5 Facts About Munawwar Rana, Renowned Poet And Sahitya Academy Winner

Renowned poet Munawwar Rana, one of India's most popular poets known for his unique voice and style, died at the age of 71 on Sunday after a prolonged battle with throat cancer. He was admitted in the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow.

He died in the hospital late Sunday night and will be laid to rest on Monday, her daughter Sumaiya Rana told news agency PTI.

The poet's son Tabrez Rana said, "He was hospitalised for 14 to 15 days due to illness. He was first admitted to Medanta in Lucknow and then to SGPGI where he breathed his last around 11 pm today.”

Here are five facts about the late poet:

• Born in November 1952, Rana belonged to Uttar Pradesh's Raebareli. The poet, who wrote in Hindi and Urdu, was a prominent name in Mushaira circles in India and abroad.
• He learned poetry under the mentorship of legendary poets Ali Abbas Khan Bekhud and Wali Aasi.
• 'Maa' is considered Rana's groundbreaking work, wherein he used the genre of Ghazal to extol the virtues of a mother. Apart from this some of his prominent works include 'Muhajirnama', 'Ghar Akela Ho Gaya' and 'Peepal Chhaon'. His poetry has also been translated and published in Hindi, Urdu, Gurumukhi and Bengali.
• Rana was honoured with the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2014 for his book 'Shahdaba'. He, however, returned it in 2015 as part of a writers' protest.
• The poet is survived by his wife, four daughters and a son.