If you haven’t already, check out my part 1 of this series on the talented poet and lyricist, Sahir Ludhianvi, and enjoy this part 2 on his work and literary style!

Although Ludhianvi is perhaps best known for his role as a film lyricist, his poetry beyond that certainly commends itself. He made his debut as a film lyricist in Bollywood with the film Azadi ki Raah Par/आज़ादी की राह पर (On the Path of Freedom, 1949), but the film and the songs proved unremarkable. In 1951, while working with the famed music director S. D. Burman/सचिन देव बर्मन, Ludhianvi finally gained acknowledgement for his work on the songs of Naujawaan/नौजवान (A Youth). To this day, Ludhianvi is also fondly remembered as the lyricist for the film Pyaasa/प्यासा (Thirsty or Longing), with its subversive themes and beautiful music. Although he was infamous for being difficult to work with (some of his many “primadonna-esque behaviors” included insisting that the music of a film be composed for his own lyrics not vice versa and his demand that he be paid one rupee more than Lata Mangeshkar/लता मंगेशकर, a famous Hindi playback artist), he was a remarkable poet and was thus forgiven for many of his petty transgressions.

Image by Ryan on Flickr; an image of an LP cover of bhajans (Hindu devotional music) performed by Lata Mangeshkar.

While reading his verse, one is impressed by a sense that he is certainly before his time and stands out amongst his contemporaries as extremely unconventional. Unlike other poets and writers of the time, he does not express a passionate love for God (ख़ुदा/khudaa) and does not seem obsessed with earthly beauty  (हुस्न/husn) or wine (जाम/jaam), common tropes in Urdu poetry. His verse conveys somewhat of a bitter tone and is often a lamentation of the corruption and lack of morality that reigns in society, the pettiness and arbitrary nature of war and politics and the rise of consumerism as capitalism slowly took its hold over India, replacing genuine emotional connections between people. In addition, his verse on love usually does not have a sunny outlook—it generally references unrequited or otherwise defeated love and, in the background of such verse, is the urgent epiphany that there are many other issues in the world more important to write about than love.

Image by Adeel Anwer on Flickr; Indian Independence Day celebrations in Lucknow.

Even today, many consider him the “bard of the underdog” in that he stood up for the poor, the disadvantaged, the exploited and the oppressed from many sections of society. His songs of social justice abound, but especially in the aforementioned film Pyaasa, one particular song reaches out to viewers, in an excoriating lamentation of the decay of modern Indian society: जिन्हें नाज़ है हिंद पर, वह कहाँ है? (Jinhe naaz hai Hind par, voh kahan hai/Where are those who take pride in India?). Like his fellow poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz/फ़ैज़ अहमद फ़ैज़ (1911-1984), Ludhianvi injected modern Urdu poetry with heady intellectualism and social satire aimed squarely at those who stood to profit the most from the exploitation of the poor and disadvantaged, such as powerful politicians, manipulative and egotistical religious leaders, wealthy businessmen and aggressive nation states. In the context of post-Independence India and the partition of Pakistan from India, Ludhianvi urged the public to realize that, despite the achievements that independence entailed, the fight for justice was long from over.

Image by Paul Asman and Jill Lenoble on Flickr

One of Ludhianvi’s most celebrated poems, “Taj Mahal/ताज महल/تاج محل” (from the 1964 film Gazal/ग़ज़ल/غزل), is named after the Mughal Empress Mumtaz Mehel’s tomb that still stands today in Agra; the mausoleum was commissioned by her husband, Emperor Shah Jahan, in 1632. As his favorite wife, Shah Jahan commanded the construction of this tomb as a tribute to her memory and a symbol of his undying love for her. She died in the throes of childbirth, after giving birth to their 14th child. Although many see the Taj Mahal as one of the most visible and splendid constructions that attests to the magnificence and power of the Mughal Empire (which lasted roughly from 1526 to 1857) and the richness of India’s history, Ludhianvi, as usual, takes a different view of this celebrated tomb:

Lastly, here’s the performance of this poem (sung by the great playback singer, Mohammed Rafi) from the film Ghazal, for which Ludhianvi originally wrote it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-HxDvIowUU