Khaali Samandar (Raat Pashmine Ki)

A while back I did this post (which finds a man describing his ladylove in the terms of the sea, sunset, the moon etc (the kind of exquisite imagery that we have come to associate with Gulzar)). 

The poem in this post also features almost the same set of elements, yet it takes the imagery a step further in that one is not sure till the end if the man is talking about his sweetheart or the tide (yes, that same high-tide, low-tide, ज्वार-भाटा वाली tide).

Anyway, here is my interpretation of the poem, which deeply appeals to me as a hardcore romantic and a sea-lover.

ख़ाली समंदर  (An Empty Sea)

उसे फिर लौट के जाना है, ये मालूम था उस वक़्त भी जब शाम की -

सुर्खोसुनहरी रेत पर वह दौड़ती आई थी 

और लहरा के -

यूं आग़ोश में बिखरी थी जैसे पूरे का पूरा समंदर -

ले के उमड़ी है 

[[She had to go back - we knew this even as 

She came --

Running on the evening-sand rendered crimson

And swaying, broke into my arms like the billowing ocean]]

उसे जाना है, वो भी जानती थी, 

मगर हर रात फिर भी हाथ रख कर चाँद पर खाते रहे कसमे 

ना मैं उतरूँगा अब साँसों के साहिल से,

ना वो उतरेगी मेरे आसमाँ पर झूलते तारों की पींगों से 

[[Even knowing that she had to go,

We kept swearing on the moon, night by night

That I won't descend into this sea of breathlessness

And she won't come swooping down from the stars fastened to my sky]]

मगर जब कहते-कहते दास्ताँ, फिर वक़्त ने लम्बी जम्हाई ली,

ना वो ठहरी --

ना मैं ही रोक पाया था!

[[Oblivious to these vows,

When the time yawned in between telling its eternal tale

Neither she stopped --

Nor was I able to make her stay!]]

बहुत फूँका सुलगते चाँद को, फिर भी उसे 

इक इक कला घटते हुए देखा 

बहुत खींचा समंदर को मगर साहिल तलक हम ला नहीं पाये,

सहर के वक़्त फिर उतरे हुए साहिल पे 

इक डूबा हुआ ख़ाली समंदर था!

[[No matter how hard we tried to keep the moon aflame

We saw it dying, one phase at a time

We couldn't pull the sea any closer to the shore,

By dawn, all that there was on the shore

Was a sea -- sunken and empty]]

My two cents:

1. It's not just the metaphors used in the two poems (this one and this one) that are similar; even the flow is quite alike. The lovers meet as the evening is descending upon the sea shore, and they have to part ways as the night ends. The poems are both very beautiful but in a tragic way, leaving you with a wistful heart and an unfathomable yearning. At least that's what happened with me on both occasions.

2. I was not justifiably able to translate the "ना मैं उतरूँगा अब साँसों के साहिल से / ना वो उतरेगी मेरे आसमाँ पर झूलते तारों की पींगों से" part. I think he is talking about how, every night, the shore and the tide vow to never leave each other; but they're helpless in the hands of the time. Your comments?

Matka Bharke Sooraj Ulta... (Pandrah Paanch Pachhattar)

While browsing through Gulzar's book 'Pandrah Paanch Pachhattar' (Fifteen Fives are Seventeen Five), I suddenly came across this beautiful nazm. I say suddenly, because I had read the book before, and it was like I had completely skipped this poem. And what a poem it is! 

Somewhat similar in sentiments to the lines 'Tu ab se pahle sitaaron mein bas rahi thi kabhi' by Sahir Ludhianvi (incidently, one of Gulzar's favorite lyricists); this nazm goes one step further and weaves the entire persona of the leading lady and her meeting with the poet around the universe and its miracles. 

And since I've always been in love with seas, seashores, sunsets and such; the fact this meeting takes place after sunset and before sunrise makes it all the more alluring to me. How I long for a romantic night-out by the sea!

Not surprisingly at all for a Gulzar poem, it once again makes stellar use of similes and metaphors.

मटका भरके सूरज उल्टा, शाम ने दूर समंदर की दहलीज पे जाकर 

रात का पश्मीना पहने तुम आई थीं !

