Identity: A distinguished critic, expert in Iqbal studies, Ghalib scholar, and professor of English literature.

Usloob Ahmad Ansari was born in Delhi in 1925. He completed his M.A. in English Literature with a first-class degree from Aligarh Muslim University in 1946 and was appointed as a lecturer in the Department of English at the same university in 1947. Later, he went to England for higher education and graduated from Oxford University. He served as a Reader in 1959, a Professor in 1967, and held the position of Head of the Department of English at Aligarh Muslim University from 1965 to 1984. His contributions to the teaching and research of the English language and literature hold a place of distinction.

Usloob Ahmad Ansari is counted among the prominent critics, experts in Iqbal studies, and Ghalib scholars of Urdu literature. His criticism is not bound by any specific literary school of thought; instead, it is independent, balanced, and text-based, reflecting the autonomy of his mind. He emphasized the comprehension, semantic dimensions, and artistic merits of literary works, illuminating poetry on a conceptual level through objective analysis. A sympathetic critical approach focused on searching for merits rather than flaws is prominent in his writings, while Ghalib, Iqbal, the Urdu novel, and poetic criticism remained his specialized subjects. His style of writing is simple and clear, preferring to express ideas openly, which occasionally leads to lengthiness and repetition.

His major Urdu publications include "Adab Aur Tanqeed", "Naqsh-e-Ghalib", "Iqbal Ki Terah Nazmen", "Naqsh-e-Iqbal", "Iqbal Ki Munthakhab Nazmen Aur Ghazalen", "Iqbal: Harf-o-Momin", "Naqsh Haaye Rang Rang" (Ghalib), "Atraaf-e-Rasheed Ahmad Siddiqui", "Urdu Ke Pandrah Novel", "Aaina Khane Mein", "Tanqeedi Tabsira", and "Harf-e-Chand". He also edited and compiled "Ghazal Tanqeed" (two volumes), "Ghalib: Jadeed Tanqeedi Tanazurat", "Iqbal: Jadeed Tanqeedi Tanazurat", and "Nazar-e-Manzoor". In English, he published about eight to ten authored and edited books, including an original work on William Blake and compiled academic works on Milton, John Donne, Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, and Allama Iqbal. His English essays on Shakespeare were highly acclaimed in the West and continue to be cited.

Usloob Ahmad Ansari was also actively involved in journalism and literary editing. From 1979 to 2001, he edited the renowned Urdu critical journal "Naqd-o-Nazar". Additionally, he was the founding editor of the Aligarh Journal of English Studies and the Aligarh Critical Miscellany. In recognition of his scholarly and literary achievements, he was honored with the Sahitya Akademi Award, the Ghalib Award, and several other prestigious accolades.

Death: He passed away on May 1, 2016, in Aligarh.