Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Toranj - Mohsen Namjoo - From Tannaz Haghayegh



Gofta man an toranjam, kan dar jahan nagonjam
Goftam beh az toranji, leeken be dast nayee

Gofta to az kojayee, kashofte minomayee
Goftam manam gharibi, az shahre ashenayee

Gofta sare che dari, kaz sar khabar nadari
Goftam barastanat, daram sare gedayee

Gofta be delrobayee, ma ra che gooneh beeni?
Goftam cho kharmanee kol, dar bazme delrobayee

Goftam ke booye zolfat, gomrahe alamam kard
Gofta agar bedani, hamavat rahbar ayad

Goftam ke nooshe la'alat, ma ra be arezoo kosht
Gofta to bandegi kon, koo bande parvar ayad

گفتا من آن ترنجم، کاندر جهان نگنچم
گفتم به از ترنجی، لیکن به دست نایی

گفتا تو از کجایی، کاشفته می‌نمایی
گفتم منم غریبی، از شهر آشنایی

گفتا سر چه داری، کز سر خبر نداری
گفتم بر آستانت، دارم سر گدایی

گفتا به دلربایی، ما را چگونه بینی
گفتم چو خرمنی کل، در بزم دلربایی

گفتم که بوی زلفت، گمراه عالمم کرد
گفتا اگر بدانی، هم اوت رهبر آید

گفتم که نوش لعلت، ما را به آرزو کشت
گفتا تو بندگی کن، کو بنده‌پرور آید


Namjoo was born in 1976 in Torbat-e Jam, Iran. When he was one year old, his family moved to Mashhad where he spent the next seventeen years of his life in. When he was 12, his father, Mohammad Hossein Namjoo, died. Few months later, his family encouraged him to start attending a music class. He started classical Persian vocal music with Ali Shakeri and solfège with Kaivan Alaee. Few months earlier, he got to know Ali Shakeri through Nasrollah Nasehpoor in a trip to Tehran. At that time, Ali Shakeri was a student of Nasrollah Nasehpoor. Almost a year after having sessions with Ali Shakeri, Nasrollah Nasehpoor started to have weekly music sessions in Mashhad. This was a great opportunity for the young Namjoo to learn classical Persian vocal music from whom he thinks of as the best teacher for traditional Iranian singing. He attended these classes until the age of 18.

In 1994 he was offered admission to study Music at University of Tehran. Since the music program at the university wouldn't start for another year, he took two theater classes from department of drama, University of The Arts. Namjoo always recalls the two theater classes and that one year period of time to be the time which shaped many parts of his work and his life. At Tehran University he was a student of Alireza Mashayekhi and Azin Movahed and other masters.

His debut album titled Toranj was officially released in Iran in September 2007 with his own voice appearing in most of his compositions. He has also composed soundtracks for movies and plays, and was featured in the documentary Sounds of Silence (directed by Amir Hamz and Mark Lazarz] which has been screened at international film festivals. He also appeared in a feature narrative film called Few Kilograms of Dates for the Funeral (Director Saman Saloor), played in various film festivals. Namjoo's first performance outside Iran was in January 2006 at the Tehran Hotspot of the International Rotterdam Film Festival where he played solo.[citation needed]

He also writes poetry, and sometimes uses his own satirical lyrics in his songs blended with the classical poetry of Hafez, Rumi or Saadi. His music and words are very emotional and, in his works, he creates a fusion of various styles from traditional Iranian to blues and rock.

Mohsen Namjoo performed his first live TV concert on the Persian News Network of Voice of America in Washington DC for the Norouz event for the celebration of Persian new year on Saturday, December 20, 2009

courtesy : wiki

Chizi Nist - Hadi Pakzad - From Tannaz Haghayegh



Chizi nist ke bekham begam, Jaee nist ke bekham beram
Hichki nist ke bekham biyad, Baraye raftan hazeram
Chizi nist ke bekham lams konam,
Ta'ami nist ke bekham bechesham
Booyi nist ke bekham hess konam,
Ranji nist ke bekham bekesham
Jaee nist ke bekham bemoonam,
Marzi nist ke azash begzaram
Haghi nist ke bekham begiram,
Sahmi nist az boodan bebaram
Rahi nist ke narafte basham,
Rangi nist ke nadide basham
Meili nist ta barande basham,
Tori nist ke naboode basham
Harfi nist ke bekham beshnavam,
Razi nist ke bekham bedoonam
Chizi nist ke behesh fekr konam,
Kafie dige nemikham bemoonam
Shoghi nist vase residan,
Chizi nist baraye dashtan
Hessi nist baraye ehsas,
Nist arezooyi baraye dashtan
Nist chizi ke bedast biyaram,
Chizi nist ke bekham bebazam
Hichi nist ke bekham leh konam,
Chizi nist ke az no besazam
Chizi nist ke bekham begam,
Jaee nist ke bekham beram
Hichki nist ke bekham biyad,
Baraye raftan hazeram
Harfi nist ke bekham beshnavam,
Razi nist ke bekham bedoonam
Chizi nist ke behesh fekr konam,
Kafie dige nemikham bemoonam
Nist taghati be in asiri,
Sabri nist az jense piri
Nist noghte ee baraye aghaz,
Nist jaee ke tamoomi begiri
Chizi nist ke bekham begam,
Jaee nist ke bekham beram
Hichki nist ke bekham biyad,
Baraye raftan hazeram
Yadi nist ,Sahmi nist
Meyli nist ,Chizi nist
Lyrics: Hadi Pakzad

there's nothing that I would wanna say.
there's nowhere that I would wanna go.
there's no one whom I want to come.
I'm ready to go....
There's nothing that I would want to touch
there's nothing that I would want to taste
there's no smell that I would want to feel
There's no pain that I would want to bear
there's no where that I would wanna stay
there's no boundry that I pass

Hadi Pakzad, is one of the first few singers who have started Rock and Alternative music composition in Iran. He was born in Mashhad, Iran in 1982. He got his Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from University of Mashhad.

He took harmonic and music lessons with (Keyvan Alaee), He also took Piano and Guitar lessons from (Naser Tofighi). Before he got involved with music, he was interested in classical poetry and philosophical writing. In the year 2000,he produced his first album in a home studio with the help of some local musicians. The songs of his album were inspired by his poems. He soon released his first album named Fear Land and distributed it in parties. In no time, his distinct style became popular throughout the country and among Iranian who lived abroad.

Then, with the support of his fans, he organized some underground concerts in Tehran and other major cities. Since his songs were received warmly by the fans, he decided to re-record his album with the involvement of a professional team and new facilities and noticeable capital in a studio in Tehran. He also decided to do some advertising and released his artistic work on his own site.

In the year 2005 he held two official and huge concerts in Mashhad. Then he released his new album named Living Under Ground in August 2006. 18GB of his songs were downloaded from internet by fans in the first few days, in the meantime, his videoclip named Daryad, was broadcasted from satellite channels such as PMC.

courtesy: whatsupiran

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Chithu Chithu La Bomma - Bathukamma Festival song





Batukamma is a spring festival celebrated by the Hindu women of Telangana region in Andhra Pradesh, India. It is also called as Bodemma. This festival falls in the months of September/October called as Aswiyuja and concludes two days before Dussera called as Durgashtami.

Batukamma is a beautiful flower stack, arranged with seasonal flowers, in seven concentric layers, of potter’s clay like a cone. Batuku in Telugu means live/life, and Amma means mother, hence Batukamma, is celebrated for the glory of Goddess Gauri (meaning fair or white) - the patron Goddess of womanhood.

Women celebrate the festival dressed-up in traditional silk sarees, wear jewellery and girls wear a two-piece saree called as Langa oni.

On this day the men folk of the house go into the wild plains and gather the flowers like gunuka , tangedi, lotus, alli, katla, teku flowers, Which bloom in this season in various vibrant colors all across the uncultivated and barren plains of the region.

Women start preparation of Batukamma from the afternoon. They cut the flowers leaving the little length base, some dip in colours, some scented and arrange them on a wide plate called as tambalamu, and stack them up in a conical mound, decorate with a pumpkin flower on top of stack.

In the evening, women gather in large numbers with their batukammas in their locality, place them in the middle and dance around them, synchronizing steps and claps in unison, and singing soul stirring batukamma folk songs.


Women dancing around their BatukammasAfter singing and dancing around for hours, Batukammas are taken to a lake or a pond and spend some more time singing and dancing and are set afloat in the water body.

Saddula Batukamma
This festival is celebrated for nine days and concludes on Durgastami. The main festival day is called Saddula Batukamma.[3] On this day they celebrate into wee hours before leaving their Batukamma in water. Lakes floating with batukammas in the evenings is a treat to the eyes.


MaleedaMaleeda, a prasadam made of jaggery, is prepared on this day and distributed at the end of the event. People wishing to watch Bathukamma festival being celebrated in its true sense and full glory must visit Warangal on its last day i.e 2 days before festival of Dussehra. Only Women are allowed and male companions must wait outside the festival grounds.


