Riyadh is dull and boring and it is extremely difficult to spend time there even for three days in the absence of real attractions, a Kuwaiti visitor wrote in Arab News recently while summing up his impressions of the Saudi capital.
Dr. Haneef Tarin, who worked as a doctor in the directorate of preventive medicine in Hafr Al-Batin (Northern Province) for over 20 years, challenges this assertion.
“I wrote all my books in Arar which, due to its lack of diversions, had a tonic effect on my literary output,” Dr. Haneef told Arab News. He has published eight books on Urdu poetry and five are in the pipeline. Dr. Haneef said he used to devote four to five hours a day to his reading and writing pursuits after putting in eight hours at the health center in Arar in the Northern Province bordering Jordan.
In this respect, he is in the good company of some Western expatriates who had shared their experience on Saudi life and culture in a book published by the Ministry of Culture and Information and included as part of the media kit.
Dr. Haneef, who returned to India recently, said he was impressed with the monumental changes that he had witnessed during his eventful stay in the Kingdom. However, he had to resign in protest when the 30 percent risk allowance to which one is entitled for working in a psychiatric hospital was denied to him. However, he had the satisfaction of winning praise and appreciation of princes and senior government officials in the Northern Province, where he was also interviewed by the Arabic media after an Arabic translation of his work came under the title “Baeed A’an Al-Watan” (Far from the Homeland). They were also moved by his sense of anguish over the plight of Palestinians.
“I paid tributes to Palestinian poet Mohammed Darwesh, to the Iraqis reeling under the tyranny of occupation, and Irish peace activist Richel Di Core who was crushed to death under an Israeli tank as he was protesting on behalf of the Palestinians. In fact, I have named my son Yasser in honor of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat,” he points out.
Dr. Haneef also set up “Bazme Ahbab-e-Sukhan, Arar” where Indian and Pakistani literati would greet poetic compositions with a roar of “encore”. “I organized three or four such sessions during my stay in the Northern Province and which were well covered by the Urdu media,” he said.
What has evoked the admiration of Saudis and high-profile Indians, including former prime ministers I.K. Gujral and Deve Gowda, is his heart-rending poetry that moves one to tears. It acts as a catharsis for his pent-up emotions over acts of injustice and barbarity that often masquerade as a fight against terrorism.
The poets themselves have been touched in different ways. Gopi Chand Narang, for instance, is moved by his “Nostalgia”, through which he goes down the memory lane of yesteryears in the Kingdom and back home. “I am glad to note that he has carved out a niche for himself through his lilting prose.” Writing in a similar vein, Ahmed Nadeem Qasimi describes Haneef’s poetry as suffused with sentiments and distinctive in style and poetic rhythm.
Mention may also be made of another of his work “Baghi Sachay Hotay Hain” (“The Rebels are Truthful”) which was the subject of over 300 comments and critiques by distinguished Urdu writers from the subcontinent. The English version of the book “The Rebels Are Truthful” was published last year. “Ababeelain Nahin Aayin” (The Swallows Have Not Returned) has been hailed as a trailblazer in Urdu literature.
Asked for his advice to the expatriates, both Haneef and his brother Nadeem Tarin, projects manager of a Saudi company in Riyadh, said they should learn Arabic to gain competitive edge in the job market. Right now there is a dichotomy in the market with expatriates from South and Southeast Asia being strong in English and weak in Arabic, while the Arab expatriates are proficient in Arabic but cannot express themselves properly in English. Those with bilingual skills will always have the upper hand. The interview took place at Nadeem’s residence.
