Great Urdu mystery writer Ibne Safi remembered

26 Jul, 2013

ISLAMABAD: A great and unique mystery writer of Urdu Ibne Safi remembered on his death anniversary on Friday.

He is best known for his stories of Imran Series.His creation `Imran' an extremely intelligent but comic agent is still popular among readers of all ages.

Ibne safi's witty stories capture full concentration of the reader and they enjoy every word of the story fully. The readers cannot stop reading Ibne Safi's stories till the conclusion.

Ibne Safi was born on July 26, 1928, in the village of Nara in Allahabad District, U.P., India. His parents, Safiullah and Nuzaira Bibi, named him Asrar Ahmed at birth. It was much later that he came to be known as Ibne Safi.

Ibne Safi started writing at a young age. When he was in seventh grade, his first story appeared in the weekly Shahid, which was edited by Aadil Rasheed.

Ibne Safi also started writing poetry in eighth grade.

In 1947, Ibne Safi enrolled in Allahabad University, where Dr. Syed Ejaz Hussain's lectures further contributed to his literary and mental growth.

In 1948, Abbas Hussaini founded Nakhat Publications. Ibne Saeed was the Editor of the prose section, and Ibne Safi became Editor of poetry.

His first story for The Nakhat was Farar (The Escape), which was published in June 1948. Ibne Safi, however, was not satisfied with his work.

With the advice of Ibne Safi, Abbas Hussaini made arrangements for publishing monthly detective novels. The name of the series was Jasoosi Duniya (The World of Espionage), and it was the first time Ibne Safi started writing with the infamous pen name of Ibne Safi.

In 1955, Ibne Safi created a new character, Imran, and started publishing the Imran Series. The first novel of this series KHaufnaak Imarat (The Frightening Building) was published in August 1955 in Pakistan whereas the Indian edition was published in November 1955.

By June 1960, Ibne Safi had written the eighty-eighth novel of Jasoosi Duniya (Prince Vehshee) and the forty-first novel of Imran Series (Bay-Awaaz Sayyarah).

In 1975, a film producer, Muhammad Hussain Talpur (aka Maulana Hippie), experimented with a film Dhamaka based on the Imran Series novel Baibaakon Ki Talaash.

In September 1979, Ibne Safi suffered from abdominal pains. By December of that year, it was confirmed these were a result of cancer at the head of pancreas.

On Saturday July 26, 1980 Ibne Safi passed away. His incomplete Imran Series novel Aakhri Aadmi was by his bedside.

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