Biography of Mirza Ghalib

(1797-1869)

Someone has rightly said that the Mughal Empire gave us three invaluable things - Taj Mahal, Urdu, and Ghalib. Ghalib's full name was Mirza Asa-dulah Beg Khan Ghalib. Ghalib was born in Agra in 1797. He was a teenager when he lost his father and uncle. There were no elderly men in his family to guide him. At the age of 13, he was married and after two or three years he came to Delhi and stayed there till his death.

Due to his extravagant nature, he always remained in debt. He went to Kolkata and filed a case regarding an increment in his pension. But he lost the case. Mirza Ghalib was very arrogant. He was offered a job of a headmaster in a school but he rejected it. He always led his life glamorously, as he belonged to an aristocratic family.

He used to express his feelings through letters written to his friends. His collection of letters are 'Urdu-e-Muallah', 'Ude Hindi' and 'Makatibe Ghalib'. His Urdu poems are collected in the book 'Diwan-e-Ghalib'. He always used a humourous tone in his writings.