Once upon a time King Dharmangada of Chola Dynasty used to rule South India. After many prayers and rituals, his wife gave birth to Princess Lakshmi. Baby Lakshmi survived many accidents. So, the parents named her Batukamma (Batuku = life, Amma= suffix to female names and mother). Since then Batukamma festival is celebrated by young girls in Telangana region. The purpose of this festival is to pray to the Goddess in the belief that the young girls would get husbands as per their wish. It is celebrated for nine days beginning from the Padyami (first day) of the month Asvayuja (September-October). Flowers are arranged on a plate or square wooden plank or a square bamboo frame in a conical layout. On the top, gynecium of a pumpkin flower or a cone made of turmeric to represent Batukamma is installed. This floral arrangement is worshipped as Goddess Batukamma. This festival is mainly celebrated by unmarried young girls, though men and women also participate in collecting and arranging the flowers as Batukamma.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Alif Allah Chambay Di Booti - Sultan Bahu - Tabassum Sohail



Coke Studio - Arif Lohar - Alif Allah - Meesha
Title: "Alif Allah chambay di booti"

Alif allah chambay di booti, tey meray murshid mann vich lai hoo
My master has planted the fragrant seed of love in my heart

Ho nafi uss baat da paani dey kay
Which flourished with modesty, piety and acceptance of his existence

Har ragaay harjai hoo
My God is present in every throbbing pulse

Ho joog joog jeevay mera murshid sohna
My spiritual guide is ever-present

Hatay jiss ay booti lai ho
The one who blew life into me

(chorus # 1)

Pir meraya jugni ji
I have the spirit of my guide

Ae way allah waliyan di jugni ji
The spirit of all the messengers who brought His message to this Earth

Ae way nabbi pak di jugni ji
The spirit of Holy Prophet

Ae way maula ali wali jugni ji
The spirit of Ali and his followers

Ae way meray pir di jugni ji
The spirit of my saint

Ae way saaray sabaz di jugni ji
The spirit of all his words

Dum gutkoon, dum gutkoon, dum gutkoon, dum gootkun... karay Saeein
Everytime I think of you God, my heart flutters

Parhay tay kalma nabi da Parhay saeein pir merya
So I recite the kalma whenever I think of God

(chrous #1 repeat)
Jugni taar khaeein vich thaal
O my creation, share whatever you have

Chad duniya dey janjaal
Remove yourself from worldly concerns

Kuch ni nibna bandiya naal
There is nothing that you can get from other human beings that you can take to the after-life

(repeat)

Rakhi saabat sidh amaal
Just keep you actions and intentions pure

(chorus # 1 repeat)

Jugni dig payee vich roi
So absorbed was the creation that she stumbled into a ditch

Othay ro ro kamli hoi
There she wailed relentlessly

Oddi vaath naye lainda koi
But there was no one who enquired about her

(repeat)

Tey kalmay binna nai mildi toi
Remember, there is no salvation for anyone without remembering your creator

(chorus #1 repeat)

Ho wanga charha lo kuriyon
Put on your bangles, girls

Meray daata dey darbaar dian
Those that you get at your Master's shrines

(repeat)

Ho naa kar teeya khair piyari
Daughter, don't be proud of your youth

Maan daindiya galaryaan
Your mother scoffs and scolds you

Din din talhi juwani jaandi
That with each passing day, your youth slips by

Joon sohna puthia lariyaan
Even gold when put in the furnance moulds itself, there is absolutely no permanence

Aurat marad, shehzaday sohney
Women, men are like so beautiful

O moti, O laa lariyaan
Like pearls, like the gems

Sir da sarfa kar naa jairey
Those who are not self-centered

Peen prem pya lariyan
They are the ones who truly love the humanity

O daatay day darbaan chaa akho
Whenever you visit the darbar of any saint

Pawan khair sawa lariyan
God fulfils all your wishes and showers you with his blessings

(arif plus meesha)

(chorus 2)

O wanga charha lo kuriyon meray daata tey darbar diyan
Put on your bangles, girls ... Those that you get at your Master's shrine

O wangha charha lo kuriyon meray daata tey darbar diyan
Put on your bangles, girls ... Those that you get at your Master's shrines

(chorus 2 repeat)

Dum gutkoon, dum gutkoon, dum gootkoon, gootkoon gootkon

(chorus 1 repeat)

Jugni ji
Jugni ji
Jugni ji...

Karavan
Yaadein

Koi naa kahay
Koi bhi na sunay
Dil ki baat yeh
Dil mein hee rahay
Yaadein naa rahain
Chaahoon aisa mein toh
Naa yaad ho mujh ko mera maazi

Na hee saamnay manzil raastay
Jo bhee saath thay, lootay waastay
Yaadein na rahain

Aisa bikhra mein bhee iss haal mein
Bojhal raatein meri
Yaadein naa rahain

Kaisi majboori hai

Kitna zaroori hai
Kay jivan ki taptee iss dhop mein ho
Jo saaya, saaya
Ho saaya, saaya

Kyun yeh dil kahay
Tooh phir aamplay
saanson mein rahay
Aakhon mein wasay
Aur na hon judaa


Jugni

Lyrics (Gurmukhi)
ਅਲਫ ਅੱਲਾ ਚੰਬੇ ਦੀ ਬੂਟੀ
ਮੇਰੇ ਮਨ ਵਿੱਚ ਮੁਰਸ਼ਦ ਲਾਈ.. ਹੂ…

ਨਫੀ ਅਸਬਾਤ ਦਾ ਪਾਣੀ ਮਿਲਿਆ
ਹਰ ਰਗੇ ਹਰ ਜਾਈ.. ਹੂ…

ਅੰਦਰ ਬੂਟੀ ਮੁਸ਼ਕ ਮਚਾਇਆ
ਜਾਂ ਫੁੱਲਾਂ ਤੇ ਆਈ.. ਹੂ…

ਜੀਵੇ ਮੁਰਸ਼ਿਦ ਕਾਮਿਲ ਬਾਹੂ
ਜੀਹ ਨੇ ਬੂਟੀ ਲਾਈ.. ਹੂ…

Contribution: Jasdeep Singh

Lyrics (in Shahmukhi)
الف اللہ چمبے دی بوٹی
ميرے من وچ مرشد لائی ہو

نفی اثبات دا پانی مليا
ہر رگے ہر جائی ہو

اندر بوٹی مشک مچايا
جاں پھلاں تے آئی ہو

جيوے مرشد کامل باھو
جيں اے بوٹی لائی ہو

Contribution: Sohail Abid

Sultan Bahu (Punjabi)(ca 1628 - 1691) was a Muslim Sufi and saint, who founded the Sarwari Qadiri Sufi order. Darbar Hazrat sultan Bahoo is located near Garh More city.

Sultan Bahu belonged to Awan tribe and was born in Anga, Soon Valley Sakesar (Vadi-e-Soon Sakesar). Like many other sufi saints of South Asia, Sultan Bahu was also a prolific writer, with more than forty books on Sufism attributed to him. Most of His books are in Persian language. However, as the majority of his books deal with specialised subjects related to Islam and Islamic mysticism, it is his Punjabi poetry that has generated popular appeal and made him a household name in the region. His poetic verses are sung in many genres of sufi music, including qawaalis and kaafis. Tradition has established a particular style of singing his couplets, which is not used in any other genre of sufi music.

The Mausoleum of Sultan Bahu is located in Garh Maharaja, Punjab, Pakistan. It is a popular and frequently-visited sufi shrine, and the annual festival is celebrated with the usual fervour, which is now a distinguishing feature of what is being called a 'shrine culture' of the South Asia. Annual festival is held during the holy month of Muharram. Every year on the 9th of Muharram (Islamic calendar month) a ghusal is also taken place under the supervision of Muhammad Najeeb Sultan (Sajjada Nasheen (Chair-holder) of Sultan Bahoo shrine), in which all decedents of Sultan Bahoo wash His shrine with tones of pure rose water.

Hazrat Sultan Bahu is from the progeny of Hazrat Ali and is a direct descended from Hazrat Ali. Sultan Bahu belonged to the Qadiri sufi order, and later initiated his own offshoot, Sarwari Qadiri. Sultan Bahu's education began at the feet of his mother, Mai Rasti, who was herself a saintly woman, and has her own Mausoleum in Shorkot, Punjab, Pakistan. She told him to seek spiritual guidance from a wali (friend of GOD). After some time, he moved to Delhi for further 'polishing' under the guidance of Sheikh Abdul Rehman al Qadari. Soon Sheikh Abdul Rehman al Qadari felt that he can not add anything to Sultan Bahoo's knowledge as Sultan Bahoo already knew more than Sheikh Abdul Rehman al Qadari. This did not take long, after which Sultan Bahu returned to his own, familiar surroundings.

Dil Mein Ishq e Nabi - Milad Raza Qadri - Nisar Ahmed Dar



Nasheed Artist: Muhammed Milad Raza Qadri
Album: Rukh Sey Kakul Hata Diya Tu Na

Lyrics:
Dil main ishq e Nabi (SAW) ki ho aisi lagan,
Ruh tarapti rahe dil machalta rahe,
Zindagi ka maza hey kay har saans say,
Ya Muhammad Muhammad (SAW) nikalta rahey.

Dil Main Ishq-e-Nabi Kee Ho Aesee Lagan.

Ya Muhammad Muhammad (SAW) mein kehta raha,
Noor kay motion ki lare ban gaee,
Ayaton sey milata raha ayatayn,
Phir jo dekha to Naat e Nabi (SAW) ban gaye.

Jo bhi ansoo bahe merey Mehboob kay,
Sab key sab abr e rehmat kay cheentay banay,
Chah gaee raat jab zulf lehra gaee,
Jab tabasum kiya chandani ban gaee.

Yeh to maana kay jannat hai bagh e haseen,
Khoobsoorat hey sab khuld ki sar zameen,
Husn e jannat ko phir jab samayta gaya,
Sarwar e ambiya ki galee ban gaee.

Jab chirah tazkira un kay rukhsaar ka,
Waduha par liya, wal qamar keh dia,
Sooraton kee tilawat bhi hoti rahi,
Naat bhi ho gayi baat bhi ban gayi.

Sab say saim zamanay main mazoor tha,
Sab sey beykas tha beybas tha majboor tha ,
Un ko reham agaya merey halaat par,
Meree azmat meree beybasee ban gaee.

