Baab-e-Ghazal Podcast
Professor Jameel Ahmad of the department of Asian Languages and Literature has recently launched the Baab-e-Ghazal Podcast, a show about the history, poetics and poets of Urdu Ghazal, in partnership with the University of Washington Language Learning Center.
In the second episode, Professor Ahmad invites his first guest to the Baab-e-Ghazal Podcast, Professor Purnima Dhavan from the University of Washington Department of History. Together they discuss a forthcoming book cowritten by Professor Dhavan and Professor Heidi Pauwels entitled Vali Dakhani and the Early Rekhtah Networks: Sharing Poetry’s Pleasures. Professor Ahmad and Professor Dhavan have a wide-ranging conversation about the history of Urdu Ghazal and the significance of the genre and its authors. Part of the podcast is supported by the NEH grant during summer 2024.
Professor Ahmad records his podcast in the UW LLC media production studio, which is set up with professional audio/video recording equipment. LLC staff provide audio engineering and other production support, including website design and the creation of a podcast RSS feed. Though he was at first hesitant to start a new podcast given all of the technological components and time necessary, Professor Ahmad said, “Once I saw the facilities and support at the LLC, I was amazed that here you can come just with content and ideas and the rest is done professionally and in a very inspiring environment.” Professor Ahmad has also recorded material at the LLC for his Urdu language courses.
More information can be found on the Baab-e-Ghazal Podcast website. Episodes of the Baab-e-Ghazal Podcast will be released on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Youtube Music soon! If UW language program affiliates are interested in consultation or production support for podcast, learning resources or other public scholarship activities, please contact: llc@uw.edu.