by Mir
In his autobiography Yaadon ki Baraat (The Procession of Memories—itself a marvel of embellished anecdote), Josh describes a moment in 1939 when he heard a speech on radio delivered by the British governor of Lucknow, which urged Indians to join the Allied effort against the Axis, for that was the only way ‘to save humanity from that barbarian, Hitler.’ An incensed Josh claims that he wrote a poem (translated below), titled ‘East India Company ke Farzandon se Kalaam’ (‘Address to the Heirs of the East India Company’) in fifteen minutes. He had to suffer the consequences of his action, but escaped jail because the freedom movement was in full swing and had already stretched the incarcerating capacity of the British rulers. Josh was instead placed under house arrest.
East India Company ke farzandon se kalaam
Kis zuban se keh rahe ho aaj ai saudagaro
‘Dahr mein insaniyat ke naam ko ooncha karo
Jis ko sab kahte hain Hitler, bhedia hai bhedia
Bhediye ko mar do goli pa-ye amn-o-baqa
Baghe insani mein chalne hi ko hai baad-e khizan
Aadmiyat le rahi hai hichkiyon pe hichkiyan
Hath Hitlar ka hai rakhsh-e khudsari ki bag par
Tegh ka pani chidak do Germany ki aag par.’
Sakht hairan hoon ke mehfil mein tumhari aur ye zikr
Nau-e insani ke mustaqbil ki ab karte ho fikr!
Jab yahan aaye thhe tum saudagari ke vaaste
Nau-e insani ke mustaqbil se kiya vaqif na thhe?
Hindiyon ke jism mein, kya rooh-e aazadi na thhi?
Sach batao, kya voh insanon ki aabadi na thhi?
Apne zulm-e be-nehayat ka fasaana yaad hai?
Company ka bhi voh daur-e mujrimana yaad hai?
Loot-te phirte thhe tum, jab karvan dar karvan
Sar-barhana phir rahi thhi daulat-e Hindustan
Dast-karon ke angoothey kaat-te phirte thhe tum!
Sard lashon se gadhon ko paat-te phirte thhe tum!
Sanat-e Hindustan par, maut thhi chhayi hui
Maut bhi kaisi? Tumhare haath ki layi hui!
Allah Allah, kis qadar insaaf ke talib ho aaj
Mir Jafar ki qasam, kya dushman-e haq thha Siraj?
Voh Avadh ki begamon ka bhi satana yaad hai?
Yaad hai, Jhansi ki rani ka zamaana yaad hai?
Hijrat-e sultan-e Dilli ka samaa bhi yaad hai?
Sher-dil Tipu ki khooni dastaan bhi yaad hai?
Teesre faaqe mein ek girte hue ko thaam-ne
Kin ke sar laaye thhe tum Shah-Zafar ke saamne?
Yaad to hogi voh Mityaburj ki bhi dastan?
Ab bhi jis ki khaak se reh-reh ke uthta hai dhuan
Tum ne Qaisar Bagh ko dekha to hoga bar-ha?
Aaj bhi aati hai jis se ‘Haay Akhtar’ ki sada
Such kaho kya hafize mein hai voh zulm-e be-panah
Aaj tak Rangoon mein ek qabr jis ki hai gavah
Zehn mein hoga yeh taaza Hindiyon ka Dagh bhi
Yaad to hoga tumhe Jalianwala Bagh bhi?
Poochh lo us se tumhara naam kyon ta-banda hai
Dyer-e garg-e dahan aalood ab bhi zinda hai
Voh Bhagat Singh, ab bhi jis ke gham mein dil nashaad hai
Us ki gardan mein jo dala tha voh phanda yaad ha?
Hind ki rahbar rahaa karte thhe kis sanjaar se
Poochh lo ye qaidkhanon ke dar-o-deevar se
Ab bhi hai mahfooz jis me tantana sarkar ka
Aaj bhi goonji hui hai jin mein kodon ki sada
Aaj kashti, khulq ke amwaj par khetey ho kyun?
