This documentary brings out some very interesting facts about the umero uno of Indian lyricists, the great Sahir Ludhianvi. One fact that I was not aware of till this short film was that Sahir was named after one of his father’s bitter rivals- a neighbour named Abdul Hayee with whom he was engaged in a […]
Since long has the polemic of politics decreedThat the child that flowers into youth is ripe for slaughterSince long have the rulers decreedThat poisonous weeds be sown in far- off lands *** bahut dinon se hai ye mashgala siyasat kake jab jawaan ho to bachche katl ho jayainbahut dinon se hai ye khabt hukamranon kake […]
Sahir is well- known to have picked up verses and poems from other poets and either parodied or transcreated them so effectively that the resulting poetry is a new piece of creation itself. One of the lesser known songs of Sahir is the one from the movie Kajal ‘Kabira nirbhay raam jap’. It is unfortunately […]
I once boarded a bus in New Delhi, it was a very hot evening and as I waited for the bus to start so that a breeze, albiet of hot air, may come in, someone threw in a Hindi evening newspaper through the window. The headline covered the break- up of an alliance between two […]
Sahir LudhianviBy Parkash Pandit I have seen Sahir from close quarters- in 1943 when he was less of Sahir and more of a college student and had come from Ludhiana to Lahore for publication of his collection of poems- Talkhiyaan (Bitterness). In 1945- when with the publication of Talkhiyaan, his popularity soared. He became the […]
In your whole life will not get repaid Loan on sister’s marriage incurred, Every drop of blood Sprinkled in the fields Will not provide colour Enough to paint the face Of a serene smiling person. To add to it further All the nights of life put […]
A song from an almost forgotten movie, Char Dil Char Rahaein (1959)- reminds one of the optimism that pervaded the post- independence years, as well as the popular appeal of the progressive movement. Listening to this socialist song one can still feel rejuvenated in sometimes depressing times. Lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi, music by another legendary […]
“Tum shayar nahin hotey, toh bahut hi ordinary aadmi hotey”(Had you not been a poet, you would have been a very ordinary man” These are the words of Aarti Devi, the ambitious, Indira Gandhi- like character in the movie Aandhi, directed towards her husband. The dialogues for this movie were written by Gulzar, and apparently […]
(The play Kaifi aur Main based on the memoir written by Shaukat Azmi, and played by Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar is currently on tour in India) Kaifi Azmi was part of the fiery triumvirate of the Urdu poets in post independent India. Along with Sahir Ludhianvi and Ali Sardar Jafri, Kaifi Azmi wrote “red […]
This verse in Alfred Tennyson’s ‘In Memoriam‘ is uncannily similar to Faiz’s ‘Paas Raho‘. Be near me when my light is low, When the blood creeps, and the nerves prick And tingle; and the heart is sick, And all the wheels of Being slow. Be near me when the sensuous frame Is rack’d with pangs […]
A google search for Sahir’s Parchaeyaan brings Himayun to a post on this blog. Himayun- whose parents were born in India and migrated to Pakistan.Me- whose parents were born in what is now Pakistan and migrated to India. Does that make him a Pakistani of Indian descent ?And me, an Indian of Pakistani descent ? […]
Today is Shiv Kumar Batalvi‘s 33rd death anniversary. The Bohemian Punjabi poet died at the age of 36 on this day 1973. It would not be incorrect to say that there has been no comparable romantic poet in Punjabi after him. In the Bohemian aspects of his personality, he brings to mind the urdu poet […]
I find it tough to believe that a person can be liked by all. Sunil Dutt, who passed away last week in India was perhaps one of the very few. Despite being the victim of Partition, he rose above it, was part of the secular leaning Bombay filmdom, married a Muslim actress of iconic status, […]