You came!

When the evening was pouring a pitcher-full of sun at the far end of the sea

You came, wearing the pashmeena of the silken night

रात तुम्हारे जिस्म से फिसली पड़ती थी 

जिस्म तुम्हारा एक जलते सय्यारे सा 

दूध और धूप से गूंधी मिट्टी 

एक फ़लक भर खुश्बू थी आवाज़ तुम्हारी !

The silken night kept sliding off your body

Your body, like a smoldering celestial object

Molded from clay kneaded in milk and sunshine

Your voice, like a sky-full of fragrance!

तुम बोल रही थीं 

होंठ तुम्हारे चाँद की काशें काट रहे थे !

मैं हैरां ...

हैरां हैरां ...

As you spoke,

Your lips sliced slivers off the moon

I was disconcerted ...

Bewildered, amazed ...

मटका भर के सूरज का, एक और सहर निकली पानी से 

उँगली थाम के सुबह की तुम पानी पर चलते-चलते एक और उफ़क को लौट गईं !

And when another morning emerged from the sea, with a pitcher-full of sun

You went back to another horizon, holding the morning's finger in your hand

वक़्त के पुरइसरार किसी 'कॉमेट' की तरह 

क़ायनात से आईं तुम और क़ायनात में लौट गईं !!

Time-bound, like a comet

You went back to the universe you came from !!

Ghalib (Yaar Julaahe)

That Gulzar idolizes Ghalib is no revelation. In his own words "His poems, his lifestyle, his behavior everything are a great inspiration. At a time when people used to carry their religion on their shoulders, Ghalib talked about humanity. The man lost seven children and carried a huge sadness inside him but despite that he was known for his sense of humour." Gulzar's writing is often inspired by (and at times borrows from) Ghalib's work or his thought process.

In this very poem, he refers to Ghalib's collection of work as 'Quran-e-sukhan' - a holy book of eloquence/language/poetry. In his book 'Mirza Ghalib: Ek Swanahi Manzarnaama'**, he goes so far as to call himself a servant to Ghalib.

In this small poem he begins by describing the atmosphere around Ghalib's residence in Chandni Chowk in purani Delhi; and towards the end makes a sudden change in narrative - of how in spite of these ordinary, even depressing, surroundings the brilliance of Ghalib shone through.

Poem and Translation

बल्लीमाराँ के मोहल्लों की वो पेचीदा दलीलों की-सी गलियाँ
सामने टाल के नुक्कड़ पे, बटेरों के क़सीदे
गुडगुडाती हुई पान की पीकों में वह दाद, वह वाह-वा
चंद दरवाजों पे लटके हुए बोसीदा-से कुछ टाट के परदे
एक बकरी के मिमियाने की आवाज़

[The back-lanes of the Ballimaaraan neighbourhood, tangled, like tedious arguments*
Quails - like poets in their own right - conversing at the corner of the lumberyard
Laudations, coated in the sound of the hukkah and the spitting of paan
Old, torn curtains - hanging from a few doors
The bleating of a goat ...]

और धुंधलाई हुई शाम के बेनूर अँधेरे
ऐसे दीवारों से मुंह जोड़ के चलते हैं यहाँ
चूड़ीवालान के कटरे की 'बड़ी बी' जैसे
अपनी बुझती हुई आँखों से दरवाज़े टटोले

[And the dimming lights of the dusk
Walk with their faces close to the walls;
Like the 'Badi Bi' of Choodiwaalaan
Feeling the door with her dimming eyes]

इसी बेनूर अँधेरी-सी गली क़ासिम से
एक तरतीब चराग़ों की शुरू होती है
एक क़ुरान-ए-सुख़न का सफ़ा खुलता है
'असद उल्लाह खाँ ग़ालिब' का पता मिलता है

[It is exactly from this lightless Qasim street
That the order of a thousand lamps begins
A page of the Quran-e-sukhan opens
The address of 'Asad Ullah Khan Ghalib' is found]

*Gulzar took the lines "pecheeda daleelon si galiyaan" from a work of T.S. Eliot. He says "This has come straight from T S Eliot; 'The streets that run like a tedious argument.' Now, that 'tedious argument' is so beautiful…I thought it would be best to borrow these lines from him and apply them to Ballimaran. I always acknowledge this debt. Such beautiful lines and so appropriately for the streets of Ballimaran!! Using those lines, is like paying a tribute to another poet." (source)

**This book by Gulzar is an absolute must have for Ghalib and Gulzar fans.

PS: I have taken a lot of liberty in interpreting this poem. If you have some other interpretations, do share those as well.

