New Delhi: Literary historian Dr Rakhshanda Jalil has once again reminded Indians that Urdu is deeply rooted in the country’s soil and belongs to all communities, not only Muslims. In a detailed interview with the Indian Express about her new anthology Whose Urdu Is It Anyway?, Jalil traced the rise, decline, and contested identity of Urdu in modern India.
She explained that Urdu developed through centuries of cultural exchange, drawing from Persian, Arabic, Turkic, and local dialects, and eventually became the lingua franca of North India. From courtrooms to markets, it was a language spoken across caste and creed. Yet, political movements in the early twentieth century began to link Hindi with Hindu nationalism, sidelining Urdu and associating it exclusively with Muslims.
Jalil underlined how Partition worsened this perception. With Pakistan adopting Urdu as its national language in 1947, Urdu was treated as “enemy property” in India. This shift, she argued, accelerated the decline of Urdu and restricted its public identity. Today, while the government occasionally honours Urdu writers, stereotypes and misinformation continue to reduce Urdu to a religious marker rather than a shared cultural heritage.
Her anthology features sixteen short stories by non-Muslim Urdu writers such as Krishan Chander, Rajinder Singh Bedi, and Gulzar. The collection challenges the misconception that Urdu belongs only to Muslims. Jalil believes that Urdu is “as Indian as anybody or anything can be regarded as Indian” and insists that the language is willing to belong to anyone who values it.
Despite fears about its future, she remains optimistic. Urdu continues to thrive in poetry, Bollywood lyrics, and growing digital platforms. While fewer people read its script, its cultural resonance persists. Echoing Manto, Jalil recalled his words that no human effort can kill a language. Urdu, she said, will remain part of India’s consciousness for years to come.
Dr Rakhshanda Jalil is a noted literary historian, translator, and cultural commentator with over 25 books to her credit. She is widely recognized for her work on Urdu literature and the Progressive Writers’ Movement.
