City-based famous Urdu poet of Chinese origin Yung Van liu died on Friday evening in the city after long ailment. He was 84-year-old. Dr liu was better known as ‘Shaida Chini'.
He achieved national fame during the Indo-China war, when he expressed his anger against his home country China. His nazams and gazals became popular on lips of the people as he inspired Indians to unite against aggression.
A dentist by profession, Dr liu was perhaps the only surviving Urdu poet in India of Chinese origin in the country. liu, a city-based dental surgeon by profession was popularly known as 'Shaida Chini' in the world of Urdu literature. His complete poetry collection titled, 'lakeeron Ki Sadah' was released in 2009.
The book contains ghazals, nazams of Chini written during his career spanning more than four decades. 'lakeeron Ki Sadah'. In memory of liu a prayer ceremony was organised on Sunday at St Mary's Church in Bistupur. People from different walks of life participated in the ceremony. He was rest in peace at Beldih cemetery at Northern Town.
SRA Rizwi Chabban, president of district chapter of Anjuman Taraqqi-e-Urdu (Hind), who was present at the last journey, said Shaida was a poet of unique personality. He was a poet of Chinese origin but wrote in Urdu. He was a living example of the fact that Urdu cannot be branded as a language of a particular religion.
Born in 1931 in Kolkata, Shaida Chini had seen lots of ups and downs in life. During 1940s his family landed in Jamshedpur from Kolkata in acute financial distress. They had no choice but to send him to an Urdu school. In the beginning he found difficulties in learning Urdu alphabets. But he cultivated interest and learnt Urdu. By the time he was shifted to an English medium high school, the language had already become his first love. And it was this urge that fetched him the pen-name of Shaida Chini.
"It is a loss to the entire literary world. Chini was a man of unique personality. His writings surprised people that how come a Chinese is well versed with the alien language. But then being of Chinese origin, his writings always drew additional appreciation from all quarters. And those who listened to him first were taken by surprise," noted Shams Faridi, city-based Urdu poet. Chini, was felicitated with Firaq Gorakhpuri national award and by Anjum Tarraqui Urdu-e-Hind, for his contribution in the field of Urdu poetry.