Jalali is a historical town located in the district ofAligarh and is known for its culture and traditions. Formerly known as Nilavati, Jalali was founded by Jalaluddin Khilji during the reign of Ghiyas ud-din Balban[2]
One of the oldest inhabited sites in the district of Aligarh, Jalali has also been a perfect example of communal harmony for decades. Its history can be traced back to 16th century when Syeds migrated from Hamdan in Iran and settled down here. They are descendants of Shah-e-Hamdan Syed Ali Hamdani (RA),a great Islamic scholar and sufi saint. Syeds in Jalali lived as landlords and had reasonably good education. Jalali also has a few good examples of old Mughal architecture. Jalali has been an active contributor in the development of Urdu language. It produced a poet of international fame Ustad Qamar Jalalvi . Some other well-known poets of Urdu who emerged from Jalali are Mohabbat Jalalvi, Peer Mohammad Gauhar Jalalvi, S.Shabber Husain Saher Jalalvi, S.Sajjad Hussain Hadaf Jalalvi, S. Ali Baqar Chacha Jalalvi (known for his humorous poems) and S. Afsar Ali Baqa Jalalvi. Baqa Jalalvi one of the greatest poet wrote some marsiyas, nauhas and salams. His most well known marsiya is "Uffaqe shaam se utthi jo ghata zulmat ki". His father Sayyed Zille Hussain Fiza wrote a well-known marsiya "Andaleebe gule gulzaar risalat hun mein". He also edited famous salam composed by Dilgeer "Hai salaam us per jo baikas be padar be yaar tha". Jalali has many imambaras and mosques. One of the finest imambaras in Jalali is the Imambara of S.Farzand Ali which is over two hundred years old. It is an imposing structure with a mosque inside. It can accommodate more than five thousand persons at a time in addition to women and children who gather on the terrace of the imambara and the mosque in large numbers on 9th of Maharram and on the occasion of Chhelum. Another Imambara called Bara Imambra situated in mohalla Garhi is also very old. A huge 'alam' of Hazrat Abbas called ' Fateh Nishan' is hoisted on the courtyard of this imambara in the morning of 'yome aashura'. The 'Aashura' procession that comprises Alam, Tazia, Tabut and Zuljinah is finally brought to an end in this imambara.
