Syed Zameer Jafri

Syed Zameer Jafri (1916–1999) was a Pakistani poet, humorist, columnist and retired army officer, the best-known name in Urdu humorous poetry. Born on 1 January 1916 at Chak Abdul Khaliq, near Dina in district Jhelum, he began his working life as a journalist, then served in the Pakistan Army Education Corps — in the Far East during the Second World War and in the wars of 1947–48 and 1965 — retiring as a Major in 1965. He then became the first Director of Public Relations of the Capital Development Authority in Islamabad. Across some 78 books of poetry and prose in Urdu, Punjabi and English, above all the humorous collection Ma Fi-Zamir, he made laughter a vehicle for patriotism, common sense and love of mankind. He received the Tamgha-e-Quaid-e-Azam in 1967 and the Pride of Performance in 1984, and the Presidential Iqbal Award for his Urdu poetry in 2001. He died in New York on 12 May 1999.