THE ROLE OF KASHMIR IN THE POETRY OF AGHA SHAHID ALI

Abstract

The poetic corpus of Agha Shahid Ali is intricately weaved with many shades of region, religion, cultures and continents.  As he grew up in Kashmir, his poetry reciprocates his love for the land of Kashmir. In this paper an attempt is made to analyze the role and the character of Kashmir in the poems of Agha Shahid Ali. The paper studies the poet’s regional affiliation, his love for the beauty of Kashmir and the impact of marginalization and victimization of people due to regional and political turmoil. As the image of beautiful Kashmir is repeatedly visited by Ali, the present paper underscores the influence of Indo-Islamic tradition in his poetic world. Ali belongs to different cultures and regions-Kashmiri, American, Islamic and Indian that paves way for the multi-ethnic ideas prevalent in his poetry.