Khudkushi (Yaar Julaahe)

"Yaar Julaahe" is a collection of Gulzar's nazm's, ghazals and triveni's compiled by Yateendra Mishra. Below is a nazm from the book, called Khudkushi (Suicide).

बस इक लम्हे का झगड़ा था -

दरो-दीवार पे ऐसे छनाके से गिरी आवाज़ जैसे काँच गिरता है -

हर इक शै में गयीं उडती हुई, जलती हुई किरचें!

नज़र में, बात में, लहजे में, सोच और साँस के अन्दर |

लहू होना था इक रिश्ते का, सो वह हो गया उस दिन-!

उसी आवाज़ के टुकड़े उठा के फ़र्श से उस शब,

किसी ने काट ली नब्ज़ें - 

न की आवाज़ तक कुछ भी,

कि कोई जाग न जाये!!!

A mere one-moment tiff -
And the voice crashed on the walls like a glass, shattered -
The splinters, stinging, flew into everything!
In our eyes, in our conversation and its tone, in our thoughts and breaths even |
A relation was to be murdered, and that happened eventually -!

Using a fragment of that very voice, that night,
Someone slit their veins -
Not making the slightest noise,
Lest someone wakes up!!!

--------------------------------

How easily can even the smallest tiff spell the end of a relationship! I love this poem for its imagery of a shattered glass. Truly, words hurt like nothing else could... and that's why I love the part where Gulzar says "उसी आवाज़ के टुकड़े उठा के फ़र्श से उस शब, किसी ने काट ली नब्ज़ें".

"जलती हुई किरचें" is another favorite line for depicting how some thoughtlessly said words burn and sting; and how these very words can change the whole tone of a conversation.

This poem was recited by Dia Mirza for "Dus Kahaniyaan" album. Here's the video from youtube:

Aadat (Ijaazat / Pukhraj)

This nazm written by Gulzar was also used by him (partially) in the very poetic movie Ijaazat. As it happens, one of the protagonist (Maya) is a poetess. And the hero (Mohinder), besotted by her, also keeps reciting her poems frequently (in this scene, for example). How one wishes our day-to-day conversations were as lyrical.

This poem talks about how one keeps on living even when there is nothing worth living for. It is as if we were living out of habit, just for the sake of it. "Aadatein bhi ajeeb hoti hain!"

_______________________
आदत 

साँस लेना भी कैसी आदत है
जिये जाना भी क्या रवायत है
कोई आहट नहीं बदन में कहीं
कोई साया नहीं है आँखों में
पाँव बेहिस हैं, चले जाते हैं 
इक सफ़र है जो बहता रहता है
कितने बरसों से कितनी सदियों से
जिये जाते हैं, जिये जाते हैं

आदतें भी अजीब होती हैं
_______________________
Habits

What a strange habit breathing is!
Such a peculiar custom - this thing called life!
Not even the slightest stirring in the body
Or so much as a shadow in the eyes...
Yet the feet keep walking senselessly
A purposeless journey that's been in motion
For many years, many centuries.
(And) we have kept on living (out of habit)

Habits are such strange things!
_______________________
[रवायत = Ravaayat = Custom
बेहिस = Behis = Unconscious]

Jhadi (Pukhraj)

झड़ी 

बंद शीशे के परे देख, दरीचों के उधर
सब्ज़ पेड़ों पे, घनी शाखों पे, फूलों पे वहाँ
कैसे चुपचाप बरसता है मुसलसल पानी


कितनी आवाजें हैं, ये लोग हैं, बातें हैं मगर
ज़हन के पीछे किसी और ही सतह पे कहीं
जैसे चुपचाप बरसता है तसव्वुर तेरा
______________________________


