Muhammad Kabir

Muhammad Kabir (16th century) poet of medieval Bangla, chiefly noted for his romances. A manuscript of his romance Madhumalati (1588 AD) was found at Jorwarganj in Chittagong leading to the belief that he was a resident of the area.

Muhammad Kabir wrote Madhumalati based either on the Hindi poet Manjhan's Madhumalat or on Sadhan's Mainasat. The poem narrates the love story of Prince Manohar and Princess Madhumalati. Although the original story was about spiritual love, Kabir's version is about secular love. The poem was so popular at the time that after him six other poets wrote poems under the same title. However, only the work of syed hamza was as popular as Kabir's. [Wakil Ahmed]