Sakht hairan hoon ke ab tum dars-e haq dete ho kyun
Ahl-e quvvat daam-e haq mein to kabhi aate nahin
Aadmiyat ko kabhi khatir hi mein latay nahin?
Lekin aaj akhlaq ki talqeen farmate ho tum
Ho na ho apne mein ab quvvat nahin pate ho tum
‘Ahl-e haq roshan-nazar hain, ahl-e batil kor hain’
Yeh to hain aqwaal un qaumon ke jo kamzor hain
Aaj shayad, manzil-e quvvat me tum rahte nahin
‘Jis ki lathi us ki bhains’ ab kis liye kahte nahin?
Der se baithey ho, nakhl-e rasti ki chaoun mein
Kiya, khuda-na-kardah, kuchh moch aa gayee hai paon mein?
Goonj tapon ki na aabadi, na veerane mein hai
Khair to hai? Asp-e taazi kya shifakhane me hai?
Aaj kal to har nazar mein, rahm ka andaz hai
Kuchh tabiyat kya naseeb-e dushmanan naa-saaz hai?
Sans kiya ukhdi, ke haq ke naam par marne lagey!
Nau-e insan ki hawa khawahi ka dam bharne lagey!
Zulm bhoole, ragini insaf ki gane lagey
Lag gayi hai aag kya ghar mein ke chillane lagey?
Mujrimon ke vaaste zeba nahin yeh shor-o-shain
Kal Yazid-o-Shimr thhe, aur aaj bante ho Husain
Khair, ai saudagaro, ab hai to bus is baat mein
Waqt ke farmaan ke aage jhuka do gardanen
Ek kahani waqt likhega naye mazmoon ki
Jis ki surkhi ko zaroorat hai tumhare khoon ki
Waqt ka farmaan apna rukh badal sakta nahin
Maut tal sakti hai ye farmaan tal sakta nahin.
Address to the heirs of the East India Company
With what tongues can you say this, dear traders?
‘Do your bit to exalt the name of humanity in this world
The one they call Hitler is a wolf, no more than a wolf
Let us shoot the wolf in the name of peace and sanity
The garden of humanity is now beset by autumn
Humanity languishes in thirst and yearning while
Hitler’s hand grasps the mane of the steed
Throw the water of the sword on Germany’s fire.’
Amazed am I at such talk in your gathering
Now you think of the future of humanity
When you came here as shopkeepers, to ply your trade
Were you not aware of the future of humanity then?
Did the Indians not harbour the soul of freedom in their bodies?
Speak the truth—was it not a congregation of humans?
Do you even remember the story of your unparalleled tyranny
And of the [East India] Company’s reign of terror
When you went about looting caravan after caravan
And the wealth of India scurried about bareheaded?
You used to go about cutting off the hands of weavers
And filling holes in the ground with cold corpses
The industry of India had death all over it
And what a death? One brought about by you!
Allah Allah! Now you seek justice?
Tell us in the name of Mir Jafar, was Siraj1 an enemy of truth?
Remember you, harassing the ladies of Avadh?
Do you remember that Rani of Jhansi?
Can you recall the migration of the King of Delhi
And the bloody history of the lionhearted Tipu?
And to help the person tottering on his third day of fasting
Whose heads did you place in front of King Zafar?2
Do you remember the story of Metiaburj3
Even now its dust is redolent with smoke
You must have seen Qaiser Bagh many a time
Where, even now, a dirge to Akhtar echoes
Tell me, does your memory encompass that tyranny
Of which a grave in Rangoon bears witness?
Recall you, that still raw wound in Indian hearts
This is called Jalianwala Bagh, remember?
Ask it why you are so well remembered here
For Dyer, the bloody fanged, is still alive4
That Bhagat Singh, in whose memory the heart is still unhappy
The noose you
put around his neck, do you not remember that?