Dil mein ishq e Nabi (SAW) ki ho aisi lagan,
Rooh tarapti rahay dil machalta rahay,
Zindagi ka maza hai kay har saans say,
Ya Muhammad Muhammad (SAW) nikalta rahey

Ibaadat - Satinder Singh Sartaj from Amit Sharma



Song: Ibadat Kar
Album: Ibadat
Singer: Satinder Sartaz

Ibaadat kar ibaadat karaN de naaL gal baN di hai gal baNdi hai
kise di aaj ban di hai te kise di kal ban di eh
//pray n pray, praying will make things happen
//someone's today n someone's tomorrow


ucchi soch sir neeva rakhi..n, yaar tu kyun ke yaar tu kyun ke
yo eh sagar jinna gehra oDi hi chhal ban di eh
// high thinking n keep head down, coz my frend
//the deeper the sea the more value will it have

kyu hankar karda eh ve ik din khaak ho jaaNa... eh khak ho jana -2
hai ke khak ho jaaNa
tere to jaanvar change jinna di khaall ban di eh
//wht r u proud of, you will be destroyed in this soil one day
//will be destroyed one day
//an animal whose flesh is used even after death is better than you

ke pittal oh vee hai jiss to..n tikhe hathiaar baN de ne hathiyaar bande ne
par toh assal pittal hai jo mandir da tall baN di eh
//one type of copper turns into sharp weapons
//but the real copper is the one which becomes a temple's bell

je kar mushkila yaavan tere raste tu Dolee na rasste tu Dolee na
kai waari musibat vee dukhan da hall baN di eh
//if face with difficulties on your path don't be afraid
//sometimes difficulties becomes the cure for pain...

ik vari zara dil naaL tu ardaas ta kar ve ardaas ta kar ve
ke dekhin pher teri gall osse pall baN di eh
// try and pray once with your full heart
//then you see that your problems will resolve the same moment

ehna rassteya tenu satindra paar nai loNa par nai loNa
ohee pagdandi phad jedi gura de wall baN di eh
Ibaadat kar ibaadat karan de naal gal ban di hai gal ban di a
kise di aaj ban di hai te kise di kal ban di eh
kise di aaj bandi hai tai kise di kal bandi hai ibadat kar ibadat kar ibadat kar
//hey SATINDRA, these paths will not get u anywhere
//catch the lane which goes to GURU's (GOD) home


Satinder Sartaaj (Satinderpal Singh)was born in the village mullanpur in ludhiana, Punjab. From his childhood he developed a keen interest in the Folk traditions of the land. He did his schooling from the government schools in his village and the nearby villages Chabbewal and Patti. He started performing on children stages by the time he was in class 3rd. After that, he joined Government College, Hoshiarpur to complete his graduation in Music with Honours. He also joined Sangeet Visharad, a five year diploma in classical music from Jallandhar. After completing his graduation and diploma, Satinder went to Panjab University, Chandigarh for a Masters in Music. He went on to complete his M.Phil and then a PhD with specialization in Sufi music. Satinder also completed a Certificate Course and Diploma in Persian language which allowed him access to the rich Sufi literature in that language. It was in college, when he also started writing poetry and adopted his Takhallus (poetic name) Sartaaj

Satinder dresses in a very traditional Punjabi attire, similar to what the likes of Waris Shah used to wear, and unlike the common practices of turban-wearing-Sikh, he sometimes keeps his hair flowing free, on top of which he wears his turban. This practice has been likened to the eccentric styles of some modern punjabi singers by a few but some have come forward in his defense saying that his dressing sense is in harmony with the Punjabi culture and a positive influence on the Punjabi youth

Dr. Satinder has been teaching at the Department of Music in Panjab University in Chandigarh for the last ten years
Satinder did not release a commercial album up until 2009, when he released a compilation album of his live recordings

2009 Mehfil-E-Sartaaj - Live Concert Mahal Enterprises Ltd.
2009 Ibadat - Mehfil-E-Sartaaj Finetone Cassettes Industries
2010 Sartaaj

Friday, September 17, 2010

Guftaam Chi Roshaan Qamar - Mahsa Vahdat - From Andy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha0LLztNrrI&feature=related

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Hukus Bukus Telwan Tsukus - From Mujtaba


Kailash Mehra Sadhu

From http://www.koausa.org/music/shokachaniya/lyrics.html

The sequence of the whole song is:
The children start:

"hukus bukus telli wann che kus
onum batta lodum deag,
shaal kich kich waangano,
Brahmi charas puane chhokum,
Brahmish batanye tekhis tyakha."

The Teacher corrects:
"Itkayne ne Itkayne
Tse Kus Be Kus Teli Wan su Kus
Moh Batuk Logum Deg
Shwas Khich Khich Wang-mayam
Bhruman daras Poyun chokum
Tekis Takya bane Tyuk"

Tse Kus Be Kus Teli Wan su Kus
Who are you and who am I then tell us who is he the creator that permeates through both you and I

Moh Batuk Logum Deg
Each day I feed my senses/body with the food of worldly attachment and material love (Moh = attachment)

Shwas Khich Khich Wang-mayam
For when the breath that I take in reaches the point of complete purification (Shwas = Breath)

Bhruman daras Poyun chokum
It feels like my mind is bathing in the water of divine love (Bhruman = nerve center in the human brain, poyun = water)

Tekis Takya bane Tyuk
Then I know I am like that sandal wood which is pasted for divine fragrance symbolic of universal divinity. I realize that I am, indeed, divine (Tyuk = Tika applied on the forehead)

The message of this poem is rooted in Kashmiri spiritual tradition. The poem itself is ageless. Some say it came up during Lal Ded's time, other's say it dates back to the origin of Kashmir and Kashmiri culture itself. The poem, in later years, was made a song for children. For years it served as a poetic medium to pass down the essence of Kashmiri culture to little ones.

It is said that the tones produced by the arrangement of words in this poem as well as its rhythm has a calming effect for infants and toddlers of all times.

From : www.searchkashmir.org
Vinayak Razdan

Folk songs remain essential to Kashmiri way of life. The way in which these songs are being sung has changed. Folk songs still exist but you can now hear them on VCD/DVD produced especially for mass consumption. Naturally, purist sneer and they wonder: what happened to the genuine kashmiri folk songs? But, most people are happy knowing that these songs still exist and are sung, and hope that maybe the 'scene' is better in rural areas.

Here is a list detailing most of the types of Kashmiri folk Songs:

Love songs or Lol-gevun : Lyrics( known in Kashmiri as lol , the word for 'love') written by the beloved last queen of Kashmir, Habba Khatoon are famous in this category
Dance or Ruf songs: groups of girls or women stand in rows, facing each other, women in each row interlink their arms around each other’s waist, moving forward and backward, they sing these songs.
Pastoral songs: there are two type of such song, one sung by Kashmiris and the other by Gujjars (a separate ethnic group ) in their own dialect.
Spring songs or sont gevun: Songs celebrating the coming of spring season.
Wedding songs Wanwun: Common to both Kashmiri Muslims and Pandits, but Muslim songs have more Persian words while Pandit songs have Sanskrit vocabulary and some Vedic chants. Some of the best songs are sung on the night of the henna known as Maenzraath. Among others there are songs from the folktale about the legendary lovers, Himal and Nagiray.
Opera songs or Bhand Jashan: songs performed by the traveling band of folk theater (Bhand pather) artists known as Bhand. Salman Rushdie gave them a new literally life in his novel Shalimar The Clown.
Dancer’s songs (Bach nagma Jashan): Usually meant for occasions like marriage or other big festivity. A particular band of musician performs these songs accompanied by a lithesome (at times, effeminate) boy/man who dances comically attired like a woman. To listen to a real beautiful dancing girl hafiz-nagama would have to be arranged.
Ballads (called Bath or Kath, meaning 'stories' and literally in kashmiri meaning 'talk'): A particular variety of satarical ballads is popularly known as laddi shah. A man stirs the iron rings strung on an iron rod and makes witty comments on the social issues. A common refrain from the songs started with line: Laddi Shah, Laddi Shah draar’kin pyow, pya'waane pya'waane ha'patan khyow( Laddi Shah, Laddi Shah! fell off the window! And a Grizzly bit him just as he fell!)
Sacred Thread ceremony songs (Yagnopavit gevun) for Kashmiri Pandits again have more vedic chantings. In an almost equivalent ceremony for Kashmiri Muslims, there are separate songs for the circumcision ceremony.
There are also Cradle songs, lullaby (lala’vun) and ditties for children( most popular Kashmiri ditty: Bishte Bishte Braryo, khot’kho wan). An interesting thing to note is that with the passage of time the mystical poem hukus bukus telli wann che kus (Who’s he? Who are you? Now, tell me who am I?) by Lal Ded, the great poet-saint of Kashmir, morphed into a popular nonsensical childrens' ditty Akus Bakus Telivan Chakus.
Dirge or Van: recited in chorus by women of the family after the death of an old persons.
Then there are folk songs that depend on the occupation of the person singing them. There are songs of seed-sowers, harvesters and laborers doing their daily hard work. There are songs for workers involved in creating delicate embroidery weavers and makers of exquisite Kashmiri Ka'leens, creators of papier-mache. There are songs sung by saffron reapers (usually women), shepherds, village belles fetching water (some of Habba Khatoon’s lol songs are popular in this category). In Kashmir farm work like grinding, spinning yarn and stacking paddy are performed by women, unlike many other places in the India subcontinent, they also do sowing and harvesting, and they sing different song while doing these physically daunting tasks. Some of these are songs about the waters of Jhelum, songs of saffron fields of Pampore and song about Chinar.