Downpour

Beyond the panes of the closed window
See how the incessant rain quietly pours down
On the flowers and lush branches of those trees

Surrounded by myriad sounds, people and small talk
On the back of my mind, on a different plane altogether
Pours down a similar incessant rain of your thoughts

[Dareecha = Window
Musalsal = Continuous
Tasavvur = Thoughts]

Assorted (Pukhraj)

As promised in the last post Chhaiyya-chhaiyya, here are a few lines from various poems from Pukhraj, with slight or pronounced devotional undertones. In these poems, the beloved is made out to be sacred enough to be worshiped.

1. From the poem Raat-din (रात-दिन)
तेरी आँखें हैं या सजदे में हैं मासूम नमाज़ी

पलकें खुलती हैं तो यूं गूँज के उठती है नज़र
जैसे मंदिर से जरस की चले नमनाक सदा
और झुकती हैं तो बस जैसे अज़ान ख़त्म हुई हो

[Teri aakhein hain ya sajde mein hain masoom namaazi

Palkein khulti hain to yoon goonj ke uthti hai nazar
Jaise mandir se jaras kee chale namnaak sada
Aur jhukti hain to bas jaise azaan khatm hui ho]

2. From the poem Takhleek (तख़लीक़)

मैं अपने होठों से चुन रहा हूँ तुम्हारी साँसों की आयतों को
कि जिस्म के इस हसीन काबे पे रूह सजदे बिछा रही है

[Main apne hothon se chun raha hon tumhari saason ki aayaton ko
Ki jism ke is haseen kaabe pe rooh sajde bichhaa rahi hai]

3. From the poem Sparsh (स्पर्श)
तुम्हारे हाथों को चूमकर, छूके अपनी आँखों से आज मैंने
जो आयतें पढ़ नहीं सका, उनके लम्स महसूस कर लिए हैं

[Tumhare haathon ko choomkar, chhooke apni aakhon se aaj maine
Jo aayatein padh nahin saka, unke lams mahsoos kar liye hain]

4. Guzaarish (गुज़ारिश)

मैंने रखी हुई हैं आँखों पर
तेरी ग़मगीन-सी उदास आखें
जैसे गिरजे में रक्खी ख़ामोशी
जैसे रहलों पे रक्खी अन्जीलें

एक आंसू गिरा दो आँखों से
कोई आयत मिले नमाज़ी को
कोई हर्फ़-ए-कलाम-ए-पाक मिले

[Maine rakhi hui hain aankhon par
Teri gamgeen-si udaas aankhein
Jaise girje mein rakkhi khamoshi
Jaise rahlon pe rakkhi anjeelein

Ek aansoon gira do aankhon se
Koi aayat mile namaazi ko
Koi harf-e-kalaam-e-pak mile]

Woh khat ke purze (Marasim)

I've been thinking about writing this post since forever. Will finally finish it today as my (inadequate and delayed) tribute to the Late Jagjit Singh (February 8, 1941- October 10, 2011). Though I had never been much of his fan, I do honour and respect him for almost single-handedly keeping ghazals alive in India for so many years; and introducing at least 2 generations of Indians to nazms and ghazals. And like so many others, I have listened to, loved and hummed his songs since I was a kid.

Trivia: The famous Lifebuoy jingle from our childhood "Tandurusti ki raksha karta hai Lifebuoy" was sung by Jagjit Singh. :)

This particular ghazal is part of the music album 'Marasim' (meaning relationship, rishta) - composed and sung by Jagjit Singh, written by Gulzar. Putting it very crudely, in this ghazal, a person (let's say a guy, for the sake of consistency in the remaining post) is talking about his observation of his lover's behaviour after their breakup. The ghazal itself is anything but crude, though.

Since it will be a gross injustice to the beauty behind these words if I translate them literally, I'll try to go into the thought (or what I think is the thought) behind each couplet. In green is my interpretation, while blue is the literal translation of the couplet.

