Must-read: Poems from India in Arabic

His love for Indian poetry isn’t new.

In 1996, he first came in touch with the world of Indian poetry when he was honoured by the Dubai-based Indian society, Dubai Kairali Kala Kendram, alongside famous poetess and Nobel Prize nominee Kamala Das Surayya. The rest, as they say, is history.

Dr Shihab Ghanem, one of the UAE’s most well-known poets, recently launched a collection of Indian poems translated into Arabic.

The book, Poems from India, features some of India’s more notable works dating back to the 1800s, the Dubai-based poet and author said. Comprising 80 poems by 30 Indian poets, it’s Ghanem’s second such collection of poems from the subcontinent.

The book was published by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage and reflects a wide backdrop of subjects, landscapes and styles ranging from Mirza Ghalib from the mid-1800s to date.