Political satire started with Akbar Hussain Rizvi "Akbar Allahabadi" (1846-1921), and his barbs at both colonial rule and his compatriots' craze for western habits and forsaking their own roots. While the Hindi tradition has Manohar Shyam Joshi ("Netaji Kahin") and Hari Shankar Parsai among others, satire entwined with humour - "tanz-o-mizah" - has an older existence in Urdu where Mughal-era poet Mirza Muhammad Rafi "Sauda" (1713-81) was perhaps the first exponent. And closer to home, both Hindi and Urdu literature used it to devastating effect. The verse also exemplifies the vibrant, universal tradition of political satire that exists alongside organised government - from the plays of Aristophanes in ancient Athens to TV shows like "Yes Minister" and "Saturday Night Live" now. "Here richly, with ridiculous display,/The Politician's corpse was laid away/While all of his acquaintance sneered and slanged/I wept: for I had longed to see him hanged", was prolific English author Hillaire Belloc's caustic send-off to an unnamed politician.
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