The Brilliance of Hanif Kureishi

Words by Dr. Ammad Butt

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This is a rare vintage poster for Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's 1994 concert at London's most iconic venue, the Royal Albert Hall. The audience was slowly drawn in, first through the plush harmonium, beautifully played by Khan's brother, and then constant murmur of tabla and the hand claps of the group's chorus.  The night started out with one of Khan's signature songs: "Allahoo" [God Is], which is a 'hamd,' or praise song, and the traditional way of opening a qawwali performance. He ended the concert with the iconic song, "Mast Qalandar." Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was just 48 when he died in August 1997. His music could never be constrained by borders, or stashed away in a drawer. His death sparked a global state of mourning. (Available now as print)

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The Brilliance of Hanif Kureishi

Hanif Kureishi stands as one of the greatest South Asian writers of all time, recognized as the father of the contemporary South Asian literature movement. However, tragedy struck unexpectedly on Boxing Day 2022 as he sat engrossed in a football match in Rome, only to suddenly find himself lying in a pool of his own blood. At age 68, Kureishi’s accident left him paralyzed from the neck down, requiring spinal surgery and months of rehabilitation. Remarkably, the renowned author continues to share his passion of writing through his blog, despite a life-altering injury that has left him unable to pick up a pen. His blogs, which are becoming popular on X, are as crude and entertaining as his novels, and I would like to underscore the brilliance of his early work and emphasize his innovative contributions as a writer, because without him, the South Asian community could have not have achieved the remarkable progress and success in the arts that it enjoys today. The existence of works such as "East is East" (1999), Monica Ali's "Brick Lane" (2003), and the cult-classic "Bend It Like Beckham" (2002) owe much to the profound influence that Hanif Kureishi has had on British literature.