Episodes

  • Gheebat: Gossip, Backbiting and the Art of Gheebat

    Gheebat: Gossip, Backbiting and the Art of Gheebat
    Sep 19 2026
    We all say we hate gossip, but somehow, someone else’s business is always a little too interesting. In this episode of Urdunama, Fabeha Syed takes a closer look at gheebat, meaning the art of talking about people behind their backs. From everyday gossip and the conversations that bring us closer to poetry by Firaq Gorakhpuri and Yagana Changezi, we explore why we love to talk about other people’s lives, what it does to our relationships, and where the line between venting and backbiting really lies. Tune in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    14 mins
  • Tasleem: The Meaning of Acceptance, Surrender and Letting Go in Urdu Poetry

    Tasleem: The Meaning of Acceptance, Surrender and Letting Go in Urdu Poetry
    Sep 12 2026
    What does it mean to tasleem something? More than simply accepting what is, tasleem can mean shades of acknowledgement, surrender, respect and making peace with what cannot be changed. In this episode of Urdunama, Fabeha Syed explores the word through the poetry of Ghalib, Hali, Javed Akhtar, Jigar Moradabadi and Hafeez Jalandhari, and discovers how acceptance can sometimes be its own form of courage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    14 mins
  • Ghutan: The Meaning of Suffocation in Urdu Poetry, From Kaifi Azmi to Gulzar

    Ghutan: The Meaning of Suffocation in Urdu Poetry, From Kaifi Azmi to Gulzar
    Sep 5 2026
    What does ghutan truly mean? Is it physical suffocation, an eerie silence, or the weight of deep loneliness? Or is it that heavy feeling of being trapped inside an overwhelming wave of emotion? In this episode of Urdunama, Fabeha Syed breaks down the word through the poetry of legends like Kaifi Azmi and Gulzar, among others. She traces how ghutan evolves from a simple physical sensation to a complex emotional, social, and political struggle, and ultimately, a universal longing to breathe, speak, and laugh freely again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    19 mins
  • Firaq Gorakhpuri: The Poet of Love, Longing and Pain in Urdu Poetry

    Firaq Gorakhpuri: The Poet of Love, Longing and Pain in Urdu Poetry
    Aug 29 2026
    Firaq Gorakhpuri was born on 28 August 1896 as Raghupati Sahaay Firaq. On his birth anniversary, we return to a poet who changed how love could be written about in Urdu. Firaq writes of ishq, but also of what accompanies it: desire, qurbat, longing, loneliness, memory and dard. What sets him apart is the attention he pays to these emotions. He doesn’t just describe them; he looks closely at what they do to us. In this episode, we follow some of his best-known verses and his deeply personal nazm “Jugnu” to grasp a sense of Firaq’s world, his life and the many shades of love that run through his poetry. Perhaps, along the way, we will better understand how he revolutionized Urdu poetry by blending classical Urdu romance with modern psychology and Eastern philosophy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    24 mins
  • Marz: A Word for Guilt, Longing, Pain and More

    Marz: A Word for Guilt, Longing, Pain and More
    Aug 22 2026
    In Urdu poetry, “marz” does not always mean an illness. It can be the weight of guilt, a restless heart, someone else’s manipulation, or even the problems affecting an entire society. In this episode of Urdunama, we look at verses by Ameer Minai, Rahat Indori, Akbar Allahabadi and Hali to explore how each poet gives “marz” a different meaning, and how the idea of a cure changes with it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    12 mins
  • Khud-Mukhtaar: What Does It Really Mean to Be Independent?

    Khud-Mukhtaar: What Does It Really Mean to Be Independent?
    Aug 15 2026
    What does it mean to be khud-mukhtaar? In this Independence Day episode of Urdunama, Fabeha Syed looks at the Urdu word for being independent, self-governing and able to make your own choices. But khud-mukhtaari is not simply about doing what you want. It also means living with the consequences of your choices. Through the poetry of Allama Iqbal, Munawwar Rana, and others, this episode explores ideas of freedom, choice, selfhood and responsibility, and what it really means to have ikhtiyar over your own life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    12 mins
  • Gumraah: Urdu Poetry on Being Lost, Misled and Finding the Way

    Gumraah: Urdu Poetry on Being Lost, Misled and Finding the Way
    Aug 8 2026
    We usually think of gumraah as someone who has been led astray. But is that all the word means? In this episode of Urdunama, we unpack the word, 'gum-raah', through the poetry of Khumar Barabankvi and Muneer Niazi among others. Along the way, we discover that gumraahi isn't always about taking the wrong path. Sometimes it begins with trust. Sometimes with love. Sometimes with a destination that opens into countless new roads. And sometimes, what looks like losing your way turns out to be finding a completely different one.Tune in to discover why one simple Urdu word can hold so many different journeys and paths. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    11 mins
  • Gumshuda: When What's Lost Isn't Just a Person

    Gumshuda: When What's Lost Isn't Just a Person
    Aug 1 2026
    Most of us hear the word 'gumshuda' and think of a missing person. Urdu poetry has other ideas.In this episode of Urdunama, we explore how this simple word takes on many different meanings in poetry. Through these ashaar by Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Ahmad Mushtaq, and others, 'gumshuda' becomes much more than someone who has disappeared. It can be a lost voice, an unfinished song, an incomplete project, a wandering mind, a forgotten childhood, or even a part of ourselves that slowly disappears with time. It can also be that elusive creative spark, or an idea that catches you unawares, only to disappear before it has the chance to become a poem, a story or even a single sentence.Join us as we unpack one of Urdu's most layered words and discover how poetry uses gumshuda to make sense of absence, memory and the quiet search for what we've lost. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    13 mins