Sunday, April 22, 2001		Article

Preserving the art of writing
By Vimla Patil

IN bygone days, when the technology of printing had not developed into the fine art it is today, writing holy scriptures and works of classical literature by hand was an art cultivated by special artists often patronised by kings and emperors. These artists were called calligraphers and over the centuries, they immortalised the written word in their art on paper, stone, wood and metal. Indeed, many historical rock inscriptions, manuscripts, monuments, metal tablets, jewellery, weapons and even woven textiles which were used as canvas by calligraphers, prove that each empire and each period of history produced its own calligraphers in most of the prominent languages of the world. Many museums, stone and metal artefacts and heritage buildings there are today veritable treasure houses of calligraphic art.

"However, in India, as in the world, the fast proliferation of printing technology has caused a steady decline of calligraphy," says Ameena Ahmed Ahuja, a modern calligraphic artist who recently showed her outstanding work in many cities. Further, in India, the eclipse of Urdu has affected the art of Arabic, Persian and Urdu calligraphy. Today, few people know that India has the world’s most perfect and glorious examples of calligraphy in these languages.

The architect of the wondrous Taj Mahal at Agra, Abdul Huq Amanat Khan was one of the greatest calligraphers of all times. His etchings on marble on the walls of the Taj, which comprise Quranic verses, is unmatched for its beauty and perfection. The anonymous calligraphy on the Qutub Minar is yet another example. In every Mughal emperor’s court, there were outstanding architects and calligraphers who built some of the best monuments of India and yet remained anonymous. No one knows who they were or under whose training they worked.

"Calligraphic art is found in Iran. Persian poetry or Arabic Quranic quotations are inscribed on mosques and monuments. In Turkey, the Turkish language has been derived from Arabic and calligraphy is in modern Arabic. However, Turkish is now written in Roman script. Further, excellent calligraphic work is seen in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tadjikistan and other countries to the north of India. Chengiz Khan’s tomb in Samarkand is a beautiful monument encrusted with lapis lazuli and turquoise gemstones and decorated with sacred calligraphy.

"However, India is unique in Arabic and Urdu calligraphy. Almost 30 styles were developed here through the ages. The Taj Mahal boasts the Khat-e-Sulus script. The Qutub Minar has the Khat-e-Naskhi (carved on stone) script. Some other popular scripts are: Khat-e-Zulf-e-Urus (brides’ locks); Khat-e-Bihari (invented in Bihar) and Khat-e-Nastaliq. All 30 script styles are found in India in various places."

Ameena learnt calligraphy from her scholar-barrister father. A linguist speaking eight lanugages, she is a philologist and earned a doctorate in the Russian language from the Moscow University.

She is a member of the Indian Foreign Service and is married to Vicky Ahuja, India’s erstwhile Ambassador to the USSR. She trained in art at the Slade School of Art and is well-known for her translations of Urdu scholars into English. A unique mixture of the West and the East, she learnt the beauty of Islamic art from her father and the appreciation of Western poetry and literature from her English mother. She lectured in poetry at Columbia University and was an artist in residence at Harvard University. Her work is on display in various museums in Moscow, Tokyo and Jordan.

For her present collection, Ameena has used animal and bird motifs with calligraphy within their graceful shapes. "These are characters from Panchatantra and Aesop’s Fables where the profound truths of life are conveyed through animal and bird stories. In my calligraphy, I have used the poems of Ghalib, Rumi and Hafiz. Except one painting with the Quranic invocation — Bismillah-e-Rahman-e-Rahim — all other paintings use only poetry, because Quranic calligraphy is meant for veneration. It cannot be used as an item of interior design."