| Muztar Khairabadi | |
| Birth Name: | Iftikhar Hussain |
| Birth Place: | Khairabad, North-Western Provinces, British India |
| Death Place: | Gwalior, Gwalior State, British India |
| Occupation: | Poet |
| Language: | Urdu |
| Children: | Jan Nisar Akhtar |
| Relatives: | Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi (grandfather) Javed Akhtar (grandson) Salman Akhtar (grandson) Uneza Akhtar (granddaughter) Albina Akhtar (granddaughter) Shahid Akhtar (grandson) |
Iftikhar Hussain (1865 – 27 March 1927), known by his pen name Muztar Khairabadi, was an Indian Urdu poet.[1] [2]
Khairabadi was born in 1865 in Khairabad.[3] He was the grandson of Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi, who was also a poet, philosopher, religious scholar, Arabist, Persian and Urdu writer and freedom fighter. Khairabadi's first mentor was his mother. He spent his life in Khairabad, Tonk, Gwalior, Indore, Bhopal and Rampur.
He received the titles Eitbar-ul-Mulk, and Iftikhar-ul-Shaura. He died in 1927 in Gwalior, and is buried there.
He was the father of poet and lyricist Jan Nisar Akhtar and grandfather of Javed Akhtar and Salman Akhtar.[4] [5] His great grandchildren include Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, and Kabir Akhtar.[4] According to music expert Rajesh Subramanian the famous iconic poem and song sung by Mohammed Rafi in Lal Quila 1960 Na kisi ki ankh ka noor hoon by penned by Muztar and not by Bahadur Shah Zafar as commonly perceived and credited.Khairabadi wrote poetry books. He also published a literary magazine entitled Karishama-e-Dilbar.[5]
Khairabadi died on 27 March 1927 in Gwalior.[3]
His works include:[5]