and essays. He enjoyed participation in literary meets.
This is what he writes:
The lustful
eyes of the bank clerk could not resist the appealing charms of beautiful Lalita
who was contented with the poverty she was destined for. She had learnt to live
amidst pang of poverty. She never murmured or complained to anyone. She had a
belief that the rich protect the poor. She had a faith that the rich are pure in
heart with no evil designs on the poor. The devil had entered into the clerk's
ambition of being a tormentor, he sent his own wife away only to fulfill his
dirty intentions...but...."
Though his
short stories appeared mostly in The Martand, he also wrote essays
for Vitasta, Ranbir and Rattan (Jammu), Bahar
Kashmir and Phool (Lahore). When his short story 'Gurbat'
appeared in the Daily Martand, it was highly appreciated. The story
revolves round a beautiful young woman, who on account of poverty is pushed to
do menial job at the house of a bank employee. The latter looks at her with
lustful eyes but she disregards his advances. She accepts the poverty as the
reality of life and counters all the challenges boldly. The dialogues while
conveying pathos look realistic and crisp. They leave behind a profound effect,
the woman though engulfed by the situation comes out of the trap laid for her.
She does not feel disillusioned. Instead she displays bravery.
Aima wrote
many short stories, which include Navratra, Bhagwan Rama. The theme of his
stories mostly centered around religious discourses and community festivals.
Triumphs and sorrows of life, its dejections and sweetness, and other subjects
connected with life were the might of his pen. His strength in art as a short
story writer lay in his flow of sequences in stories, plot and sub-plot
construction, flow of thought and brevity accompanied by crisp descriptions. He
did not resort to jargon. His stories depict social realism, where the
characters emerge as live and full of life. Pt. Pitamber Nath Dhar Fani, a poet
himself comments: "Sham Lal Aima contributed richly and regularly to the Martand.
In editions of "Nura" and "Shivratri" Sham Lal's
compositions reveal him to be a gifted writer. Aima Sahib was a great short
story writer..."
"Nura Se Khatab"
reflects
healthy prose. Certain excellence in prose writing was achieved by him. In this
people are called upon to be dutiful and not to deviate from wrong paths. In
his other compositions Aima praises Lord Rama who came to fight evil and
injustice. About Navratra, he writes that it elevates, ennobles
and reminds us of our duties. On Janam Ashtami, he used to
organise programmes and advocated that the people should not deviate from the
path of duty. His themes were always impregnated with thought. Prof. Sarwari
says, "Aima's compositions reflect his inner feelings. In Nura Se Khatab-he
runs close to the style of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan..." Aima had written an account
of his travels in Gilgat but the manuscript was lost somewhere. Sham Lal Aima
was a sensitive individual, who responded to human suffering with urgency.
His
contributions to social work was appreciated by members of his biradari. Pt.
Dina Nath Warikoo while paying him a moving tribute in his obituary in Martand (1-7-1949)
recalled these great qualities. Sham Lal Aima died of a paralytic stroke and
lived for just 44 years. Had he lived longer, he would have attained great
heights in the field of Urdu literature.
*The author was born at Rang Teng Ali Kadal
Srinagar. Dr
Romani started his literary career in 1968. He has authored a number of books on
different aspects of Urdu and Kashmiri language and Literature. He received
inspiration in the field of literature from his illustrious father Late Dr. Brij
Premi-a noted Urdu Scholar, Critic & Researcher.
Dr. Romani has received a number of literary awards for his
contribution to Urdu literature. He is associated with many literary
organisations and has written features and serials for Radio & Doordarshan.
Source: Kashmir
Sentinel
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