Shab - e - Ghalib

It was a fine morning ... I was sitting in the lab as usual, checking mails as if some important mail is gonna come. I was called by my Guide. He said that, I have forwarded you a mail regarding the Theatre festival at IITB and see if you are interested, go ahead and attend it if u find time. I went back to my desk and saw the mail. It had 6 plays in P.C. Saxena Auditorium every night last week. And the first one was some URDU poetry by Ghalib which was narrated by Mr. Saleem Something... i dont remember his complete name. Then there was some Chotu speaking, shakkar ke paanch daane, garam kamra etc. etc...

So we were as usual charged up to listen to Mirza Ghalib, though it was difficult to understand but the kind of urdu used in his poetry takes you to a different level. The program was at 8.15 p.m. and our French class was supposed to be from 6-8. It was a busy schedule for us. First attend the french class, where we understand very less coz its French and Latin roaming around us in their literal sense and hence we don't get much of it, but picking up fast. What ever we understand, we keep making fun of it, and this is how lifes going on. Will discuss about the French Connection later in some blog. Got every thing ready, came back from Class and then ordered something from Monginis so that we get a quick bite and we can concentrate on the poetry and not our hunger.

The stage was set. The first bell rang. There was some preprocessing talks where in the organisors requested for some funds as they were short of it and then the show was about the start.

Stage was made in a very normal way. there was a table at the left corner, on which a lamp was glowing. On the right side there was a Keyboard (CASIO) and some other sound mixing instrument (Equilizer i suppose). The entry of the narrator, Saleem Sahab, and accompanying him were two people, one an IIT alumni and a gal who was supposed to handle the keyboard. The Alumni guy was supposed to sing few ghazals of Mirza Sahab.

They were ready and so were we. The crowd gathered, some faces known some unknown. the hall wasn't full to the max so we set our selves in the right corner of the stage in the front seats so that we don't miss any thing verbally and visually. The reciter started with the history about Mirza Ghalib, about his life, about his poetries and things like that. And then he said in this play he will be reading the letters written by Ghalib Sahab written to different people, on various issues. Mr. Saleem the reciter enlightened us about Mirza Ghalib's past and his works, his earnings, about his hobbies and things like that.

Mirza Ghalib was in India in an era when the Moghul Raj was dying and the Britishers Colonial rule was about to begin. And then the evolution of Urdu from Pharsi was taking place. In which Mirza Sahab was one of the key members who took active part and made it possible to bloom to the level it has reached today.

Letters written to his close friends on the death of the friends wife was too good. In this letter Mirza Sahab mentioned that it was bad to do this formality and has never done this before because of the simple reason that first of all I will remind you of the person who has passed away making you more sad, which is not correct on my part and finally saying that now its time to search for a new one.

And the in between the letters he beautifully crafted his poetries which made them more lively.

"Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi, Ke Har Khwaahish pe dum nikle
Bohot nikle mere Armaan, Lekin Phir bhi Kam nikle"

is one of his best and well known stanza's of all time.

Then came letters to him (M.G) asking about the gender issues in Urdu, as the language was still evolving, people were confused and there was no protocol set for the language and as Ghalib was a great writer and a knowledgable person people used to write him letter regarding these problems and he used to reply them.

Then in one of the letters he mentioned another beautiful master piece out of which i take couple of lines saying

"Koee mere dil se pooche, tere teeer - e- neemekash ko
Ye khalish kahan se hoti, jo jigar ke paar hota"

(teeer - e- neemekash -- half drawn arrow, Khalish - pain)

In this wat he means to say is that - One should ask the heart when the arrow strikes it, but that pain won't remain if it comes out from the heart, that means it should be half in for the pain to be felt.

Ghalib was very fond of liquor and because of which he didn't keep well. He used to eat curd and nothing else was allowed to him by the doctors, may be because of his liver growing weaker and weaker for that in his old age what he wrote is admirable.

Go haath ko jumbish naheeN AaNkhoN meiN to dam hai
Rehne do abhee saaGHar-o-meena mere aage

[ jumbish = movement/vibration, saaGHar-o-meena = liquor, goblet ]

My hands might tremble or move but still theres power in my eyes so let the liquor be in front of me. Such was his love for drinks.

"Ishq ne Ghalib nikamma kar diya
Warna hum bhi aadmi the kaam ke..."

And many more poetries were recited that were mindblowing...

The sound (keyboard) played was excellent and also the poetries sung by the IIT Alumni were great but we are used to Jagjit Singh - ghalib Association and hence might not have appealed that much.

People who want more of Mirza Sahab's work can follow the following link...

Mirza Sahab's Work

and few lines for all of u...

Ragon mein Daudte phirne ke hum nahin Qaayal
Jab aankh hi se na tapka tou phir lahu kya hai!


I am not very impressed with the conventional way of blood flowing through the nerves...
Unless it flows from your eyes, what blood is it???