The list is based on the excellent work titled Folklore of Kashmir (1945) by Somnath Dhar.
It can be found in the Encyclopaedia of Kashmir by Suresh K Sharma, Shiri Ram Bakshi.
Do read: An article on Bhand Pather by M K. Raina, one of India's best-known theater actors and directors

Vaishnav Janto


Gandhiji


Lataji


from www.ramanuja.org


Narasinh Mehta's wonderful "Vaishnava Janato" describes
what it means to be a Vaishnava, this was also one of Gandhiji's favourite bhajans.

Bhajan: Hymn sung by Hindus accompanied by music and claps
Vaishanav/a: A follower of Vaishnav school of Hinduism. Strict
Vegetarianism, Ahimsa, Simplicity are the hallmarks of a true Vaishnav.

This Bhajan is in essence the "Definition" of a "Vaishnav".


Vaishnav jan to tene kahiye je
[One who is a vaishnav]

PeeD paraayi jaaNe re
[Knows the pain of others]

Par-dukhkhe upkaar kare toye
[Does good to others, esp. to those ones who are in misery]

Man abhimaan na aaNe re
[Does not let pride enter his mind]
Vaishnav...

SakaL lok maan sahune vande
[A Vaishnav, Tolerates and praises the the entire world]

Nindaa na kare keni re
[Does not say bad things about anyone]

Vaach kaachh man nishchaL raakhe
[Keeps his/her words, actions and thoughts pure]

Dhan-dhan janani teni re
[O Vaishnav, your mother is blessed (dhanya-dhanya)]

Vaishnav...

Sam-drishti ne trishna tyaagi
[A Vaishnav sees everything equally, rejects greed and avarice]

Par-stree jene maat re
[Considers some one else's wife/daughter as his mother]

Jivha thaki asatya na bole
[The toungue may get tired, but will never speak lies]

Par-dhan nav jhaalee haath re
[Does not even touch someone else's property]
Vaishnav...

Moh-maaya vyaape nahi jene
[A Vaishnav does not succumb to worldly attachments]

DriDh vairaagya jena man maan re
[Who has devoted himself to stauch detachment to worldly
pleasures]

Ram naam shoon taaLi laagi
[Who has been edicted to the elixir coming by the name of Ram]

SakaL tirath tena tan maan re
[For whom all the religious sites are in the mind]
Vaishnav...

VaN-lobhi ne kapaT-rahit chhe
[Who has no greed and deciet]

Kaam-krodh nivaarya re
[Who has renounced lust of all types and anger]

BhaNe Narsaiyyo tenun darshan karta
[The poet Narsi will like to see such a person]

KuL ekoter taarya re
[By who's virtue, the entire family gets salvation]
Vaishnav...

Narasinh Mehta's wonderful "Vaishnava Janato" describes
what it means to be a Vaishnava, this was also one of Gandhiji's favourite bhajans.

Bhajan: Hymn sung by Hindus accompanied by music and claps
Vaishanav/a: A follower of Vaishnav school of Hinduism. Strict
Vegetarianism, Ahimsa, Simplicity are the hallmarks of a true Vaishnav.

This Bhajan is in essence the "Definition" of a "Vaishnav".


Vaishnav jan to tene kahiye je
[One who is a vaishnav]

PeeD paraayi jaaNe re
[Knows the pain of others]

Par-dukhkhe upkaar kare toye
[Does good to others, esp. to those ones who are in misery]

Man abhimaan na aaNe re
[Does not let pride enter his mind]
Vaishnav...

SakaL lok maan sahune vande
[A Vaishnav, Tolerates and praises the the entire world]

Nindaa na kare keni re
[Does not say bad things about anyone]

Vaach kaachh man nishchaL raakhe
[Keeps his/her words, actions and thoughts pure]

Dhan-dhan janani teni re
[O Vaishnav, your mother is blessed (dhanya-dhanya)]

Vaishnav...

Sam-drishti ne trishna tyaagi
[A Vaishnav sees everything equally, rejects greed and avarice]

Par-stree jene maat re
[Considers some one else's wife/daughter as his mother]

Jivha thaki asatya na bole
[The toungue may get tired, but will never speak lies]

Par-dhan nav jhaalee haath re
[Does not even touch someone else's property]
Vaishnav...

Moh-maaya vyaape nahi jene
[A Vaishnav does not succumb to worldly attachments]

DriDh vairaagya jena man maan re
[Who has devoted himself to stauch detachment to worldly
pleasures]

Ram naam shoon taaLi laagi
[Who has been edicted to the elixir coming by the name of Ram]

SakaL tirath tena tan maan re
[For whom all the religious sites are in the mind]
Vaishnav...

VaN-lobhi ne kapaT-rahit chhe
[Who has no greed and deciet]

Kaam-krodh nivaarya re
[Who has renounced lust of all types and anger]

BhaNe Narsaiyyo tenun darshan karta
[The poet Narsi will like to see such a person]

KuL ekoter taarya re
[By who's virtue, the entire family gets salvation]
Vaishnav...

Narsinh Mehta (Gujarati:નરસિંહ મહેતા)also known as Narsi Mehta or Narsi Bhagat (1414? – 1481?) was a poet-saint of Gujarat, India, notable as a bhakta, an exponent of Hindu devotional religious poetry. He is especially revered in Gujarati literature , where he is acclaimed as its Adi Kavi (Sanskrit for "first among poets"). His bhajan "Vaishnav Jan To Tene Re Kahiye..." is Mahatma Gandhi's favorite and has become synonymous to him.

Definite information about Narsinh Mehta's life is not available. Based on the historical and literary traces it can be said surely that Narsinh was born in Talaja, Bhavnagar District of Saurashtra, in Nagar community. He lost his mother in his child hood(about 1425). Narsinh married Manekbai probably in the year 1428 and soon he lost his uncle who raised him. Narsinh and his wife went to stay at his cousin Bansidhar’s place in Junagadh. However, his cousin's wife (Sister-in-law or bhabhi) did not welcome Narsinh very well. She was an ill-tempered woman, always taunting and insulting Narsinh for his worship (Bhakti). One day, when Narasinh had enough of this taunts and insults, he left the house and went to a nearby forest in search of some peace, where he fasted and meditated for seven days by a secluded Shiva lingam until Shiva appeared before him in person. On the poet’s request, the Lord took him to Vrindavan and showed him the eternal raas leela of Sri Krishna and the gopis, the cowherd girls of Vrindavan. A legend has it that the poet transfixed by the spectacle burnt his hand with the torch he was holding but he was so engrossed in the ecstatic vision that he was oblivious of the pain. Narsinh, as the popular account goes, at Sri Krishna's command decided to sing His praises and the nectarous experience of the rasa in this mortal world. He resolved to compose around 22,000 kirtans or compositions.

After this dream-like experience, transformed Narsinh returned to his village, touched his bhabhi's feet, and thanked her for insulting him. In Junagadh, Narsinh lived in poverty with his wife and two children, a son named Shamaldas, and a daughter for whom he had special affection, Kunwarbai. He revelled in devotion to his hearts’ content along with sadhus, saints, and all those people who were Hari's subjects - Harijans - irrespective of their caste, class or sex. It also seems that he must have fallen into a somewhat ill repute for his close relations with Lord's sakhis and gopis, Narsinh's women followers, with whom he danced and sang. The Nagars of Junagadh despised him and spared no opportunity to scorn and insult him. By this time, Narsinh had already sung about the rasleela of Radha and Krishna. The compositions are collected under the category of shringar compositions. They are full of intense lyricism, bold in their erotic conception and are not without allegorical dimensions, this saves the compositions from being something of erotic court poetry of medieval India.

Soon after his daughter Kunwarbai's marriage (around 1447) to Sringara Mehta's son, Kunwarbai became pregnant and it was a custom for the girl's parents to give gifts and presents to all the in-laws during the seventh month of pregnancy. This custom, known as Mameru, was simply out of the reach of poor Narsinh who had hardly anything except intransigent faith in his Lord. How Krishna helped his beloved devotee is a legend depicted in ‘Mameru Na Pado’. This episode is preserved vividly in the memory of Gujarati people by compositions by later poets and films. Other famous legends include 'Hundi (Bond)' episode and ‘Har Mala (Garland)’ episode. The episode in which none other than Shamalsha Seth (The Dark one as Seth) cleared a bond written by poverty stricken beloved, is famous not only in Gujarat but in other parts of India as well. The Har Mala episode deals with the challenge given to Narsinh by Ra Mandlik (1451–1472) a local king and a vassal of Delhi's Sultan, to prove his innocence in the charges of immoral behavior by making the Lord Himself garland Narsinh. Narsinh depicts this episode. How Sri Krishna, in the guise of a wealthy merchant, helped Narsinh in getting his son married is sung by the poet in ‘Putra Vivah Na Pado’. Mahmud Begada (Mahmud Shah I) 1458-1511, invaded Junagadh in 1467 and soon after many a sporadic Muslim raids, the city was annexed to the Gujarat Sultanate. Perhaps to escape the consequences, he went to Mangrol where, at the age of 66, he is believed to have died. The crematorium at Mangrol is called ‘Narsinh Nu Samshan’ where perhaps one of the greatest sons of Gujarat was cremated. He will ever remembered for his works, faith in God. He is known as the first poet of Gujrati.

Narsinh Mehta is a pioneer poet of Gujarati literature.He is known for his literary forms called " pada (verse) ", " Aakhyan ", & " Prabhatiya ". One of the most important features of Narsinh’s works is that they are not available in the language in which Narsinh had composed them. They have been largely preserved orally. The oldest available manuscript of his work is dated around 1612, and was found by the noted scholar K.K.Shastri from Gujarat Vidhya Sabha. Because of the immense popularity of his works, their language has undergone modifications with changing times.

