As a young child he learned Urdu, Arabic and Persian in addition to the Islamic education of Quran, Hadith, and Fiqh.

He was noted as being a very gifted child, and mastered the religious Islamic doctrine at a very young age.

Those around him noted that he had a talent for composing spontaneous poetry which generally evoked sunny imagery.

He donated over 5 million rupees to various charitable projects, and renovated the mazar (mausoleum) of Pir Yemeni.

He was a member of the Central Northern Muhammadan Association and this played a large role in his works.

[6] Ahsanullah was awarded a Khan Bahadur in 1871, a Nawab in 1875, a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE) in 1891, a Nawab Bahadur in 1892, a Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE) in 1897, and a member of the Governor-General's Legislative Council in 1890 and again in 1899.

Ahsanullah's another grandson, through his daughter Bilqis Banu, Khawaja Nazimuddin, served as the governor general (1948–1951) and the prime minister (1951–1953) of Pakistan.