A Riddle, Who I Called Sahir: Amrita Pritam
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
4 March
2024
Ek Mu'amma Jise Main Sahir Kahti Thi
Amrita Pritam
Hazaar Barq Gire, Laakh Aandhiyaan Utthein/Vo Phool
Khil Ke Rahenge Jo Khilne Wale Hain (Let a number of blitzkriegs strike and
tempests rage/ The flowers, destined to bloom, will finally bloom).
(Sahir Ludhianvi, Amrita Pritam/ File Photo)
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Sahir
Ludhianvi's famous couplet never loses its power and potential to boost up the
drooping morale of demoralised souls. Sahir's own life and his rise as the
foremost poet-lyricist in the history of Hindi film music will vindicate this
couplet.
Setbacks
and an unloving draconian father couldn't dampen Sahir's resolve and
determination and he achieved what he was destined to achieve. Sahir wrote at
the age of 21, "Manzil Mil Hi Jaati Hai Uss Shakhs Ko/ Justajoo-e-Manzil
Mein Paaon Jis Ke Thakte Nahin" (He eventually reaches his destination
whose steps are never tired and ponderous).
Life is all about taking the bull by the
horns. Setbacks in life serve as facilitators and catalysts to march on. Every
individual has a specific destiny and he or she eventually realizes it against
all odds. We're not puppets in the hands of destiny but puppeteers who can
operate and decide the course of destiny. The indomitable human spirit
ultimately triumphs.
Sahir once
told an interviewer that Talkhiyan (Bitterness, 1945), his first
published work in Urdu, was his way to tell the destiny that, 'Tu Laakh Sitam
Dhaa Mujh Par / Roshnai Qalam Ki Kabhi Sookhegi Nahin ' (You can heap lakhs
of torments and setbacks upon me / The ink of my pen will not dry up).
Sahir was
an enigma. He invited sorrows, loved their company and hobnobbed with them. It
was like, Khushi Bhi Aati Hai Toh Aansoo Ban Ke Aati Hai (Even if joy
comes, it comes in the form of tears). A very private person, Sahir was almost
a recluse, if not an outright misanthrope. He loved his own company. Composer
Ravi Shankar Sharma, with whom he teamed up for many movies, once told me that
Sahir would often ask him smiling wryly, "Kya Khud Se Zyada Kabhi Kisi
Ko Chaha Maine" (Have I loved anyone more than I've loved myself?).
That's why, despite many women crowding his life, Sahir couldn't live
permanently with anyone.
A Pakistani
scholar told me that Sahir's life was a case study in solitude. A chain-smoker,
Sahir wrote, "Dhuein Ki Maanind Hai Hayaat Meri/ Be-Nuqoosh Ghul Jaaye
Jo Fiza Mein" (My life is like smoke/ It gets absorbed into the air,
leaving no traces behind). This couplet birthed the immortal 'Main Zindagi
Ka Saath Nibhata Chala Gaya/ Har Fikra Ko Dhuein Mein Udata Chala Gaya,'
Film: Hum Dono, Rafi, composer, Jaidev Verma, 1961). By the way, I didn't get
this couplet in any of his collections. The editor of a Pakistani Urdu daily
sent this to me in 2009. If anyone has come across the preceding couplet to
Main Zindagi Ka Saath, do let me know.
Fifty-nine
is no age to go but, Sahir was getting disillusioned with life and his own
poetry in films. The overall standard of music and lyrics also began to decline
in the 70s. The demise of his friend Rafi on July 31, 1980 proved to be the
final nail in the coffin and he too followed suit on October 25, 1980.
Amrita
Pritam summed up the life and persona of Sahir when he breathed his last: Ek
Mu'amma Jise Main Sahir Kahti Thi (A riddle, who I called Sahir). Sahir
indeed was a conundrum.
Sahir
Ludhianvi's birth anniversary falls on March 8.
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A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul
is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He
has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several
languages including Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/riddle-sahir-ludhianavi-amrita-pritam/d/131849
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