Poetry deserves better than a screenshot
Urdu poetry is one of the most shared kinds of content on Pakistani social media. A single sher of Ghalib or Faraz can travel through thousands of WhatsApp statuses in a day. Yet most of it is shared as blurry screenshots, in fonts that break the Nastaliq letterforms, or with backgrounds that make the words hard to read.
This tool sets your poetry in proper Nastaliq, the calligraphic style Urdu poetry is meant to be read in, and composes it on a clean, balanced image. Text is automatically sized to fit, centred with generous margins, and finished with an optional poet line and ornament.
Designed backgrounds, drawn in code
Every background design (Teal ink, Night, Dusk, Paper, Rose, Emerald, Saffron and Charcoal) is a gradient generated in your browser. You can overlay one of five geometric patterns:
- Eight-point stars (khatam), the star motif of Mughal and Islamic tilework
- Jaali lattice, inspired by carved stone screens
- Dots and waves for a quieter texture
- None for a plain gradient
Because the backgrounds are drawn rather than downloaded, there are no stock photos with unclear licences, and the images stay sharp at any size.
Worked example
Here is a couplet by Mirza Ghalib (1797–1869) that makes a good test:
ہزاروں خواہشیں ایسی کہ ہر خواہش پہ دم نکلے
بہت نکلے مرے ارمان لیکن پھر بھی کم نکلے
Font: Noto Nastaliq · Background: Teal ink with eight-point stars · Poet: مرزا غالب · Size: Story 1080×1920
Long misras are automatically scaled so both lines fit the width with the same margins. The poet’s name sits under a small gold diamond ornament.
Tips for a beautiful image
- Put each misra on its own line. A sher usually has two lines. Press Enter between them.
- Keep it short. One or two shers read better than a whole ghazal. For longer pieces, use Story size.
- Mind the contrast. Over photos, raise the Darken slider until the text is easy to read at arm’s length.
- Use Gulzar for a bolder look. It has heavier strokes that survive small screens and compression.
- Credit the poet. It is respectful and helps people find more of their work.
Common problems and fixes
The text is too small
Long lines force the text to shrink so it fits. Split long lines into two, choose Story size, or raise the Text size slider. The tool will not let text run off the image.
Letters overlap between lines
Nastaliq has tall ascenders and deep descenders. Raise the Line spacing slider a little. Gulzar usually needs less spacing than Noto Nastaliq.
The photo is blurry
Use a photo at least 1080 pixels on its shorter side. Small images are stretched to fill the frame.
Share button is missing
Sharing straight to apps depends on your phone’s browser. Where it is unavailable, use Download PNG and share the file from your gallery.
Who uses the poetry image maker
- Poetry lovers sharing a favourite sher on WhatsApp status and Instagram.
- Poets publishing their own work in a consistent, recognisable style.
- Teachers making visual aids for Urdu literature classes.
- Page admins running Urdu adab pages on Facebook who need a steady stream of good-looking posts.
Poets who keep their work in InPage convert it first with the InPage to Unicode converter. To write a couplet without an Urdu keyboard, type it on the Urdu typing pad, and for a single name in large Nastaliq, the Urdu name calligraphy maker is quicker. The guide how to type Urdu on any computer or phone helps with letters such as ڑ and ے.
Private by design
Your poetry and photos are processed on your device. Nothing is uploaded or saved.