Naiyer Masud, a Lucknow-based Urdu writer, is best known for his collections of short stories. In this essay, I turn to his academic work and especially to his critique of reform literature and his defense of classical writing genres including ghazal, masnavi and dastaan. Masud rejected the critiques of Urdu reformers such as Hali and Mohammed Hussain Azad's who had condemned these genres as superfluous and ultimately morally damaging. In his academic work, but also in various radio and TV programs, Masud asked  readers to dismiss later critique of these genres and to appreciate them on their own terms. I argue that even though Naiyer Masud repeatedly noted that his writings never had a specific purpose or "maqsad," a close reading of his academic work reveals otherwise. Masud was committed to  offering a more sympathetic and generous view of Urdu literature's classical genres.