Kaykobad
Mohammad Kazem Al-Qureshi, known by his pen-name Kaykobad, was a Bengali poet. Nikhil Bharat Sahitya Sangha titled him "Kavyabhusan", "Vidyabhusan" and "Sahityaratna".
Early life and education
Mohammad Kazem Al Qureshi was born in to a Bengali family of Iraqi Arab descent, tracing their lineage from the Quraysh tribe. He was born in his maternal family home situated in the Purba Para of Agla in Nawabganj, Dacca district, Bengal Presidency, as in tradition with other old Muslim families of Bengal. He was the son of Shahamatullah Al-Qureshi and Zarifunnesa Khatun. The Al-Qureshi family were based in the village of Gorail in Faridpur district. During the reign of Shah Jahan, his great great grandfather Hafizullah al-Qureshi migrated from Baghdad to Delhi and was appointed as the Imam of the Shahi Juma Masjid. This position passed down hereditarily until Kaykobad's grandfather Muhibbullah left India during the collapse of the Mughal Empire and settled in the village of Gorail. Kaykobad's father, Shahamatullah Al-Qureshi was a wakil at the Dacca District Judge Court. Kaykobad's maternal family were zamindars, known as the Chowdhuries of Alga. His maternal grandfather Chowdhury Muhammad Daulat was a descendant of Shahbaz Khan Kamboh, a military general of Emperor Akbar the Great. Kaykobad was eldest of his siblings. His younger brothers were civil surgeon Muhammad Abdul Bari Al-Qureshi and deputy magistrate Muhammad Abdul Khaliq Al-Qureshi. His younger sister Azizunnesa Khatun was the wife of a leading mukhtar of Bikrampur.Kaykobad attended Pogose School and St Gregory's School. He then went to Dhaka Madrasah and left the madrasah before the Entrance Examination without attending the examination.