What happens when solitude becomes not loneliness, but a space for poetry?

In this episode of Rekhta Room, poet Qamar Abbas Qamar joins Faisal Fehmi for an intimate conversation about language, solitude, memory and the mysterious ways in which a sher arrives.

Qamar grew up in Ghosi, Mau, surrounded by Bhojpuri and Awadhi rather than Urdu. His relationship with Urdu began at home and through the Azaai tehzeeb of majlises, where he listened to marsiya, noha, salaam and manqabat from childhood. Long before he began writing, these traditions gave him an instinctive ear for the rhythm and rawani of the language.

From studying at Madrasa Husainia to choosing Persian at Shia College, Lucknow, Qamar traces the influences that shaped his literary journey. He remembers discovering ghazals through radio and the voices of Jagjit Singh and Mehdi Hassan, before attempting his first lines around 2007.

But at the heart of this conversation is his relationship with solitude.

Every night, Qamar puts his phone away for an hour. It is his time for ehtesaab. To think about the people he has met, the people he has lost, and the life he has lived. Somewhere in that silence, poetry often finds him.

He also opens up about aamad and aavard, recalling how a misra once arrived unexpectedly during a crowded metro journey. He reflects on what makes a sher stay with us, why love never really disappeared from poetry, and turns to Faiz Ahmed Faiz's "Raqeeb Se" to explain how love can simply change its form.

There is also the story behind the two Qamars in his name, a rapid-fire journey through Jaun Elia, Parveen Shakir, Shamsur Rahman Faruqi, Momin, Mir, Noon Meem Rashid and Ahmad Faraz, and the poet from history he would most like to befriend. Mirza Ghalib.

The episode closes, as it should, with Qamar Abbas Qamar reading one of his own ghazals.

What happens when philosophy finds its way into a ghazal?

In Episode 7 of Rekhta Room, poet Ashu Mishra sits down with Faisal Fehmi to talk about his unusual journey from computer science and a gold medal in philosophy to writing Urdu poetry.

Ashu traces his love for literature back to his school years, discovering Premchand, Renu and Agyeya on his journalist uncle’s bookshelf. He began writing in Hindi before finding his way to the Urdu ghazal around 2016.

The conversation moves naturally between poetry and philosophy, creativity and craft, social media and the temptation to write for views. Ashu also challenges the romantic idea of aamad, arguing that a sher is not simply a divine gift. It grows from everything a poet has read, experienced and quietly absorbed.

There are conversations about Dostoevsky and Premchand, Shoojit Sircar and Vishal Bhardwaj, the importance of chanchalpan in poetry, and what makes the great poets unforgettable.

And before the episode ends, Ashu Mishra does what he does best. He recites one of his own ghazals.

Rekhta Room is an intimate podcast from Rekhta Foundation, bringing together poets, writers, artists and new voices for unhurried conversations about Urdu, creativity, life and the stories behind their work.

What happens when you grow up walking the same streets as Ghalib, Momin and Mir Dard?

Poet Iqbal Ashhar joins Faisal Fehmi for a fascinating conversation about growing up in Old Delhi, the beauty of correct Urdu diction, and how a ghazal truly comes to a poet.

He breaks down aamad vs aavard, explains why rhythm and sound are at the heart of Urdu poetry, and asks a timely question: Can AI master the rules of poetry but still miss its soul?

From Ghalib and Nasir Kazmi to Jaun Elia, Faraz and Parveen Shakir, the conversation moves through generations of Urdu greats before ending with a special reading from Ashhar’s Udaas Rehne Lage.

Rekhta Room. Where Urdu finds its voice, one conversation at a time.