Ali Sardar Jafri (1913-2000) --- Ali Sardar Jafri was born in Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh.  He came to Mumbai in 1942 and made it his home. He firmly believed in the cultural unity of the subcontinent. Arrested for writing against British rule in India, Jafri was among the votaries of the progressive movement in Urdu literature.  Jafri's literary career began at the young age of 17. He has written nine books of verse, two plays, one memoir-reportage, three collections of critical essays and one volume of short stories. With the publication of his very first collection of nazm and ghazal, Parwaz, in 1943, he established himself as a poet to reckon with. Five years later Nai Duniya Ko Salaam, an unconventional, longish nazm brimming with revolutionary optimism, took the Urdu world by pleasant surprise. Sardar had by then become a familiar and revered name. Among his other poetic works Khoon Ki Lakeer (1949), Ashia Jaag Uttha (1951), Patthar Ki Deewar (1953), Pairahan-e-Sharar (1966), Lahoo Pukarta Hai (1978) and November, Mera Gahwara (1998) are remarkable, both for their theme and style.  Sardar’s early works reflected a restless yearning for India’s independence from the colonial yoke. Equally intense was his yearning for the freedom and dignity of the proletariat. This was because of the strong impact of the Progressive Writers’ Movement inspired by Marxism. With the publication of Pairahan-e-Sharar in 1966, one could see a noticeable shift in Sardar’s poetry, both in terms of its grammar as well as form. In its preface the diehard, uncompromising radical of Patthar Ki Deeawar now declared that his nazms were no longer ‘political documents’. Rather they were a ‘cry of the heart and voice of the soul’. As it has been said, "The Sardar was a rebel, freedom fighter, pacifist, radical activist, story writer, critic and documentary filmmaker at once. But, above all, he was a poet endowed with exquisite imagination, one of the brightest stars on the firmament of 20th century Urdu poetry. Like all great poets he was a prophet engaged in unravelling the mysteries and ambiguity of human drama. The principal theme of his poetry was compassion, love, perseverance and sensitivity surviving amidst the callous inhumanity of our times. In his unique style, he depicted the exemplary survival of the human spirit in face of all-pervasive adversity and defeatism. In so doing he not only carried forward the traditions of Urdu poetry but enriched its treasure with new symbols and powerful imagery. Indeed, his poetry gradually evolved into a genre of its own kind whose influence is difficult to ignore among the present generation of Urdu poets."  He was awarded the Iqbal Gold Medal by the Pakistan government in 1978.  In India, he was awarded the prestigious Jnanpith Puraskar in 1998. His memorable work, Ek Khwab Aur, received the Sahitya Akademi award. He received the Jnanpith Award for the year 1997.

Akhtarul Iman (1915-96) --- Akhtarul Iman was born in Najibabad (Uttar Pradesh) in a lower middle-class trading family. He ran away from home at the age of 15, rebelling against his father’s desire that he become a maulvi like him. From the age of 19, he was on his own, paying his own way through high school and college. He obtained a Master's degree in Persian. Apart from being a poet, he was a freelancer and film scriptwriter. His works include Girdaab, Sab Rang, Naya Aahang and Sar-O-saman (Complete Works). Some of his poems rendered into English are available in Query of the Road, translated by Baidar Bakht, Lesli Lavigne and Kathleen Grant Jaeger (Delhi : Rupa & Co., 1995). He was honoured by the Urdu Academy of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi. He received the Sahitya Akademi award (1961) and the Iqbal award.

Balraj Komal (b. 1928) --- Balraj Komal,  apart from being a  poet, is also a critic, academic, short story writer and translator. He was born in Sialkot. He served as Education Officer, Delhi Admninistration. He functioned as Member, Delhi Urdu Akademi (1989-90, 1996-97) and Member, Advisory Board for Urdu and Executive Board, Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi (1993-97, 1998-2002). Among his works of poetry are Meri Nazmen, Rishta-e-Dil, Nariyal Ke Par, Safar Mudam Safar, Intikhab, Nizad-e-Sang, Parindow Bhara Asman and Agala Waraq. He has also authored Akhen Aur Paon (Short Stories),  Adab Ki Talas (Critical work) and Tawatur Aur Tasulsul (Critical work). He has edited three volumes of Urdu translation of contemporary Indian short stories. Some of the awards / honours he has received are as follows : U. P. Urdu Academy Award (1971, 1982), Government of India Award, 1969, Meer Academy Award, 1977, Sahitya Akademi Award, 1985, Delhi Urdu Academy Award, 1982 and Government of India Senior Fellowship, 1988-89 . Address : E-139, Kalkaji, New Delhi 110 019. 

A M K Shahryar (b. 1936) --- A M K Shahryar retired as Chairman and Professor of the Department of Urdu from the Aligarh Muslim University in 1996. His first collection of poems, Ism-e-Azam, was published way back in 1965. Since then he has published several collections, which include Saatvan Dar, Hijr ke Mausam, Khwab ka Dar Band Hai and Neend ki Kirchein. He has also published five collections in Devanagari script, reaching out to those who appreciate Urdu poetry but can not read the Urdu script. His  collection, Haasil-e-Sair-e-Jahan, is an omnibus edition of his previous collections. He has received several awards and honours, which include  Urdu Akademi award (1979, 1985), Wajid Ali Shah Akademi, award (1981), Critic Circle of India award (1984) and Sahitya Akademi award (1987) for his Khwab Ka Dar Band Hai. He was honoured by  Government of Madhya Pradesh with National Iqbal Samman (2005).

Shamsur Rahman Faruqi (b. 1936) --- Shamsur Rahman Faruqi acquired a Master's degree in English. He was a member of the Indian Postal Service.  Faruqi has held the Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan Chair in the Faculty of Humanities at the Jamia Millia Islamia University (New Delhi), Adjunct Professor of Urdu Literature, South Asia Regional Studies, University of Pennsylvania and Vice Chairman, National Council for Promotion of Urdu, India. He is Urdu's finest literary critic with some twenty books to his credit, including a major four-volume study of the poet Mir. His publications include Sher, Ghair Sher, Aur Nasr, (1973),  The Secret Mirror (in English, 1981), Ghalib Afsaney Ki Himayat Mein (1989),  Sher Shore Angez (in 3 volumes, 1991-93), Mir Taqi Mir 1722-1810 (Collected works with commentary and explanation), Urdu Ka Ibtedai Zamana (2001), Ganj-i-Sokhta (poetry) and Sawar Aur Doosray Afsanay (fiction). He has received the All India Mir Academy award, Delhi Urdu Academy award, Uttar Pradesh Urdu Academy award (1969, 1977), Sahitya Akademi award (1986) for his  Tanquidi Afkar (Literary criticism), Mir Taqi Mir Award (2005) and Saraswati Samman (1996).

Nida Fazli (b. 1938) --- Muqtida Hasan Nida Fazli was born in Delhi. He did his schooling from Gwalior. During the partition his parents migrated to Pakistan, but young Nida Fazli decided to stay back in India. He did his post graduation from Gwalior College in 1954. He published his first collection of Urdu poetry in 1969. He has since published a number of books, which include Ankh Aur Khvab ke Darmiyan (1986), Lafzon Ka Pul (1998), More Nach and Khoya Hua Sa Kuchh (1996). He has also authored an autobiographical novel, Deewaron Ke Bich.  Nida Fazli has received various awards including Khusro award, Best Poetry award from Maharashtra Urdu Academy, Hindi Urdu Sangam award, National Harmony award, Mir Taqi Mir award  and Sahitya Akademi award (1998) for his book, Khoya Huva sa Kuchh.