He was a classical Urdu and Persian poet from India during British colonial rule. During his lifetime the Mughals were eclipsed and displaced by the British and finally deposed following the defeat of the Indian rebellion of 1857, events that he wrote of.

Most notably, he wrote several ghazals during his life, which have since been interpreted and sung in many different ways by different people. He is considered, in South Asia, to be one of the most popular and influential poets of the Urdu language. Ghalib today remains popular not only in India and Pakistan but also amongst diaspora communities around the world.

Ghalib is still very popular today, and his poetry is well known. Many singers from all over South Asia have sung many of his ghazals. K L Sehgal, Suraiya, Talat Mehmood, Mohammad Rafi, Asha Bhonsle, Lata Mangeshkar, Noor Jehan, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Mehdi Hassan and Jagjit Singh are a few most notable names among these.

He died on February 15, 1869 at the age of 72.