KellyeZimmermann at 14:45, 9 February 2026

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{{Short description|Poet and writer}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox writer 
| name = Amin Kamil
| image = Mohammad amin kamil.jpg
| imagesize =
| caption =
| birth_name = Muhammad Amin Nengroo
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1924|8|3}}
| birth_place = [[Kaprin]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (princely state)|Jammu and Kashmir]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2014|10|30|1924|8|3}}
| death_place = [[Jammu]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]], [[India]]
| occupation = [[Poet]], [[fiction writer]], [[literary critic]], [[researcher]], and [[editor]]
| nationality =
| citizenship = Kashmiri
| education =
| alma_mater =
| genre =
| subjects =
| movement = [[Progressive Writers Movement]], [[Modernism]]
| notableworks = Gati Manz Gaash (1958), Kathi Manz Kath (1966), Lava ta Prava (1965), Beyi Suy Paan (1967), Padis Pod Tshay (1972), Yim Myani Sokhan (2001)
| spouse =
| partner =
| children =
| relatives =
| awards = [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] (1967), [[Padma Shri]] (2005)
| signature =
}}
'''Amin Kamil''' (3 August 1924 – 30 October 2014) was a Kashmiri [[poet]], [[literary critic]], [[researcher]] and [[editor]].<ref>Kashmir Lost Its 'Master of Ghazal', Bilal Handoo, https://kashmirlife.net/kashmir-lost-its-master-of-ghazal-67396/</ref> He is also known for his [[short stories]], a genre of which he was one of the pioneers in Kashmiri.<ref>[https://kashmirlit.org/remembering-kamil Remembering Kamil, Majid Maqbool, Kashmir Lit (2015) via]</ref> He remains one of the most popular and influential masters of the Kashmiri language, leaving behind a legacy of literary brilliance.<ref>Amin Kamil: Wizard of Kashmiri Ghazal, Imtiaz Alam, Journal of Critical Reviews, Vol 7, Issue 11, 2020, pp.4824-4828.</ref>

==Life==

Kamil was born at [[Kaprin]], a village in South Kashmir.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://showkatshafi.com/amin-kamil-profile-life-writing/ | title=Amin Kamil: Life and poetry of the Soulful Kashmiri poet - Showkat Shafi | date=March 2024 }}</ref> He graduated in Arts from the [[University of the Punjab|Punjab University]] and took his degree in Law from the [[Aligarh Muslim University]].{{citation needed|date= August 2022}} He joined the Bar in 1947 and continued to practice Law until 1949, when he was appointed a lecturer in [[Sri Pratap College]], [[Srinagar]]. He was closely associated with [[Progressive Writers' Movement]] of that time and under its influence switched over from [[Urdu]] to Kashmiri as his medium of expression.{{citation needed|date= August 2022}} He joined the State Cultural Academy when it was set up in 1958 and was appointed the Convener for the [[Kashmiri language]]. He later became Editor for Kashmiri and edited the two journals of the Academy – Sheeraza and Son Adab with distinction for many years. He retired from the service of the Academy in 1979.{{citation needed|date= August 2022}}

==Fiction==
In 1958, ''Gati Manz Gaash'' (Light amidst darkness) was published, a novel inspired by the well-known observation of [[Mahatma Gandhi]] in the context of the aftermath of the partition of the [[Indian sub-continent|Indian subcontinent]] in 1947, that in the midst of darkness prevailing everywhere he had found a ray of light in Kashmir alone.{{citation needed|date= August 2022}}

Kamil's collection of short stories, ''"Kathi Manz Kath"'' (Story within Story) published in mid-60s includes his most highly regarded work, "Kokar Jang" (The Cockfight). The Cockfight is considered as the most popular story in the Kashmiri literature. It has been translated into many Indian languages and has appeared in English translation in anthologies such as ''Indian Short Stories 1900–2000'' edited by I. Vi. Ramakrishan;<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kLn11KD4ea0C&q=amin+kamil&pg=PA347|title=Indian Short Stories,1900-2000|first=I. Vi|last=Rāmakr̥ṣṇan|date=9 February 2005|publisher=Sahitya Akademi|isbn=9788126010912|via=Google Books}}</ref> ''Contemporary Kashmiri Short Stories'' edited by Hriday Kaul Bharati, Neerja Mattoo;<ref>Contemporary Kashmiri Short Stories edited by Hriday Kaul Bharati, Neerja Mattoo [https://books.google.com/books?id=4n_rBDk-GOMC&dq=amin+kamil&pg=PA5]</ref> ''Contemporary Indian Short Stories Vol 3'' all published by Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi. The Cockfight is prescribed in the school and university curriculum in Jammu and Kashmir. It has also appeared in ''Best Loved Indian Stories of the Century'' published by Penguin India in 1999. Prof. J. L. Koul writes about this story that "...perhaps, the comic muse at its subtlest best (though not unmixed with irony) in Kashmiri short story is to be seen in Amin Kamil's ''Hini Rahman'' and ''Kokar Jang'', particularly in the latter, in which the foibles and eccentricities of character of the two women neighbors, Jaana Bits and Shah Maal, are expressed through their respective cocks."<ref>J L Koul, Studies in Kashmiri, Kapoor Brothers, 1968, p.261.</ref> Kamil has a special talent for blending humour, irony and politics/social comment in his stories as well as poems. As an example of this, in his poems, is "Taay Nama" published in mid-80s. Kamil's poems as well as stories frequently comment on the socio-political situation of Kashmir. In this connection, his story "Sawal Chu Kaluk" [https://web.archive.org/web/20071106021144/http://www.kashmiraffairs.org/Literature.html Enigma] has received much acclaim.