For the sake of convenience, the works of Narsinh are divided into four categories:

Autobiographical compositions: Putra Vivah, Mameru, Hundi, Har Same No Pado, Jhari Na Pado, and compositions depicting acceptance of Harijans. These works deal with the incidents from the poet’s life and reveal how he encountered the Divine in various guises. They consist of ‘miracles’ showing how Narsaiyya’s Lord helped his devotee in the time of crises.


Miscellaneous Narratives
: Chaturis, Sudama Charit, Dana Leela, and episodes based on Srimad Bhagwatam. These are the earliest examples of akhyana or narrative type of compositions found in Gujarati. These include:
Chaturis, 52 compositions resembling Jaydeva’s masterpiece Geeta Govinda dealing with various erotic exploits of Radha and Krishna.

Dana Leela poems dealing with the episodes of Krishna collecting his dues (dana is toll, tax or dues) from gopis who were going to sell buttermilk etc. to Mathura.
Sudama Charit is a narrative describing the well-known story of Krishna and Sudama.
Govinda Gamana or the Departure of Govind relates the episode of Akrura taking away Krishna from Gokul.
Surata Sangrama, The Battle of Love, depicts in terms of a battle the amorous play between Radha and her girl friends on the one side and Krishna and his friends on the other.


Miscellaneous episodes
from Bhagwatam like the birth of Krishna, his childhood pranks and adventures.
Songs of Sringar. These are hundreds of padas dealing with the erotic adventures and the amorous exploits of Radha and Krishna like Ras Leela. Various clusters of padas like Rasasahasrapadi and Sringar Mala fall under this head. Their dominant note is erotic (Sringar). They deal with stock erotic situations like the ossified Nayaka-Nayika Bheda of classical Sanskrit Kavya poetics.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Vo Ishq Jo Humsay Rooth Gaya - From Vineeta Sastry


Farida Khanum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSiJLl2GXTw
with Urdu lyrics

Farida Khanum has a distinctive style of singing. It is an attractive blend of ghazal gaayaki and tarannum (recitation), reflecting her training in classical music under the tutelage of such illuminaries as Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Ustad Ashique Ali Khan.

Lyrics: Athar Nafeez

vo ishq jo ham se ruuTh gayaa ab us kaa haal bataaye.N kyaa


vo ishq jo ham se ruuTh gayaa ab us kaa haal bataaye.N kyaa
ko_ii mehar nahii.n koii qahar nahii.n phir sachchaa sher sunaaye.N kyaa

ik hijr jo ham ko laahak hai taa der use doharaaye.N kyaa
vo zahar jo dil me.n utaar liyaa phir us ke naaz uThaaye.N kyaa

ik aag Gam-e-tanhaa_ii kii jo saare badan me.n phail ga_ii
jab jism hii saaraa jalataa ho phir daaman-e-dil ko bachaaye.N kyaa

ham naGmaasaraa kuchh Gazalo.n ke ham surat gar kuchh Khvaabo.n ke
bejazbaa-e-shauq sunaaye.N kyaa koii Khvaab na ho to bataaye.N kyaa

Farida Khanum, who will be singing in Delhi tomorrow, recalls her early days in India and her wish to record for Rahman
Aaj jaane ki zid na karo, yu hi pehlu mein baithe raho.
When Farida Khanum sang this Fayazz Hashmi nazm in Pakistan in the early 1970s, ghazal lovers of India cocked their ears to their tape recorders as though it was a coded command from the legend herself, and played and replayed the tape until it whirred in agony. People in India and Pakistan enjoyed the song so much that the demand for the cassette soared on both sides of the border. “That ghazal is simple poetry set to the simplest of tunes and it is that effortlessness that touches hearts,” says Khanum, now 74, over a telephone conversation from Lahore. “I am glad people still like it a lot.” She will have Aaj jaane ki... as the showstopper at the ICCR’s Routes2Roots concert in Delhi on Tuesday.

Khanum was born in Calcutta and learnt classical music from the maestro Ustad Ashiq Ali Khan. She still remembers the clip-clop of the tonga in which her sister Mukhtar Begum would take her, a seven-year-old Farida, to Khan’s place for riyaaz.

An exponent of the Patiala gharana, she recalls, “All that I know today is because of my training in Amritsar. I learnt many Hindustani ragas in the style of the Patiala gharana, which is known for its graceful execution of thumris and khayals. I could have been a classical singer if I had not migrated.” Khanum had her first public performance in 1950 and then joined Radio Pakistan where she courted fame and fortune.

“I used to get 50 (Pakistani) rupees per show and that was quite a lot those days,” laughs Khanum. “In Pakistan, the classical singers were so good that I would not have been able to match those extremely talented ustads. I had always been interested in poetry and that is when I thought I should shift to a semi-classical genre, rather than struggle in a difficult field,” she says with disarming modesty.

She became a star when Pakistan’s president Ayub Khan invited her to a public recital in the ’60s. “Bahut pyar mila uske baad humein. I performed a lot in India as well and it became a second home to me,” says Khanum, who especially loves performing in “Ghalib ka shehar Dilli”.

Do the volatile relations between India and Pakistan affect her? “How can we artists turn our faces when India bleeds and just because some forces are busy funding war?” she asks. “We still can’t stop watching Shah Rukh Khan movies.”

This time Khanum plans to meet music director AR Rahman. “I had gone to Chennai the last time I came to India but couldn’t meet him because of our busy schedules. Rahman wanted to record me then. I wish it is possible this time,” says Khanum.

Neeyat-e-Shauq Bhar Na Jaaye Kaheen - From Vineeta Sastry


Noor Jahan


Asha Bhonsle

Lyrics: Nasir Kazmi

Neeyat-E Shauq bhar na jaye kahin
Tu b dil se uthar na jaye kahi

Aaj dekha hai tujh ko dher k baad
Aaj ka din guzar na jaye kahi

Na mila kar udhas laugo se!
Husan tera bikar na jaye kahi

Aarzo hai ke tu yahaan aaye
Aur phir umer bhar na jaye kahi

Jee jalata hoo aur sochta hoon
Raigaa ye hunar na jaye kahi

Aao kuch dher ro he lay Nasir
Pir ye darya uthar na jaye kahi...n

Nasir Kazmi
Nasir Raza Kazmi is one of the greatest poets of this era, especially in the use of "istha'aaray" (metaphors) and "chhoTii behr" (small meter). He was born On Dec. 8, 1925 at Ambala. He did some journalistic work with "Auraq-e-Nau" and became chief editor of the magazine "Humayun" in 1952-53. Later he was associated with Radio Pakistan, Lahore and other literary publications and organisations. Nasi Kazmi was a great admirer of Meer Taqi Meer and probably the melancholy and "Ehsaas-e-Mehroomi" in his poetry was a direct result of that. His tutor in poetry was Hafeez Hoshiarpuri, who himself used a lot of symbols from nature in his poems.

His rich body of work includes Barg-e-Nae (1952), Deewaan (1972), Pehli Baarish (1975), Nishat-e-Khwab (Collection of nazms, 1977), Sur Ki Chhaya (Drama, 1981), Khushk Chashme ke Kinare (Prose, 1982). The last four tragically were published after his death in Lahore on March 2, 1972 due to tuberculosis. Few people know that he did some great translations of English poets, especially his translation of Walt Whitman's "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry " as "Brooklyn Ghaat Ke Paar" is a real masterpiece and worth reading.

Compiled by Akber Zaidi for Aligarians.com

Ghazals & Nazms Of Nasir Kazmi:

be minnat-e-Khizr-e-raah rahnaa
dil meN ek lehar sii uThii hai abhii
dukh kii lehar ne chheRaa hogaa
fikr-e-taameer-e-aashiaN bhi hai
jab raat gaye tiri yaad aayii, sau tareh se jii ko behlaaya
jurm-e-inkaar kii sazaa hii de
karta use beqarar kuch der
kaun is raah se guzartaa hai
kise dekhein kahaaN dekha na jaye
ko'ii jiye yaa ko'ii mare
naaz-e-be-gaangii meN kyaa kuch thaa
O ! mere masruuf Khudaa
rang barsaat ne bhare kuch to
tanhaa ishq ke khwaab na bun
tere aane kaa dhokaa saa rahaa hai
terii zulfoN ke bikharne kaa sabab hai ko'ii
yaas meN jab kabhii aaNsuu niklaa

LITERARY NOTES: Remembering Nasir Kazmi
By Intizar Husain


Pakistan Academy of Letters’ latest publication is a volume on Nasir Kazmi compiled by his son, Basir Kazmi. We were introduced to this volume in an inaugural function organised by the Academy in its auditorium. The function was attended by the poet’s friends, admirers, and readers of poetry in general. Among those who spoke on the occasion were Basir Kazmi, Kishwar Naheed, Iftikhar Arif, and myself.

Basir Sultan Kazmi had himself achieved much in the field of writing. On the basis of his own achievements, both as a poet and a prose writer, he well deserved to be entrusted with the job of compiling a suitable volume about Nasir Kazmi.

Nasir Kazmi was among those few poets whose personalities are so involved with their poetry that it is hard to separate one from the other. His was a life creatively lived.

Nasir Kazmi was among those few poets whose personalities are so involved with their poetry that it is hard to separate one from the other. His was a life creatively lived. I am saying this with particular reference to his early period, which may be determined as beginning with the late years of the 1940s and ending with the decade of ’50s. I recall his nightlong wanderings when his creativity was at its height. In these years he did not simply write poetry. He lived it. His first collection is a faithful record of his life as he lived it at that time.

