Towards the end of this decade, in December, Hyderabad (India)-based prestigious cultural organization- Chitra Lekha Foundation- has celebratedAfsarMohammad's four decades of poetry. Dr.Afsaris our own faculty member in the Department of South Asian studies and he teaches South Asia courses and Telugu studies. A celebrated poet and literary theorist in his home language of Telugu,Afsarhas published extensively and his complete volume of four decades of poetry since 1979, was launched during this event in Hyderabad on December 21st.Afsar's first poem was published even when he was in high school and immediately recognized very soon establishing him as a trend-setting and innovative poet. He published five volumes of poetry in Telugu and he remains a representative of new identity writings in the Telugu literary sphere. For the first time in the history of modern Telugu literature, a photo exhibition showcasing the journey ofAfsaras a poet with more 150 photo posters held in the historical Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad between December 21st to 31st, 2019. On this occasion, several newspapers and literary supplements both in Telugu and English have published special features aboutAfsar's writings. Here is one such piece written by a well-known journalist, cultural activist and short fiction writer, K.V. Kurmanath. We are extremely proud to have Dr. Mohammad as a part of our faculty and Penn family.https://medium.com/@kurmanath/afsar-a-poet-who-encapsulated-our-hopes-aspirations-grief-love-c71359705b22