The leaders of India lived in such penury
Ask that of the doors and walls of your dungeons
Where, even now, your governance is remembered
And the sound of the whip still echoes.
Now suddenly, your boat is being docked on the banks of civility
To my amazement, you have begun to preach about truth
The folks in power hardly ever speak of who is right
And bringing humanity into the conversation is not your style
Yet, now you counsel us to be forgiving
Sure enough, you must have lost your strength
‘Those who are on the right are wise, and those who are ignorant are cruel’
This is usually the talk of the defeated!
Perhaps you are no longer in a powerful position
Hence you do not chant, ‘He who owns the stick owns the cow.’
For a while now, you have been sitting in the shade of a different path
Are you okay sir, or is your foot a bit sprained?
There is no sound of hooves here, nor in the wilderness
Is your fleet steed ill, at the hospital; is all well?
Nowadays, every gaze of yours is full of tenderness
Sure all is well, or is the fortune of mine enemy a bit troubled?
Your breath seems laboured, and so you have turned moral
And speak of sojourns into the strange path of humanity
Now you feel tyranny, so you speak of justice
Why do you scream so, is your house on fire today?
It does not behove criminals to be indignant
Till yesterday, you were Yazid and Shimr, and today, you want to be Husain5?
Anyway, shopkeepers, this is what needs to be done:
That you bow down before the verdict of destiny
Time will write a new story, with a new title
And this story needs to be reddened with your blood.
The verdict of time cannot be made to change course
Death may wait, but this verdict awaits no one.
Makhdoom Mohiuddin
Hayaat le ke chalo, kaayenaat le ke chalo
Chalo to saare zamaane ko saath le ke chalo
Carry life as you walk, and carry the firmament too
Walk so, that the entire world should choose to walk with you
Abu Sayeed Mohammad Makhdoom Mohiuddin Huzri (1908–69)
lived in the city of the famous Charminar, and is lovingly known as the fifth minar of Hyderabad. Born into poverty, he grew up sweeping mosque courtyards, but soon became a trade union leader. He was a member of the Communist Party of India, and even represented it in the state assembly. He was one of the architects of the 1946–47 Telangana Rebellion against the government of the nizam of Hyderabad. His poem ‘Telangana’ was an anthem for the movement, and continued to be deployed during the struggle for statehood by Telangana in independent India. Much in the fashion of Vladimir Mayakovsky, the Russian poet who had influenced him, Makhdoom struggled against his tendencies to wax metaphysical, choosing to eschew finer verbal constructions in the service of anthems and group songs, which unthinking literary critics often interpret as simplistic.
I have translated three poems below, the latter two of which are to be read as a series. The first, ‘Intezaar’ (‘The Wait’) is an exposition of Makhdoom’s gentle lyricism.1 The other two poems are much more strident, programmatic, with simple rhythms, reflecting their status as chants and songs. The first, an anti-war piece, was composed by Makhdoom in the early 1930s, when Indians were being forcibly conscripted by the British to fight in the Second World War. It was sung by Kumar Sanu for Ali Sardar Jafri’s TV serial on progressive poets, Kahkashan, and was also featured in the 1960 film Usne Kaha Thha. However, Makhdoom’s attitude to the war became much more positive once the Soviet Union joined it following Hitler’s infamous Operation Barbarossa in 1941. Like many leftists of that time, he saw the war now as a part of a broader struggle against imperialism, rather than a fight between two foreign powers. His song ‘Jang-e Aazadi’ reflected his new sentiments.
