Identity: Expert in Deccaniyat, researcher, critic, and editor of Deccani literature.

Mohammad Ali Athar was born on December 22, 1949, in Hyderabad. He received his education from the historic educational institutions of Hyderabad, including Madrasa-e-Tahtania Shah Gunj and Madrasa-e-Urdu Sharif. In 1965, he passed his tenth-grade examinations from Urdu Sharif High School with second position, subsequently completing his B.A. from Anwarul Uloom College. In 1974, he earned his M.A. in Urdu from Osmania University. Later, he completed his Ph.D. under the supervision of Professor Ghulam Umar Khan on the topic "Dakhni Ghazal Ki Nashu-o-Numa."

In 1975, he joined the Urdu Department of Osmania University as a teacher, becoming a permanent lecturer in 1982, a reader in 1987, and was appointed as a professor in 1998. He retired in December 2009 after a distinguished tenure of service. For over three decades, he provided exemplary teaching and research services at Osmania University.

Professor Mohammad Ali Athar is widely regarded as an expert in Deccaniyat. He is recognized as a researcher, critic, poet, manuscript expert, and editor. His contributions to the research, textual editing, criticism, and interpretation of Deccani literature are extraordinary. He authored more than fifty books.

His prominent works include Ghawasi: Shakhsiyat aur Fan, Dakhni Ghazal Ki Nashu-o-Numa, Dakhni Shayari: Tahqeeq-o-Tanqeed, Dakhan Ki Teen Masnaviyan, Kulliyat-e-Iman, Diwan-e-Abdullah Qutub Shah, Qadeem Urdu Ghazal, Qutub Shahi Daur Mein Urdu Ghazal, Dakhni Adab Ki Tahqeeq, Basarat Se Baseerat Tak, and Ishraq-e-Adabiyat-e-Dakhan. He also edited and compiled numerous Deccani manuscripts and performed significant academic work on the Tazkira-e-Makhtootat and the manuscript collection of the Salar Jung Museum.

Death: He passed away on April 24, 2024, in Hyderabad.