Lectures and Performances

Shamim Hanfi – On Urdu and Hindi

India’s leading Urdu literary critic, Shamim Hanfi, provides a tour of some key moments in the history of modern Hindi and Urdu.

Shamim Hanfi – On Urdu and Hindi

Mehr Farooqi – The Development of Urdu

HUF hosts a fascinating exploration of Quranic Exegesis and the development of Urdu by the renowned historian, Mehr Farooqi.

Mehr Farooqi – The Development of Urdu

Mujtaba Hussain – Urdu Satire

Renowned Urdu satirist, Mujtaba Hussain, reads selections from his extensive catalog of Urdu journalism and humor to an audience composed of Hindi Urdu Flagship students and the wider South Asian studies community at UT Austin.

Mujtaba Hussain – Urdu Satire

Rupert Snell – Autobiography is Another Story: “Lives” in Hindi

In this fascinating talk, Hindi Urdu Flagship Director, Rupert Snell, presents his recent work on the diverse genre of autobiographical writing in Hindi. The talk, entitled Autobiography is Another Story: “Lives” in Hindi, features audio recordings of a number of Hindi Urdu Flagship students and faculty reading from a wide variety of Hindi autobiographies. According… Read More

Rupert Snell – Autobiography is Another Story: “Lives” in Hindi

Ali Asani – From Qawwali to Sufi Rock: Contemporary Expressions of Muslim Devotional Literature

Ali Asani, professor of Indo-Muslim and Islamic religion and cultures at Harvard University describes the modern Sufi rock phenomenon epitomized by Salman Ahmad and his band Junoon. Asani outlines Ahmad’s personal musical, religious, and political journey and attempted to place Sufi rock in the broader tradition of Muslim devotional literature. A native of Kenya, Asani… Read More

Prahlad Singh Tipanya – Kabir, Part 2

As part of its festival celebrating the living tradition of song and performance dedicated to the poet Kabir, HUF hosts a live musical performance by an acclaimed traditional Kabir folk ensemble led by Prahlad Singh Tipanya. Tipanya sings and plays the tambura, a five-stringed plucked and strummed instrument originally from Rajasthan, and kartal a wood… Read More

Prahlad Singh Tipanya – Kabir, Part 1

As part of its festival celebrating the living tradition of song and performance dedicated to the poet Kabir, HUF hosts a live musical performance by an acclaimed traditional Kabir folk ensemble led by Prahlad Singh Tipanya. Tipanya sings and plays the tambura, a five-stringed plucked and strummed instrument originally from Rajasthan, and kartal a wood… Read More

Prahlad Singh Tipanya – Kabir

As part of its festival celebrating the living tradition of song and performance dedicated to the poet Kabir, HUF hosts a live musical performance by an acclaimed traditional Kabir folk ensemble led by Prahlad Singh Tipanya. Tipanya sings and plays the tambura, a five-stringed plucked and strummed instrument originally from Rajasthan, and kartal a wood… Read More

Harish Trivedi – A Translation Roundtable, Part 2: Tulsidas and a mystery

As part of his visit to the Hindi Urdu Flagship, eminent Hindi scholar Harish Trivedi conducts a roundtable discussion on issues of Hindi-Urdu translation with a diverse set of students and faculty. This second half of the discussion focuses on a stanza from the Kavitavali of Tulsidas and a mystery piece provided by Trivedi. The… Read More

Harish Trivedi – A Translation Roundtable, Part 1: Premchand’s Rangbhumi

As part of his visit to the Hindi Urdu Flagship, eminent Hindi scholar Harish Trivedi conducts a roundtable discussion on issues of Hindi-Urdu translation with a diverse set of students and faculty. This first half of the discussion focuses on the opening paragraphs of Premchand’s Rangbhumi. The second half (featured in a separate podcast episode)… Read More