This is an old Hindi song, sung by Muhammad Rafi and Noor Jahan. Both are not with us today but their melody lives on. The song reminds me of leaving our home in New Delhi to one in Rawalpindi. We lived in a three storeyed house and it was located in a place called Lal Kurti Bazaar.
There were stores, people’s houses and the neighbourhood was filled with music enthusiasts. Each morning the above song was played, they used loud speakers so the rest of the neighbourhood could enjoy it. I was one of them.
It used to be mid-morning when the owners of the record would turn on the song.
It is a song from an old movie, but the singers were very popular.
The lover complains that his beloved is unfaithful. he says’I tried and found
love is deception.’
I was seven years old, I did not know what the lyrics meant, I was humming the tune.
Suddenly I hear mom, ‘Where is Ranu?’
I go running, ‘ji amma,’ ‘I say,’ ( yes Mom).
‘The thread of the needle is broken, fix it quick.’
The chore is simple, but I missed hearing the full song.
Next morning I made up my mind I will pretend I did not hear, if mom calls me.
The song starts again, the second line is what I’m interested to hear, I already know the first.
Sometimes she feels happy and sometimes unhappy. ‘This is how the world changes, this is the name of the world.’
‘It doesn’t let me feel the pain of my helplessness.’
‘Forget the time when you loved me.’ says the beloved
The lover always had answers to her grievance. He sings, ‘forget the word love ever came in you lips.’
Next both each separately tell each other to forget the love story, forget the happy days they spent with each other.
The last line from the beloved is, ‘the world of desires is filled with darkness.’
Not to be outdone, he sings, ‘how can I say someone who was mine now belongs to someone else?’
This time Dad calls out, ‘Ma ranu, if you learned the words of the song, can you sing for me, I will give you money?
‘No abba, I do not know. ‘
Then I hum in my room, yahan badla wafa ka bewafai ke siwa kia hai. Yunhi duniya badalti hai isi ka naam duniya hai. ‘
‘Sorry Dad I lied!’
…………………………………………. 🙂
Sabethville 