His next collection speaks of the next phase in his life. He was by then a married man and those close to him were trying hard to convince him that poetry is not enough in life, and that poets too, howsoever devoted to their creative experience, stand in need to make certain compromises with the realities of life in order to keep body and soul together.

He did make compromises to the extent that he cared to carry on with the jobs arranged for him by his well-wishers. In consequence we see a balance emerging between Nasir the family man and Nasir the poet.

This balance in turn led to a maturity of mind which helped him to discipline his poetic talent. Keeping away from ghazal for a time, he decided to write a play in verse. The play, Sur ki Chaya is an achievement apart from his poetry.

Soon after writing the play he made a bold experiment in the domain of ghazal. The ghazals collected under the title Pehli Barish bring before us a continuity hitherto unknown to the form of ghazal. These ghazals taken together may be seen as an attempt to recapture a whole experience. They take the form of a sad remembrance of a sweet relationship, which is now a thing of the past.

This was the last phase of Nasir’s creative journey, wherein he appears to have come far away from the stages we see in Berg-i-nai and Diwan. But unfortunately, most of his admirers and critics give the impression that they have stopped short at the ghazals of Diwan.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Lo Phir Basant Aayee - Malika Pukhraj/Tahira Syed - Mujtaba



लो फिर बसन्त आई
फूलों पे रंग लाई
चलो बे दरंग
लबे आबे गंग
बजे जलतरंग
मन पर उमंग छाई
लो फिर बसन्त आई
आफत गई खिज़ां की
किस्मत फिरी जहाँ की
चले मै गुसार
सूये लाला जार
मै पर्दादार
शीशे के दर से झाँकी
आफत गई खिज़ां की
खैतों हर चरिंदा
बागों क हर परिंदा
कोइ गर्म खेज़
कोइ नगमा रेज़
सुब को और तेज़
फिर हो गया है ज़िन्दा
बागों का हर परिंदा
खैतों का हर चरिंदा
धर्ति के बेल बूटे
अन्दाज़े नौ से फूटे
हुआ बख्त सब्ज़
हुआ रख्त सब्ज़
हैं दरख्त सब्ज़
बन बन के सब्ज़ निक्ले
धर्ति के बेल बूटे
अन्दाज़े नौ से फूटे
है इश्क भी जुनूं भी
मस्ती भी जोशे खूँ भी
कहीं दिल में दर्द
कहीं आह सर्द
कहीं रंग ज़र्द
है यूँ भी और यूँ भी
मस्ती भी जोशे खूँ भी
फूली हुई है सर्सों
भूली हुई है सर्सों
नहीं कुछ भी याद
यूँ ही बामुराद
यूँ ही शाद शाद
गोया रहे कि बरसों
फूली हुई है सर्सों
इक नाज़्नीं ने पहने
फूलों के ज़र्द गहने
है मगर उदास
नही पी के पास
घमो रंजो यास
दिल को पडे हैं सहने
इक नाज़्नीं ने पेहने ...
लो फिर बसन्त आई

Lo phir basant ayi,
phoolon pe rang layi
chalo be darang
lab-e-aab-e-gang
baje jal tarang
man par umang chayi

afat gayee khizan ki,
kismat phiri jahan ki
chal mai-guzaar
sooe Laalazar
mai-e-parda dar
sheeshe ke dar se jhanki
afat gayee khizaan ki
qismat khili jahan ki

kheton ka har charinda,
baghon ka har parinda
koi garm khez
koi naghma rez
subh ko aur tez
phir ho gaya hai zinda
baghon ka har parinda
khaiton ka har charinda

dharti ke bel boote,
andaze nau se phute
hua bakht sabz
mila rakht sabz
hai darakht sabz
ban ban ke sabz nikle
dharti ke bel bootay
andaze nau se phootay

hai ishq bhi junoon bhi,
masti bhi josh e khoon bhi
kahin dil main dard
kahin aah sard
kahin rang zard
hai yun bhi aur yun bhi
masti bhi josh-e-khoon bhi
hai ishq bhi junoon bhi

phooli huee hai sarson
bhooli huee hai sarson
nahin kuch bhi yaad
yunhe ba murad
yunhee shaad shaad g
oya rahe gee barson
phooli hue hai sarson

ek naznin ne pehne
phoolon ke zard gehne
hai magar udas
nahin pi ke paas
gham-o-ranj-o-yaas
dil ko pare hain sehne
ek naznin ne pehne
phoolon ke zard gehne
lo phir basant ayi, lo phir basant ayi



لو پھر بسنت آئی
پھولوں میں رنگ لائی
چلو بے درنگ
لب آب گنگ
بجے جل ترنگ
من پر امنگ چھائی
لو پھر بسنت آئی
آفت گئی خزاں کی
قسمت پھری جہاں کی
چلے مے گسار
سوے لالہ زار
معے پردہ دار
شیشے کے در سے جھانکی
آفت گئی خزاں کی
کھیتوں کا ہر چرندہ
باغوں کا ہر پرندہ
کوئی گرم خیز
کوئی نغمہ ریز
صب کو اور تیز
پھر ہوگیا ہے زندہ
باغوں کا ہر پرندہ
کھیتوں کا ہر چرندہ
دھرتی کے بیل بوٹے
انداز نو سے پھوٹے
ہوا بخت سبز
ملا رخت سبز
ہیں درخت سبز
بن بن کے سبز نکلے
دھرتی کے بیل بوٹے
ہے عشق بھی جنوں بھی
مستی بھی جوش خوں بھی
کہیں دل میں درد
کہیں آہ سرد
کہیں رنگ زرد
ہے یوں بھی اور یوں بھی
پھولی ہوئی ہے سرسوں
بھولی ہوئی ہے سرسوں
نہیں کچھ بھی یاد
یوں ہی با مراد
یوں ہی شاد شاد
گویا رہے کی برسوں
پھولی ہوئی ہے سرسوں
اک نازنیں نے پہنے
پھولوں کے زرد گھنے
ہے مگر اداس
نہیں پی کے پاس
غم و رنج و یاس
دل کو پڑے ہیں سہنے
اک نازنیں نے پہنے ...
لو پھر بسبت آئی


Malika Pukhraj (Urdu: ملكہ پکھراج ) (b1912 - 2004) was a highly popular singer of Pakistan. She was generally called as "Malika" meaning "The Queen." She is extremely popular for her rendition of Hafeez Jalandhri's song, Abhi to main jawan hoon ("I am still youthful"), which is enjoyed by millions not only in Pakistan, but also in India. Her popular numbers were,Lo phir basant aaya and Quli Qutub's Piya baaj piyale piya jaye na and Faiz Ahmed Faiz's Mere qatil mere dildar mere paas raho.

Malika Pukhraj, was born in village Mirpur, on the banks of the River Akhnoor, 16 miles from Jammu, and as she grew up her mother moved to Kanak Mandi area of Jammu, in present Jammu and Kashmir, where she spent early years of her life, she was given the name "Malika" at birth, by 'Majzoob', 'Baba Roti Ram, a spiritualist, in Akhnoor area and named Pukhraj by her Aunt.

Malika Pukhraj who was coached by Ustad Allah Buksh, father of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. At age nine, At nine she visited Jammu and performed at coronation ceremony of Maharaja Hari Singh, who got so impressed by her voice that she appointed a court singer in his Durbar, and stayed there for another nine years.

Over the next 8 decades she captivated her audience with her command over the singing genres of Thumri, Ghazal, Bhajan and folk Pahari Geet, including Dogri folk songs. She was among the greatest singers of British India in the 1940s, and after Partition of India in 1947, she migrated to Lahore, Pakistan, where she received further fame, through her radio performances with composer, Kale Khan.

In 1980, she received the Presidential Pride of Performance Award, Pakistan. In 1977, when All India Radio, for which she sang until Partition, was celebrating its Golden Jubilee, she was invited to India, and awarded with the 'legend of Voice' award Malika Pukhraj also recorded her memoirs in the novel Song Sung True.

Malika Pukhraj, died in Lahore on February 4, 2004. Her funeral procession started from her residence West Canal bank, and she laid to rest at her ancestral 'Shah Jamal' graveyard in Lahore

Malika Pukhraj was married to Syed Shabbir Hussain Shah, a Government Officer and had 6 children, including Safiea, her eldest daughter; Tahira Syed, one of Malika Pukhraj’s two daughters, emerged as a well-known singer in her own right. Her other daughter, Tasneem, is married to famous lawyer and senator S.M. Zafar. Her eldest son Tauqeer lives in Model Town, Lahore, and his wife Shahnaaz, her other son is, Maj. (R) Syed Tanveer Hussain.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Habib Koite - Batoumambe


Batoumambe

A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
Ma bien aimée sirène
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
Gné bolo da sï kan, Sin na diyatê
Sin na diyatê, Si tigi la diya do
Kan bolo da Kanna, Kanna diyatê
Kanna diyatê, Kan Tigui la diya dôn
Je passe mon bras autour de ton cou parce que j'aime être avec toi
ou, ou , ou, ou
Gné bolo da bolo kan bolo la diyatê
Bolo tigui la diya dôn
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
(Instrumental balafon)
Kawa gnon fai Segou, Sirala diyaté
Segou diyaté I fait tama le diya dôn
Ka gnognai kôdala dji la diyatê
Dji la diyatê I fait Baro de diyadon
ou, ou, ou, ou
Kan bein ponni kan banconi ponni kan
Ponni diyaté I yé ile diyadôn
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
(Instrumental balafon)
ou, ou, ou, ou
Péré pé pé (x 4)
(Instrumental balafon)
ou, ou, ou, ou
(Instrumental balafon)
Péré pé pé (x4)
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé
A Batoumanbé wï koro Batoumanbé

Batoumambe is a woman of a fishing tribe of Mali. She is loved by a man of another tribe. But, being of different tribes, they can never be married. He says, "If I put my hand around your neck, it is not out of desire but out of love for the owner of the neck." Their impossible romance inspired the Malian proverb, "Not all love ends in marriage."

