UMESH KAUL ..A FORGOTTEN SHORT STORY WRITER FROM KASHMIR .
He belonged to a family that had creativity in its DNA. His one brother , Bushen. Kaul is a well known artist .Hriday Kaul Bharti, the pioneer of modern Kashmiri short story , was his another brother .
Umesh Kaul ( Born 1934 ) is a forgotten short story writer from Kashmir . Born in Sopore , Kashmir , Umesh used to write in Hindi and Urdu before he switched over to Kashmiri . His first Kashmiri story 'Ad Kathh' ( Half story ) was published in the Kashmiri magzine KONG POSH in 1955. His stories like' Duwoat' and' Dil 'are a proof of his dexterity in understanding human relations. He belonged to a select group of modern writers who were influenced by European short story writers . This group comprised of Akhtar Mohi ud din , Hriday Kaul Bharti, Ali Mohammad Lone , Bansi Nirdosh , Amin Kamil , Deepak Kaul , Avtar Krishen Rahbar , Taj Begum Renzoo , Rattan Lal Shant , Hari Krishen Kaul and many more . Later many writers including Faruq Masudi also joined this group. Some writers from this group also wrote plays on contemporary and socially relevant themes.
Sometimes you find him present in his stories and quite often his language turns romantic . To some readers his stories appear like flower beds of emotions. However his two stories namely 'Ada Kathh' ( Half story ) and 'Akh Devta Ta Akh Raakheuss' ( One god and one Devil ) bring forth all the essential characteristics of his style and language . In a way both are his representative stories. He must have written more than two dozen short stories. His one short story ,' Bhagya-harta ' is included in the compilation of contemporary short stories published by Bhartiya Gyanpeeth .
Umesh Kaul also wrote script for some Kashmiri language documentaries for I&B Ministry .
A post graduate in Hindi, he produced a popular science fiction programme for Radio Kashmir ,Srinagar.He was a good painter who had his initial training from Som Nath Butt. He also wrote script for the popular radio programme VAADI KI AWAAZ. He had joined AIR as a script writer.
For some time during early sixties of the last century, he also worked as sub editor of the newspaper' Kashmir Post' published from Srinagar .
He had another skill that many people don't know. He had a technical precision that could set right anything and everything even expensive electronic gadgets.. He had the patience to repair any camera . Padamshri Pran Kishore Kaul revealed to me how he had set right a very complicated and expensive camera with which his team had been shooting a documentary .
A frail looking man who had enormous talent and skill in many fields of life. He was a photographer, script writer, short story writer , painter , guide, teacher, entertaining host and above all a great human being.
About Umesh Kaul, Padamashri Pran Kishore Kaul says this :-
“What shall I say about Umesh Ji? To sum up he was a genius. He was a dear friend much more than a colleague. In fact the entire family was talented. I was lucky to work with his other two brothers too. Bharti Ji was my regular playwright in the Radio. Bhushan Ji ,a well known painter designed costumes and props for my stage production of operas, Himala Ke Chashme, Piya Baaj Pyala and Tipi Sultan beautifully after researching the history of the connected periods . And the photographs of the operas are testimony to his innovations. I would like to mention here another personal experience of Umesh Ji's technical acumen. Singer Sewing Company had introduced a domestic knitting machine. My wife Shanta Ji was very fond of knitting machine. She purchased one from the very first lot. After a few months it went out of order. While rehearsing for Vadi Ki Awaz, Shanta Ji told Umesh Ji about it. He in his particular humorous style told her ‘rogan josha thaviv tayar ba dimas nazar’ or ‘ Keep Rogan Josh cooked , I shall come and see it’ .To cut the story short ,he came to our house and had a look at the machine. He asked for a screwdriver and a plate. Taking the screwdriver, he started opening the machine. Imagine he had never seen this knitting machine earlier. He kept the sketchy manual aside and almost dismantled the machine keeping the nuts and bolts in the plate. He cleaned them and refixed them. Lo and behold , the machine started working fine. We were amazed. Yes we had a hearty meal after that. Technical acumen , he had in his genes. Their father Pandit Sarwanand Ji Kaul was the best watch maker in the entire state.”
Adds Prof. Nighat Hafiz from Kashmir :-
Prof. Shiben Raina Adds:-
Nida Nawaz well known Hindi poet from Kashmir adds..
"He was also a leading broadcaster and as a script writer of "Science Magazine" I worked underhHis guidance for thirteen years.He was indeed a great guide and the best writer."
Shri Rajesh Kaul ( Ex. Senior officer from Door Darshan ) adds this ..
"Umesh Kaul Ji had done post graduation in Hindi but would write a science talk for Radio Kashmir. He was blessed with many capabilities apart from being a good writer. He was a very good cinematographer , an animator, a film processor and an editor. He shot introductory montage for a science fiction. Dr. Zero for DD Srinagar in late 70's, processed at his house and edited the same under magnifying glass using a magnifying glass ,a scissor and a cello tape. The film being mute the music was added later on at the at TV Centre Srinagar. The series was produced by Sh. C.L.Hakhoo and had late Sh. Som Nath Sadhu and Pushkar Bhan Sahib in the lead roles. Everyone used to call him Umesh Ji out of love and respect. The only sister among five brothers Deep Prabhaker was the first lady from the state to attain masters degree in Dramatics from M S University Baroda (Vadodara). Umesh Ji was a refined and superfine human being who was respected by all and had a varied class of friends. His famous short story .”Baazar Hoon Te Insaan “ perhaps remained unpublished. He was a chain smoker and would often forget his lit cigarette in his two fingers during writing a script or rectifying a gadget. He would visit coffee house once in a day to meet his intellectual friends .. He was popular among ladies because of his varied knowledge . He could talk on any subject. He had a keen eye for cinema..He was the cinematographer of a documentary titled , ‘ In The Backwaters of Dal’ where he used his key driven Bolex camera. The documentary was made for Mohammad Shafi Khan, a famous Kashmiri filmmaker settled in Mumbai.There’s so much to say about him. His subtle sense of humour was terrific. "
“Umesh Ji headed the ‘Current Feature’ unit of Radio Kashmir , Srinagar .His other companions were , .P.L. Kher and .Ghulam Nabi Ratanpuri. I too was on the penal of writers. Wadi Ki Aawaz,Tabsarah and Aaj Ki Baat was the responsibility of this section.He guided me well.He knew the art of editing the scripts making them crisp and to the point.He would always guide and encourage me. May his soul rest in peace.”
Fayaz Shaharyar, former DG AIR says this :-
“We have been colleagues for years, the bond stayed even after his retirement and my posting to Jammu where he used to come regularly, chat and write for radio mainly on the current affairs. A visibly iconoclast intellectual, amazingly creative and even ingenious . A moribund watch, a broken transistor would get their lives back with just one touch by him. A meaningful commentator on sub-continental imbroglio, a linguist, a writer, a loner (in some good sense), a conversationalist who was heard with rapt attention had a mind that scintillated with brilliance till the last day. Blessed be his soul.”
"Nirdhan kavi ke paas kya
kuchh peeda kuchh preet,
Kuchh andekhay sapne hain
dard bharay kuchh geet"
CHINAR SHADE by Autarmota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.Based on a work at http:\\autarmota.blogspot.com\.
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