Rekhta blog Sahir

Jab Bhi Aaya Naye Geet Laata Rahunga

A Romanticist-cum-Marxist, Sahir Ludhianvi remains with us as an iconic poet. Celebrated as a poet, film lyricist, he also remained at the centre of stories that has kept us fascinated over these decades. Here are some excerpts from his poetry that establish him as a poet of resistance par excellence.

Dreams sustain us. Even in realities, they make way for us to fare forward:
aao ki koi khwab bunen kal ke vaaste warna ye raat aaj ke sangeen daur ki das legi jaan-o-dil ko kuch aise ki jaan-o-dil ta-umr phir na koi haseen khwab bun saken

Peace is like a dove — white and beautiful. But it must be achieved without loss of blood for there lies its beauty:
khoon apna ho ya paraya ho nasl-e-adam ka khoon hai aakhir jang mashriq mein ho ki maghrib mein amn-e-aalam ka khoon hai aakhir

Love recognizes no bonds, no barriers. It’s pure passion and seeks independence irrespective of class or status:
ye chaman-zaar ye jamuna ka kinaara ye mahal ye munaqqash dar-o-diwaar ye mehrab ye taaq ek shahanshah ne daulat ka sahaara le kar hum ghareebon ki mohabbat ka udaya hai mazaaq meri mahboob kahin aur mila kar mujh se

Woman is no object; she is the embodiment of mutual respect. Few would acknowledge but Sahir did more than many:
log aurat ko faqat jism samajh lete hain ruh bhi hoti hai us mein ye kahan sochte hain

Impediments mar human emotions; expressions sustain us. The truth that needs to be told has to be told:
lab pe pabandi to hai ehsaas par pahra to hai phir bhi ahl-e-dil ko ahwaal-e-bashar kahna to hai

There comes a stage from where there is no going back. The next step maybe a difficult one but worth taking:hum amn chaahte hain magar zulm ke khilaaf gar jang laazmi hai to phir jang hi sahi

God is in the heavens and everything is right with the world. One only needs to make a choice for choices determine what we want to be:
ye mahlon ye takhton ye taajon ki duniya ye insaan ke dushman samaajon ki duniya ye daulat ke bhuke riwaajon ki duniya ye duniya agar mil bhi jaye to kya hai

With these you may enter into the world of Sahir’s protest, rebellion, and revolutionary poetry. In these respects he remains incomparable among his contemporaries.