The changing phases of Indian Mushairah through the prism of art aesthetics and language

Abstract

The thesis titled The Changing Phases of Indian Mushand#257; irah through the prism of Art, Aesthetics and Languageand#8223; spans across centuries and traces the evolution of ushand#257; irahs since the time of their inception to the contemporary times. The research dwells on the three components: Art, Aesthetics and Language which has further explored the finer nuances in the change in the form of Mushand#257; irahs through sand#257; a.and#299;n aur shu.arand#257; i.e. the Audience and the Poets which are hybrid and composite; tanzand#299; aur tartand#299;b i.e. Organisation and Arrangements which are typical yet dynamic; zaband#257;n aur andand#257;z i.e. the Speech and Style which carry the themes and the thought respectively. The transformation in the above-mentioned paradigms through the various historical epochs is traced in the Mushand#257; irahs. This study traces the trajectory of ushand#257; irahs from the Mughal Era to the period of the national struggle for Independence and consequent freedom and finally in the Digital Age that has witnessed the COVID-19 Pandemic. Each historical event has cast its shadow on this art form and has rendered it with new aspects. The research shows how they have served as a cultural trope in preserving the oral art as well as the Urdu language from antiquity to contemporaneity. This study thus probes Mushand#257; irahs as historical and cultural artefacts, in the light of New Historicism and Cultural Materialism. The implication of history in Mushand#257; irahs and the cultural and social undertones that have interplayed in shaping the various changes in the art of Mushand#257; irahs are traced. newline