Renowned lyricist Qateel Shifai’s 14th death anniversary today

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – The 14th death anniversary of renowned Urdu poet and lyricist Qateel Shifai is being observed on Saturday. Qateel was born on December 24, 1919 in Haripur, Hazara Division, British India. He adopted Qateel Shifai as his pen name in 1938 under which he was known in the world of Urdu poetry. "Qateel" was his "takhallus" (pen name) and "Shifai" was in honor of his teacher Hakim Muhammed `Shifa' whom he considered his mentor. In 1946, he was called to Lahore by Nazir Ahmed to work as the assistant editor of the monthly “Adab-e-Latif”, a literary magazine published since 1936. His first ghazal was published in the Lahore weekly “Star”, edited by Qamar Jalalabadi. In January 1947, Qateel was asked to pen the songs for a film by a Lahore-based film producer. The first film he authored lyrics for was "Teri Yaad" (1948). He won numerous awards as a lyricist.