Lyrics, and translation

Wo khat ke purze uda raha tha

Hawaaon ka rukh dikha raha tha

[[Letters are often some of most precious keepsakes in any relationship. By tearing them up and throwing them, one is not only making clear one's intention of ending this relationship, but showing that it has lost all its meaning to them. 'Hawaaon ka rukh dikhana' is used metaphorically to mean 'show the way things are going to be'.
Literal meaning: She was showing me the direction of the wind, by tearing my letters to pieces, and throwing them in the air.]]

Kuchh aur bhi ho gaya numaaya

Main apna likha mita raha tha


[[Sometimes, when a relationship goes bad, we go back and try to relive as to what might have gone wrong. At times, we realize just how wrong the whole thing was, and that it's better to forget it and begin the rest of our with a clean slate. At such times, it becomes obvious that it's time to move on.
Literal meaning: Something else also begin apparent, since I find myself erasing what I had written earlier.
Numaya = apparent, obvious]]

Usi ka imaan badal gaya hai

Kabhi jo mera khuda raha tha

[[How would you feel if for as long as you can remember you have had some conviction, some belief and something or some event makes it go off in pieces? How would you feel if you loved and trusted a person with all that you have, and one day that person turns out to be someone completely different from what you thought he was? Would it ever be possible to hold on to your own faith/beliefs after that?
Literal meaning: The person who used to be my God, has now changed her religion.]]

Wo ek din ek ajnabi ko

Meri kahaani suna raha tha

[[There are secrets to any love story, that are intensely personal, to the point of being sacred. To discuss your ex-lover with a stranger means you're letting a third person in on that relationship's solemn secrets, thus invading its sanctity.
Literal meaning: She was telling my story to a stranger the other day.]]

Wo umr kam kar raha tha meri

Main saal apne badha raha tha


[[Honestly, I'm quite confused about this couplet, but will share what I think, which is -
While she (my ex) was trying to belittle me and the time we spent together; I thought it was the best thing that happened to me, and the most meaningful period of my life - I was attaching more and more significance to that time. 
Literal meaning: She was decreasing years from age, while I was adding them on.]]

Abhi na parda giraao (Pukhraaj)

A totally amateurish sketch of Gulzar by me

I've presented two interpretations of this gair-filmi nazm in paragraphs marked (1) and (2). Which one, if any, do you think makes more sense?

Like many other poets, Gulzar's fascination with death is quite apparent in many of his couplets and poems. Also apparent is his fascination with stage and characters (most famously heard in the brilliant Rajesh Khanna monologue from the movie Anand (1971)) - the latter probably resulting from his being a director and screenplay writer.

(1) In this nazm, he seems to be talking about the death of a person. The pain of someone who has lost a near one, and is not ready to let go just now. (Like the song 'Na leke jaao mere dost ka janaaza hai' from Fiza (2000)). Para-1 of the nazm supports this version.

Panaah (Pukhraj) - Gair-filmi

We all are aware of most of Gulzar's body of work as a lyricist in Bollywood. So I thought it might be a good idea to introduce a few of his gair-filmi poems as well. Presenting the first in this series, a nazm titled 'Panaah' from Gulzar's collection 'Pukhraj', along with its English translation.

पनाह 

उखाड़ दो अरज़-ओ-तूल खूंटों से बस्तियों के
समेटो सडकें, लपेटो राहें
उखाड़ दो शहर का कशीदा
कि ईंट - गारे से घर नहीं बन सका किसी का

पनाह मिल जाए रूह को जिसका हाथ छूकर
उसी हथेली पे घर बना लो
कि घर वही है
और पनाह भी

तुम्हारे हाथों में मैंने देखी थी अपनी एक लकीर, सोनां
.

Word-bank:
अरज़-ओ-तूल = Araz-o-tool = Length and breadth

कशीदा = Kasheeda = Embroidery

.

Refuge

Rip open the spread of the civilization
Pick up the roads, roll up every street
Tear apart the neatly-embroidered rows of this city
'Cause bricks and mortar can't make a home

If the touch of a hand comforts your soul,
Choose this hand to build your home
'Cause that alone, is your home
And that alone, is your haven

In the lines on your hand, my beloved, I found a line of my own.
.

Hope you enjoyed the nazm; and liked its translation and the sketch.