By Naomi DeBruyn
This review is for Baro (Audio CD)

Habib Koit
e is a musician straddling the past and the future. Together with his band, Bamada (which translates to - in the mouth of the crocodile - and is a nickname for the inhabitants of Bamako), Habib is creating wonders in the world music genre. He comes from a noble line of Khassonke griots, and learned his unique guitar style while accompanying his griot mother. However, Habib's passion is accredited to his Grandfather who played the djelly n'goni (a traditional instrument which is linked with the
hunters of the Wassolou region of Mali).

As I mentioned above, Habib has a unique style of guitar playing. He tunes his guitar to the pentatonic scale, and plays upon open strings. At times he sounds bluesy, at others more Latin and flamenco style, but it is a very distinctive and extremely pleasing sound which Habib has brought to light. His vocals are soothing, warm and inviting -- the perfect complement to his guitar style; and quite unlike the griot style! On this album, Habib and his band are joined by Keletigui Diabate on the balafon (a wooden-keyed
xylophone originating from West Africa).

The accompanying booklet is a delight, filled with pictures and the lyrics in three languages, one of which is English, thankfully allowing me to fully understand the meaning behind the beautiful and haunting melodies found on the disc. However, it doesn't compare with the music!

The track opens with Batoumambe which translates to - name of a woman from the Bozo fishing tribe - . The incredible rhythms in this track will not allow you to just sit still, while the lyrics tell a sad tale. Two people from different worlds find themselves in love, a love which cannot be fulfilled for neither can cross the differences between them. "Not all love ends in marriage..."

Toroya - Issa Bagayogo - From Joyjit Deb Roy



Toroya - Suffering

You only get out what you put in,
only work frees a person,
So, it is worth paying tribute,
to Malian artists,
to Malian youths,
to Malian women,
to Malian men who strive to improve their living condition

You only get out what you put in,
Work takes away from us vice, need and worries

You only get out what you put in,
let's pay tribute,
to the youths of Wassoulou,
to the youths of Karadougou,
to the youths of Briko,
to the youths of Ganadougou

You only get out what you put in,
welcome Moussa Koné,
welcome my charming guitarist Boua,
welcome Sidibé Mamou,
welcome Issa from Korin

A restless worker is always rewarded,
you only get out what you put in,
the sun shines again after the rain

Issa Bagayogo (born 1961) is a Malian musician. He has released four full-length albums all under the record label Six Degrees Records. Bagayogo lends his voice and plays the kamele n'goni (a six-stringed West African instrument similar to a banjo, while Yves Wernert is the producer and keyboardist.

Bagayogo blends his native Malian traditions with western pop music and has drawn comparisons to some of the great Malian musicians such as Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté.

Sya, originally released in 1998, was the first album released under Six Degrees Records. The second album is titled Timbuktu, after the ancient city in Mali. The album covers issues such as racial tolerance, regional pride, and drug abuse among youths. Bagayogo continues his fusion of his native African style music with electronic beats on this album.
In 2004, Bagayogo released his album called Tassoumakan, which means "voice of fire", followed by Mali Koura in 2008.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT9tmZGLQOw&NR=1
Saye Mogo Bana

Diogal à la Cigale

Salif Keita & Cesária Évora - Yamore - From Joyjit Deb Roy


Yamore

Je t’aime mi amoré menebêff fie
Ene le arabylyla to much

Namafiye, namafiye guni yerela ba namafiye Niere a ná nifon
Ye namo kofue nerum silê don kile le, ina kola ahaha
Rile enela munuku mo sô
Nienama kofiye, soro falê é mo sonho mana osi koté
Nanana nekona, dê I lêlê fon

Je t’aime mi amoré menebêff fie Nê comf fop ach ari
Ene le arabylyla to much Xurin né bi feu J t’aim

Un tem fé, si un tem fê
No também viver sem medo e confians
Num era mais bisonho
Olhar de nos criança ta a tornar brilhar de inocença
E na mente CE esvitayada
Temporal talvez ta mainar
Na brandura y calmaria
Nosso amor ta vins cansando
De ser luta e resitencia
Pa sobreviver nas tormenta
Na brandura y calmaria
Nosso amor ta vins cansando
De ser luta e resitencia
Pa sobreviver nas tormenta

Je t’aime mi amoré menebêff fie Boi nhat zefiu, ermãos
Ene le arabylyla to much Boi etud nhiafieu, la paz

Xeritava pá, beru kuyê mobiliko yoi nhÊ
Ahaha rilê ene La munuku mo sô
In deburu ieu kordaine
Sank é noite a namo a cantor
Ê enela mulnuku mo sol
Yo sakenem mo sol

Un tem fé, si un tem fê
No também viver sem medo e confians
Num era mais bisonho
Olhar de nos criança ta a tornar brilhar de inocença
E na mente CE esvitayada
Temporal talvez ta mainar


Cesaria Evora,
popularly known as Cize, was born in 1941 in the port town of Mindelo on the Cape Verde island of Sao Vicente - one of her albums is called Sao Vicente. She became internationally famous when she was in her late 40s and has recorded around 15 albums. To understand the style of her music one should read about the history of the islands:
The Portuguese arrived on these 10 uninhabited islands in 1460, populated them with Africans and Europeans, and governed harshly. The islands are in the Atlantic Ocean, 350 miles off the coast of Senegal (it takes 2 hours to go by air), were one of Africa’s first slave ports, and became one of its last nations to achieve independence in 1975. All this explains why the melancholy morna, sung in Creole-Potuguese about love, loss and sadness, is very much part of the Cape Verdean national identity and Cesaria is a true ambassadress.
Cesaria’s father was a violinist and though she does not remember him because he died when she was 7, her grandmother says that Cesaria used to sit on his lap while he played. Surrounded by music, she grew up singing with her friends in the suburbs of Mindelo. When she was 16, a boyfriend who played guitar convinced her that she had an exceptional voice and encouraged her to pursue music as a profession. After that Cesaria recorded some songs for the national radio station, and began to build a reputation. She idolized Mahalia Jackson, Billie Holliday and fado singer Amalia Rodriguez.
In the colonial times Cesaria developed a modest career performing in bars and restaurants, and sometimes in the homes of wealthy Portuguese colonialists. After Cape Verde achieved independence in 1975, many of the Portuguese aristocracy fled the new socialist government so Cesaria had very few occasions to perform.
Then in 1985, a Cape Verdean women's organization asked her to record 2 songs for a compilation CD. She went to Paris to record, and while there played some concerts. Her success in Europe was absolutely phenomenal.
Cesaria performs with closed eyes and bare feet, which she calls part of the 'national costume' of Cape Verde. She says that when she sings, memories play in her head transporting her to other times and places.

Evora has a certain fondness for cigarettes and whiskey, paying no attention to any claim that these might harm her voice. "I've had plenty of time to ruin my voice," she says. "And since it's not ruined yet, I'm going to continue." Cesaria is also the queen of the morna. Her songs are filled with longing and sadness with the acoustic sounds of guitar, cavaquinho, violin, accordian, and clarinet.
"Morna is like the blues because it is a way to express life's suffering in music." Cesaria is known as the barefoot diva because she appears on stage in her bare feet in support of the disadvantaged women and children of Cape Verde. Another of her albums is La Diva aux Pieds Nus, made when she was 47. Understanding her lyrics is not necessary because one can sense the emotions in her performances. Now a grandmother, Cesaria continues to record and tour and is happy about her worldwide popularity,
"... in all those years when I sang in bars and in front of strangers I sometimes had an idea I might someday be successful outside my country. The thought never stayed with me for very long, but here I am."
Her songs appear on numerous album compilations including 'Quem pode' with Teofilo Chantre (her guitarist) on Drop the Debt. There seems to be a strong link with Angola, perhaps because of Portuguese, for example Bonga sings one of Cesaria’s well-known songs, 'Sodade' (meaning Nostalgia). Cesaria has dueted with Salif Keita for the song 'Yamore' on the album Moffou and on her album Rogamar (2006) Ismael Lo joins her for 'Africa Nossa'.