==Poetry==

Writing in ''The Encyclopedia of Indian Literature'', Ghulam Nabi Gauhar says of Kamil: "He is a master of Kashmiri Ghazal and has to his credit poems of eternal value."<ref>Ghulam Nabi Gauhar, Encyclopedia of Indian Literature, Vol 2, p. 1392, Shitya Akademi, New Delhi.</ref>

==Awards and honours==
[[Image:Amin kamil.jpg|left|thumb|150px|Amin Kamil receiving Robe of Honor]]Amin Kamil won the [[Sahitya Akademi Award]] in 1967 for his book of poems, ''Laveh Te Praveh''.{{citation needed|date= August 2022}}



Kamil has won awards from the Jammu & Kashmir Cultural Academy, the State Government of Jammu & Kashmir, Robes of Honor from many prestigious organisations, {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20130130132859/http://www.indianmuslims.info/people/list_of_sahitya_akademi_award_winners.html Sahitya Akademi Award]}} (1967) International Irfan Foundation Award, Kashmir University's Lifetime Achievement Award, and [[Padma Shri]] in the year 2005 (Literature & Education) from the [[Indian government]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Indian Poets I Bio-Notes on Kashmiri Poets I  |author=MetaNym  |url=http://www.geocities.com/indian_poets/kashmiri.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026144556/http://geocities.com/indian_poets/kashmiri.html |archive-date=26 October 2009 |url-status=dead|df=dmy }}</ref> Recently, a two-day national seminar on Amin Kamil was held at [[Aligarh Muslim University]] in which Kamil was recognised.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kashmirobserver.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1068:kamils-book-released-at-amu-seminar-&catid=3:regional-news&Itemid=4 |title= Kamil's Book Released at AMU Seminar|website=www.kashmirobserver.net |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615214021/http://kashmirobserver.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1068%3Akamils-book-released-at-amu-seminar-&catid=3%3Aregional-news&Itemid=4 |archive-date=15 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://kamil.neabinternational.org/inthenews.htm |title=Amin Kamil – In the News |publisher=Kamil.neabinternational.org |date=12 March 2009 |access-date=13 December 2013}}</ref> Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages published a special issue of its literary magazine Sheeraza on Amin Kamil's life and works, which was released in Srinagar in Summer 2011.<ref>[http://www.risingkashmir.com/news/sheeraza-issue-on-amin-kamil-released-10287.aspx] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120317072537/http://www.risingkashmir.com/news/sheeraza-issue-on-amin-kamil-released-10287.aspx|date=17 March 2012}}</ref>

==Death==
Amin Kamil died on 30 October 2014, Thursday morning, in Jammu. He was 90 years old.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}

==See also==
*[[List of Sahitya Akademi Award winners for Kashmiri]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://kamil.neabinternational.org/ Kamil's official website]
* [http://www.museindia.com/showcont.asp?id=194/ Muse India Archive]{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=4n_rBDk-GOMC&dq=amin+kamil&pg=PA5 The Cock-fight]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110721005938/http://muneeburrahman.blogspot.com/2005/08/amin-kamil-editor-par-excellence.html Kamil as Editor]

{{Padma Shri Award Recipients in Literature & Education}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamil, Amin}}
[[Category:1924 births]]
[[Category:Kashmiri poets]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Kashmiri]]
[[Category:2014 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Shopian district]]
[[Category:Indian male poets]]
[[Category:Poets from Jammu and Kashmir]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male writers]]

Amin Kamil - Revision history

KellyeZimmermann at 14:45, 9 February 2026