FATHER: Yusuf Kamal Bukhari.

To pay posthumous tribute to and express love and respect for his father, a Doha-based Indian entrepreneur has brought about a book containing research articles, written by his father on different topics, ranging from archaeology to religion.

Compiled and published in Doha, Aks-e-Yusuf (Reflections of Yusuf) is an anthology of as many as 18 select essays and articles written by late Yusuf Kamal Bukhari in Urdu language. The book has been published by the Bukhari Foundation Qatar.
The research work on the book and the selection of the articles has been made by Nadeem Mahir, a Qatar-based Urdu poet and writer. The formal launching of the book is planned in Bhopal, India, in a few days. A separate launching ceremony will be organised in Doha in September.
The idea of collecting different articles of his father, published in different indian and international newspapers, came to Muhammad Sabih (M S) Bukhari, Chairman of Bukhari Foundation and a known businessman and philanthropist living in Qatar, as his family came across the material from his father’s belongings while cleaning their ancestral house in Bhopal. M S Bukhari started a search on the works of his father and got amazed to see the quality and volume of the creative and research work his father had done.
Community recently spoke to M S Bukhari about his father and the book.
Giving details about the life and works of his father, M S Bukhari said that his father was born in 1923 and died in 1996. He had post graduate degrees in History and Persian. After his education, he joined Indian Administrative Services. He had two sons Muhammad Masih Bukhari and M S Bukhari. He added that his father remained associated with the archaeology department of the Indian government. He was an archivist.



TRIBUTE: The book is an anthology of as many as 18 select essays and articles written by late Yusuf Kamal Bukhari in Urdu language.

Talking about his father’s works and contributions, M S Bukhari said that his father was at home in Urdu, Hindi, English, Persian, Arabic, French and German languages. He had carried out research works and wrote about different issues ranging from archaeology, history, social issues and Islam. He was also adept at museology. While working with the archaeology department of India, he restructured and re-established many museums in France, US, Canada, Australia, Spain, Yemen, and Algeria during 1950s and 60s.
When asked about how he came to the idea of bringing about the book, M S Bukhari said, “It was about five years ago that I read a book written by my father. As I read, I realised that my father was an intellectual and scholar of high eminence. I went through most of the material, written by him and published in different newspapers of that time. Then, I thought of compiling and preserving his articles in a book. I needed a trustworthy person, who could help me with the task. Nadeem Mahir, a Doha-based Urdu poet and writer, agreed to carry out the research on my father’s Urdu articles and compile them in book form.”
M S Bukhari further noted, “The main reason to publish the book is to fill the gap – the period I was away from my parents – and I missed my father as a personality, my father as an intellectual, and my father as a writer. I have a complex that I do not know my father well. I want to know more about my father and the book is just an effort in that direction. The message I want to convey is that though we live with our parents, we may not know them as a person. My message is to know them more.”
About the content of the book, he said, “The purpose of the book is to preserve the work of my father. I also want the world to know about him and his works. I will distribute the book to different libraries and universities in the world. Further, the book is a source of information for Urdu lovers both in India and in Qatar. I also plan to bring out further editions of the book in Urdu as there was a lot of material in the language. I will also bring about books containing works of Yusuf in English, French and Arabic.”





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