In gloomy 2020, I found out about Abhishek Sir’s Urdu language Zoom classes.
I joined the second batch of these classes.
My immediate reaction was that I had become part of something special. His classes were nothing short of lyrical magic on a chalkboard for me. His gentle voice masterfully led all of us students into the world of Urdu. His voice had a ring of a committed and gifted man with a rare talent to teach. I quickly realized that Abhishek Sir was born to teach. And by a lucky coincidence, I was now his student.
During the course of learning to read and write Urdu from him I discovered that he has studied and mastered Urdu with a passion that is unheard of in our times. He is young but the depth of his knowledge is striking.
This knowledge is on glorious display every time a zoom lesson starts and he teaches.He had us in a spell.
In my experience, his way of teaching was like a gentle breeze that took over the classroom.
His teaching is methodical and perfected by lots of thought and attention paid to course creation, sequencing of what to teach when and how to introduce new concepts to students.
But even though there is careful attention to detail, Abhishek Sir’s teaching isn’t labored, it flows naturally.
I was amazed that I started to read and write Urdu in merely three months at the end of the course he ran. Not only did I start to read and write, I began to appreciate and love the language because his love for Urdu is contagious.
If a student asks from a question, his answers display the depth and expanse of his continued research in all aspects of Urdu language and literature. This inspired me to develop my own relationship with Urdu and read and write more.
Learning from Abhishek Sir who is a gifted poet himself, one is also regaled by the occasional couplet of masters of Ghazal like Meer and Ghalib and contemporary poets as well.
I was introduced to the beautiful intricacies and technicalities of the Ghazal.
I really enjoyed how his way of talking had the flavor of Lunckow’s rich culture even though I was sitting thousands of miles away in The US. His wit and jokes always kept us smiling even though we were carefully listening to what was going on in class.
The mastery of how to teach Urdu that Abhishek Sir displays is no coincidence. It stems from sheer talent, immense passion to teach and his extraordinary commitment to do much needed research in many unexplored linguistic aspects of Urdu with a contemporary lens.
Abhishek Sir’s classroom is an also a zone of inspiration and idealism for me.
Sincere teaching and learning needs an idealism that I thought was dying out till I witnessed Abhishek Sir’s classroom. Here,there is many a conversation about the Evolution of Urdu language and the Masters of Urdu, talk about the history and origins of words and the evolution of their meanings over time, mention of Urdu books old and new and discussions over the delicacy of Urdu “talaffuz” (pronunciation) ….. all this seamlessly happens as we learn to read and write the basics of Urdu. This is possible because when an “Ustaad” teaches and his craft is on display, many avenues open all at once.
His classroom is a community that comes together and discovers their love for Urdu.
I continue to be in awe of Abhishek Sir’s vision for teaching Urdu in contemporary times, his modern approach to teaching Urdu and of course, his dedication and faithfulness to the language.
It was a lucky day for me in 2020 when I became his student. My journey as his student continues….because there is so much to learn and so many adventures to be part of as Abhishek Sir leads and guides us on.