Tuesday, July 26, 2005

What could they do?

Majaz, years and years ago, had spoken for the muflisi (poverty?) of many a poet, when he put loneliness, desperation, frustration, rebellion and and many indescribable ingredients in his nazm 'Awara'.

Rather ironic, then, that someone who cheats poor Urdu poets, by pretending to be a patron, and an organiser of mushairas, should take on the name of 'Majaz' while conning his lyrical fraternity.

However, these poets, as it turned out, were not the kind who'd take it lying down.
Now, I'm all opposed to violence and all that, but in their place, who knows... ? And I bet they were quoting Majaz, as their justification:

dil me ek sholaa bha.Dak uThaa hai aaKhir kyaa karuu.N
meraa paimaanaa chhalak uThaa hai aaKhir kyaa karuu.N

So the verbal spark did burst into fisticuff-flame, for their cup of patience simply brimmed and boiled over... what could they do?

That said, so much excitement right in my ilaaka, back home, and I wasn't around to witness it? What a pity! Would have 'haath saaf karo'ed myself (as we say in Bombay).

3 comments:

Suhail said...

Sigh! So sad.
Some choice excerpts frm a Azhar Inaayati(frm Rampur)..heard it months back on ETV-Urdu during a live mushaira in Lucknow :
-------------------------------
imtihaan barsoN jab aankhon ka liyaa jaata hai
tab koi khwaab ataa inko kiya jaata hai

khudkashi ke liye thoda sa ye kaafi hai magar
zinda rehne ko bahot zahar piya jaata hai

voh musaahib haiN inheN iska hunar aata hai
shekhi baaton mein rafoo kaise kiya jaata hai

Quizman said...

Wah, Wah. Suhail sahib. Bahut acche.

Btw, fisticuffs aren't new to Urdu poetry.

Anand said...

hey annie,
glad to know you're a majaz fan too...

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