1Intezaar
Raat bhar deeda-e namnaak mein lehraate rahe
Saans ki tarah se aap aate rahe, jaate rahe
Khush thhe ham apni tamannaon ka khwaab aayegaa
Apna armaan bar-afganda naqaab aayegaa
Nazarein neechee kiye sharmaaye huwe aayegaa
Kaakulein chehre pe bikhraaye huwe aayegaa
Aa gayi thi dil-e muztar mein shakeebaai si
Baj rahi thi mere gham-khaane mein shehnaai si
Shab ke jaage huwe taaron ko bhi neend aane lagi
Aap ke aane ki ik aas thi, ab jaane lagi
Subah ne sej se uth-te huwe li angdaai
Ai sabaa, tu bhi jo aayi to akele aayi
Mere mehboob meri neend udaane vaale
Mere masjood meri rooh pe chhaane vaale
Aa bhi jaataa, ke mere sajdon ka armaan nikle
Aa bhi jaataa, tere qadmon pe meri jaan nikle
The wait
All night, in my moist eyes you continued to sway
Like my breath, you kept coming and going away
I was happy, that the dream of my desires would come
My shy lover, encased in a veil, eyes downcast, would come
Inciting my passion with hair strewn over face, would come
My impatient heart had achieved contentment and belief
A shehnai struck up, and sadness gave way to relief
But soon, the stars, which had stayed awake all night, nodded off
The hope of your arrival gave way to a cynic’s scoff
The morning eventually woke up; a new sun shone
O morning breeze, you did come, but alas, you came alone
Enchanted lover mine, who stole the sleep from my sad eyes
I bowed to you, you ruled my dreams, now I’m shamed by those lies
Would that my prayers would bear fruit, and we would meet
Would that you’d come and I’d breathe my last at your feet.
2Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho
Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho
Vo kahaan ja raha hai?
Ishq hai haasil-e zindagaani
Khoon se tar hai uski javaani
Hai maasoom bachpan ki yaaden
Hai do roz ki nau-javaani
Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho
Vo kahaan ja raha hai?
Kaun dukhiya hai jo gaa rahi hai?
Bhookhe bachhon ko behla rahi hai
Lash jalne ki bu aa rahi hai
Zindagi hai ke chilla rahi hai
Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho
Vo kahaan ja raha hai?
Kitne sehme hue hain nazaare
Kaisa dar dar ke chalte hain taare
Kya javaani ka khoon ho raha hai?
Surkh hai aanchalon ke kinaare
Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho
Vo kahaan ja raha hai?
Hil raha hai siyaahi ka dera
Ho raha hai meri jaan savera
O vatan chhod ke jaane waale
Khul gaya inquilaabi pharera
Jaane vaale sipahi se poochho
Vo kahaan ja raha hai?
Ask that departing soldier
Ask that departing soldier
Where he is headed
A well-spent life leads to love eternal
But this story’s fate is to be writ in blood
He harbours memories of an innocent childhood
But his youth is destined to be ephemeral.
Ask that departing soldier
Where he is headed
Who is that sad woman who is singing?
; She is comforting her hungry children
The air stings and reeks as a corpse burns
And what of life? It is screaming
Ask that departing soldier
Where he is headed
Why are these vistas so fearful?
Why do the stars move with such dread?
Is youth being murdered here?
The borders of clothing are blood red
But look now, the darkness is lifting
My dear, see the colour of dawn
O departing soldier, hang on
The revolutionary banner’s unfurling
Ask that departing soldier
Where he is headed.
3Jang-e aazadi
Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi
Aazadi ke parcham ke tale
Hum Hind ke rehne waalon ki
Mazdooron ka dehqaanon ki
Aazadi ke matwaalon ki
Dehqanon ki, mazdooron ki
Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi
Aazadi ke parcham ke tale
Saara sansaar hamaara hai
Poorab, Pachhim, Uttar Dakshin
Hum Afrangi, hum Amreeki
Hum Cheeni jaanbaazaan-e watan
Hum surkh sipaahi, zulm-shikan
Aahan paikar, faulaad badan
Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi
Aazadi ke parcham ke tale
Lo surkh savera aata hai
Aazadi ka, aazadi ka
Gulnaar taraana gaata hai
Aazadi ka, aazadi ka
Dekho parcham lehraata hai
Aazadi ka, aazadi ka
Ye jang hai jang-e aazadi