Ali Kamran Rasheed1

A. K. Rasheed
اے۔ کے۔ رشيد
Wahdat Road Lahore
Speaker	Ali Kamran Rasheed
Preceded by	Muhammad Hamza Khan
Personal details
Nationality	Pakistani
Education	Pilot Public High School Wahdat Colony Lahore
Alma mater	Univerty Of Punjab

Introduction

A. K. Rasheed (Urdu: اے۔ کے۔  رشيد 23 February 1977)  was born Ali Kamran Rasheed (Urdu: علی  کا مران رشيد) is an English and Urdu language poet , lexicographer, bilingual-neologist, grammarian, professional English language editor, teacher French and English language and Founder of Simple English Language Research and Promotion Center. He wrote few columns at the Daily Times as freelance columnist but he had to quit because of some inevitable reasons particularly health issues. The former Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Shareef issued him an appreciation letter on his first poetry book “Democracy is the Best Revenge” but he is amongst few prominent Pakistani English language writers who have been prey of neglection due to using English language as their means of expressions.

Early Life and Education'

A. K. Rasheed was born in Shamnagar, Lahore. He received his early education from a private school at Millat Park named Fazal Public School, a chain of schools and colleges owned by his maternal uncle. He was very bright, intelligent but shy and less speaking child. He studied in M. C. Boys’ Middle School Wahdat Colony, for matriculation his mother admitted him in Pilot Boys’ Secondary School Bhekhewal Morr, Lahore. There he studied for two years but when the final examinations neared he left the school due to extreme poverty though the fee was few Rupees but he could not submit it. Afterwards he did matriculation and intermediate from BISE and graduation from the University of the Punjab all as a private candidate by continuing his petty jobs. He was fond of learning languages and learned English, Punjabi, French, Urdu, Arabi and Chinese languages. In 2001 he got a certification in French language from Oriental College Allama Iqbal Campus, University of the Punjab. He adopted French language in graduation and studied it on his Jack Jones. In 2009 he was forced to leave for Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through family politics but reaching there he continued his study and in 2010 he got diploma in Islamic Studies from Islamic Centre Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with excellent in all semesters and in all subjects. He appeared in Punjab Public Service Commission Examinations of ITO-BS-16 (Income Tax Officer BS-16) two times he got failed but third time he got cleared from all papers, his friend who received his interview letter - did not give it to him.

Literary, Lingual Career and Works

For literary work A. K. Rasheed was very shy and hid his works from the family, he used to find a safe place to hide his work but there was none and lost his much of the work. After the family intrigue started against his education, livelihood and his work he again looked for a safe place for his work but he could not find and his work was started to be destroyed. He then thought never to waste his work until he finds his place. After 2000 his poems started to be published in Pakistani English language magazines. Once he wrote an article in the Nation, the article was cut short but was published on the first pages. But by now his work had started to be published in the magazine “Young Nation” which continued until he himself stopped at his will. In 2003 he wrote an article on Jeans Pants for the US magazine by the News International, the article was very long one and was published on two pages of the magazine and the News International sent him a cheque which was received by the same friend who never handed him over in a fit of jealousy. In 2013 his first anthology of poems “Democracy is the Best Revenge” was published by Shahid Publications, in 2017 his second volume of poems “The Lions” was published by Shahid Publications. In 2019 his lingual work “High School Book” was published by SPARCLE Publications which is a booklet dictionary and grammar. One part of the book includes grammar portion which includes a research on modern English language grammar rules, the rules which were missing in modern English language grammar, he discovered them, coined new terms, defined and explained them with their exceptions. Its special features include Proper Idioms, common noun CAPITALISATION, Proper Verbs, Dimorphic Verbs, Uninflected, or Invariable Verbs with their conjugational exceptions. The other part of the book contains specialized vocabulary of animals, humans, fruits, vegetables and objects’ verbs, phrases and idioms. Human onomatopoeic sounds, cries and movements. Animals’, birds and insects’ cries and objects’ sounds. Hybrid animal names, animals’ birds’ and insects’ babies’ names and a chart by the name of Adam Family was added in which he explained all religious, secular, national, regional and international relations amongst humans. It would be interesting to know that the book is a result of an incident which took place in 2017 when a notorious film actress named Meera Irteza took the poet’s first book “Democracy is the Best Revenge” and had a photo shoot on her social media accounts, the shoot got viral. The writer came to know through a local TV Channel GEOTV, when she claimed that the writer of the book is her best friend and that the book is actually a grammar. The writer corrected it in his reply published in the Dunya News that he does not know her, he is not friends with her. But then the writer decided to pen down a book and finally penned it down. In 2020 the Holy Quran named “Moizatilulil Mataqeen” was published by Maktaba Qudusia Urdu Bazar, Lahore. A. K. Rasheed was the Chief Editor of the translation. This is a tri-language Quran, its special features include Arabic, Urdu and English translation with pronunciation in romanized English, words meanings of Quranic Araby words in English and Urdu and their pronunciation in romanised English alphabets.

Family Background

A. K. Rasheed’s father, Rasheed Ahmed was born and raised in Lahori Gate, Androon Shehar Lahore (the Walled City). He belonged to very wealthy family of Androon Shehar Lahore. He was very fond of keeping pets and birds and wore gold chains and earrings to his pets and birds like eagle, bitch, monkeys since the family owned the opium business so money was in abundance at home as the business was their family business from British India. There were actually two bothers migrated after the partition of India in 1947, named Abdul Hameed the younger one and Abdul Majeed the elder one. They had 12 opium shops at Rang Mehal, Baba Nogazza Chowk, Kashmiri Bazaar, Landa Bazzar, Mazung Adda and the rest out of Lahore. But during the tenure of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Bhutto ordered to shut down the opium business all over the country, consequently the opium was confiscated, it was then when the opium business ended in Pakistan officially and was pronounced as illegal business. Over the property dispute with his elder brother, Rasheed Ahmed left the city for Faisalabad to his in-laws, though after sometime he came back Lahore permanently but suffered a lot because of without no work.

Family Intrigues and Militancy

A. K. Rasheed are three sisters and two brothers, Kashif Rasheed the eldest, Nosheen Rasheed the elder, A. K. Rasheed being in the centre, Amber Rasheed the younger and Sheharbano Rasheed the youngest of all. His father was at Riyadh, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and in 1996 he earned some money and called back home and asked their opinion for the earned money. Their eldest brother, elder sister and mother conceived a scheme and decided to send the eldest son abroad and take control of their father which he successfully did and separated their father from their domestic decisions. On the other hand in 1998 A. K. Rasheed’s breakfast was poisoned but he was admitted in a hospital and was saved. By now they changed the strategy and the assaults were transformed into street mob assaults, they gathered street mob in domestic quarrels but he escaped several assaults luckily. A. K. Rasheed resisted this revolt which caused him to lose home too, with the passage of time the family kept him threatened to call the police and get him booted out if he did not kneel down, they also pressurized him to be a peddler salesboy of miscellaneous petty things or face the music but this strategy worked. Though A. K. Rasheed stood strong footed to save life but was finally deprived of home in 2001. By birth A. K. Rasheed was a physically weak child who now had to survive on roads in winter and summer with incomplete education, joblessness and hard up of money. In 2009 he married which lasted only two months since the family conspired against the marriage and got him divorced. Today he lives in pitiable circumstances in a small room of a cheap hostel at Karamabad, Lahore, where he only writes his books.