For those who (after Anglicising/Americanising themselves and developing a superiority complex) believe that our Indian traditions and customs are only worth rubbishing, here's something for u...
Now it is no secret that I'm a big Gulzar fan... It is also indisputable that he is one of the great poet/lyricists of recent times... And yet, the man who wrote Kajraare and Beedi Jalayile that u gyrate ur collective butts to in every 'disc', also created an epic-proportioned ode to his philosophical guru, Mirza Ghalib... And not just the TV serial, the stamp of Ghalib is present everywhere in his works... At the very start of the serial (Ibteda), Gulzar narrates his Ode to his Guru, also published elsewhere as 'Portrait of Ghalib' -
Ballimaaraan ke mahalle ki wo pecheeda daleelon ki see galiyaan...
Saamne taal ke nukkad pe bateron ke kaseede...
Gurgurati hui paan ki peekon mein wo daad, wo waah-waah...
Chand darwaaze par latke hue boseeda-se kuch taat ke parde...
Ek bakri ke mamiyaane ki aawaaz...
Aur dhundhlayi hui shaam ke be-noor andhere
Aise deewaron se munh jod-ke chalte hain yahan
Chudiwaalan ke katre ki badi-bee jaise
Apni bujhti hui aankhon se darwaaze tatole...
Isee be-noor andheri-see Gali Quasim se
Ek tarteeb charaaghon ki shuru hoti hai...
Ek Quran-e-sukhan ka safaa khulta hai...
Asadallah Khan Ghalib ka pata milta hai...
Almost impossible to translate, though i shall try, for anyone who doesnt know urdu... imagine the fade-in scene at the beginning of the serial showing the activity in a late-evening Old Delhi alleyway -
The lanes of the area called Ballimaaraan, shaped like twisty arguments in Court...
At the street-corner housing the wood-shop ahead, the burial of birds dead in a bird-fight...
Praise for the poet emanating from mouths splattered with betel-stains...
A few ramshackle straw-thatched curtains hanging from the doors...
The sound of a bleating goat...
And the lusterless blackness of the diminishing evening
Moves with its face attached to the walls for support
Much like the Matriarch of the Chudiwallan Lane
Who, almost sightless, looks for doorways with her touch...
It is from this lusterless, dark Gali Quasim
That the little rays from a lamp emanate...
The first page of the Holy Quran is opened...
And one finds the address of one Asadallah Khan Ghalib...
Conclusion of this didactic section of the blog : u lose nothing by acknowledging what you gain from an elder or a guru... give them some respect and recognition...
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Had a great time with the bhailog from school today, its always a lot of fun hanging out with u guys... Special thanks to Karan Gangwani for organising this impromptu get together... Lets hold something like this more often man, and do invite Happy Sardar everytime!
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For Mirage: u can still comment on my blog if u read it, I'd still appreciate the odd comment if anything moves u...
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Dinner should be had at least 2 hrs before bed... Otherwise u wake up with stomach-cramps and end up translating Gulzar into English and writing ur longest blog entry ever...
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I think i dont have anything else to ramble about...
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Or do I?
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Zzzzz...