Salif Keïta
(born August 25, 1949) is an internationally recognized afro-pop singer-songwriter from Mali. He is unique not only because of his reputation as the Golden Voice of Africa, but because he has albinism and is a direct descendant of the founder of the Mali Empire, Sundiata Keita. This royal heritage meant that under the Malian caste system, he should never have become a singer, which was deemed to be a griot’s role.
Keita was born in the city of Djoliba. He was cast out by his family and ostracized by the community because of his albinism, a sign of bad luck in Mandinka culture.[1] He left Djoliba for Bamako in 1967, where he joined the government sponsored Super Rail Band de Bamako. In 1973 Keita joined the group, Les Ambassadeurs. Keita and Les Ambassadeurs fled political unrest in Mali during the mid-1970s for Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire and subsequently changed the group's name to Les Ambassadeurs Internationaux. The reputation of Les Ambassadeurs Internationaux rose to the international level in the 1970s and in 1977 Keita received a National Order award from the president of Guinea, Sékou Touré.
Keita moved to Paris in 1984 to reach a larger audience. His music combines traditional West African music styles with influences from both Europe and the Americas, while maintaining an overall Islamic style. Musical instruments that are commonly featured in Keita's work include balafons, djembes, guitars, koras, organs, saxophones, and synthesizers.
Keita found success in Europe as one of the African stars of world music, but his work was sometimes criticised for the gloss of its production and for the occasional haphazard quality. However, shortly after the turn of the Millennium he returned to Bamako in Mali to live and record. His first work after going home, 2002's Moffou, was hailed as his best album in many years, and Keita was inspired to build a recording studio in Bamako, which he used for his album, M'Bemba, released in October 2005.
Keita's latest album, La Différence, was produced around the year end of 2009. The work is dedicated to the struggle of the world albino community(victims of human sacrifice), for which Keita has been crusading all his life. In one of the album's tracks, the singer calls others to understand that "difference" does not mean "bad" and to show love and compassion towards albinos like everyone else:"I am black/ my skin is white/ so I am white and my blood is black [albino]/... I love that because it is a difference that's beautiful..", "some of us are beautiful some are not/some are black some are white/all that difference was on purpose.. for us to complete each other/let everyone gets his love and dignity/the world will be beautiful."
La Différence is unique in that for the first time Keita has clearly and boldly combined different melodic influences to produce a highly original musical feel, with a wide range of appeal. The album was recorded between Bamako, Beirut, Paris, and Los Angeles. This unique musical feel is reinforced by soulful pitches in the track "Samigna" emanating from the trumpet of the Libanese great jazzman, Ibrahim Maaluf.
La Difference won Keita one of the biggest musical awards of his career: the Best World Music 2010 at the Victoires de la musique.

Ranjish Hi Sahi - Syed Ahmed Shah 'Faraz' - From Vineeta Sastry


Runa Laila
Music by Nasir Bazmi


Mehdi Hasan


Asha Bhonsle's modern version


From the Pakistani Film Mohabbat sung by Mehdi Hasan


Ranjish hi sahi dil hi dukhaane ke liye aa
(Let it be anguish, come still atleast to torment my heart)
aa phir se mujhe chhod ke jaane ke liye aa
(Come, even if to leave me again)

pehle se maraasim na sahi phir bhi kabhi to
(If not for our past association)
rasm-o-rahe duniya hi nibhaane ke liye aa
(Come to fulfill the rituals of the world)

kis kis ko bataayenge judaai kaa sabab ham
(To whom all must I explain the reason of separation)
tu mujh se khafaa hai to zamaanay kay liye aa
(Come, despite your displeasure, atleast for the sake of the world)

ab tak dil-e-khush-feham ko tujh se hain ummeedain
(Till now, my heart suffers from some expectations from you)
ye aakhari shammain bhi bujhaane ke liye aa
(Come to snuff even these last candles of hope)

kuchh to meri pindaar-e-mohabbat ka bharam rakh
(Respect a little the depth of my love for you)
tu bhi to kabhi mujh ko manaane ke liye aa
(Come someday to placate me as well)

ek umr se hun lazzat-e-giryaa se bhi mehruum
(Too long have I been deprived of the pathos of longing)
aye raahat-e-jaan mujh ko rulaane ke liye aa
(Come my love, if only to make me weep again)


रंजिश ही सही दिल ही दुखाने के लिए आ
आ फिर से मुझे छोड़ के जाने के लिए आ ।

रंजिश=enmity

पहले से मरासिम न सही फिर भी कभी तो
रस्म-ओ-रह-ए-दुनिया ही निभाने के लिए आ ।

मरासिम=agreements/relationships, रस्म-ओ-रह-ए-दुनिया=customs and traditions of the society

किस किस को बताएँगे जुदाई का सबब हम
तू मुझ से ख़फ़ा है तो ज़माने के लिए आ ।

सबब=reason, ख़फ़ा=angry

कुछ तो मेरे पिन्दार-ए-मुहब्बत का भरम रख
तू भी तो कभी मुझ को मनाने के लिए आ ।

पिन्दार=pride

एक उम्र से हूँ लज़्ज़त-ए-गिरिया से भी महरूम
ऐ राहत-ए-जाँ मुझ को रुलाने के लिए आ ।

लज़्ज़त-ए-गिरिया=taste of sadness/tears, महरूम=devoid of, राहत-ए-जाँ=peace of life

अब तक दिल-ए-ख़ुश’फ़हम को तुझ से हैं उम्मीदें
ये आख़िरी शम्में भी बुझाने के लिए आ ।

दिल-ए-ख़ुश’फ़हम=optimistic heart, शम्में=candles

Syed Ahmad Shahor Ahmed Faraz was considered one of the greatest modern Urdu poets of the last century. Faraz is his pseudonym 'takhallus', whereas his real name is Syed Ahmed Shah. Ahmed Faraz died at Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad on August 25, 2008

Faraz, who has been compared with Mohammad Iqbal and Faiz Ahmed Faiz, holds a unique position as one of the best poets of current times, with a fine but simplistic style of writing, even common people can easily understand and identify with. Ethnically a Pashto-speaking Pashtun, Ahmed Faraz learned and studied Persian and Urdu at the Peshawar University where he taught these subjects later.

Early Life: He was born on January 14, 1934 Nowshera, Pakistan and brother of Syed Masood Kausar. In an interview with Rediff he recalls how his father, a teacher, once bought clothes for him on Eid. He didn't like the clothes meant for him, but preferred the ones meant for his elder brother. This lead him to write his first couplet:

Layen hain sab ke liye kapre sale se (He brought clothes for everybody from the sale)
Layen hain hamare liye kambal jail se (For me he brought a blanket from jail)


He was told by his parents once to learn mathematics from a female class fellow during the summer vacation. "I was weak in mathematics and geography. I still don't remember maps and roads".

Instead of learning mathematics he played bait-bazi with her, a game in which one person recites a couplet and the other one recites another couplet starting from the last letter of the previous one. He always lost, even though he memorized hundreds of couplets for her, but when he started manufacturing his own couplets she couldn't catch him anymore. Coming from a respectable family of Syeds, descendents of ''Haji Bahadar" a famous saint of Kohat, he moved to Peshawar with entire family. Studied in famous Edwards College, Peshawar and then did his Masters in Urdu and Persian. Initially Syed Ahmad Shah Faraz thus became Ahmed Faraz.

During his college time, Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Ali Sardar Jafri were the best progressive poets, who impressed him and became his role models. Ahmed Faraz initially worked as a script writer at Radio Pakistan Peshawar and then moved on to teach Urdu at Peshawar University. In 1976 he became the founding Director General (Later Chairman) of Pakistan Academy of Letters.

Faraz Passed away at a local Islamabad Hospital on August 25, 2008

Political Life: Outspoken about politics, he went into self-imposed exile during the Zia-ul-Haq era after he was arrested for reciting certain poems at a mushaira criticizing the military rule. He stayed for three years in Britain, Canada and Europe before returning to Pakistan, where he was initially appointed Chairman Academy of Letters and later chairperson of the Islamabad-based National Book Foundation for several years. He has been awarded with numerous national and international awards.
He was inspired from Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto And Pakistan People's Party. When he was not well on July 2008. Pakistan People's Party Aranged program for pray to Ahmed Faraz on Karachi He was awarded the Hilal-e-Imtiaz in 2004, in recognition of his literary achievements. He returned the award in 2006 after becoming disenchanted with the government and its policies.

"My conscious will not forgive me if I remained a silent spectator of the sad happenings around us. The least I can do is to let the dictatorship know where it stands in the eyes of the concerned citizens whose fundamental rights have been usurped. I am doing this by returning the Hilal-e-Imtiaz (civil) forthwith and refuse to associate myself in any way with the regime..." a statement issued by the poet.

About his current writings he says: "I now only write when I am forced to from the inside."

Maintaining a tradition established by his mentor, the revolutionary Faiz Ahmed Faiz, he wrote some of his best poetry during those days in exile. Famous amongst poetry of resistance has been "Mahasara"

One amongst his great ghazals is the famous Ranjish Hi Sahi. He has so far written 13books and all put together comes as "Shehr e Sukhn aarasta hai" his latest publication so far

Jo Achyutananda Jo Jo Mukunda


Priya Sisters


M S Subbalakshmi


Lyrics by Annamacharya:

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||
rAvE paramAnanda rAma gOvinda ||

1. nanduninTanucEri nayamu mIranga candravadanalu nIku sEva cEyanga
andamuga vArinDla aaDucunDangA mandalaku donga mA muddu ranga

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

2. pAla vArASi lO pavvaLincinAvu
bAlugA munulaka bhayamiccinAvu
mElugA vasudEvukudayincinAvu
bAluDai yunDi gOpAluDainAvu

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

3. aTTugaTTina mIgaDaTTe tinnADE
paTTi kODalu mUtipai rAsinADE
aTTe tinenavi yaTTa yaDugavinnADE
gaTTigA nidi donga koTTumannADE

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

4. gOllavArinDlakunu gobbunaku bOyi
kollalugA trAvi kunDalanu nEyi
cEllunAmaganAnDra jelagi ee SAyi
cillitanamulu sEya jellunaTa vOyi

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

5. repalle satulella gopambutOnu
gopamma mI koDuku mA inDlalOnu
mApu gAnE vacci mA mAnamulanu
nI pApaDE cer''ace - nEmandumamma!

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

6. oka yAlini decci - nokani kaDabeTTi
jagaDamula galipinci satipatula baTTi
pagalu nalu jAmulunu bAluDai naTTi
maganAnDra jEpaTTi madanuDainaTTi !

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

7. angajuniganna mAyanna iTurAra bangAruginnelO pAluposErA
donganIvani satulu bonducunnArA mungiTanADarA mOhanAkArA

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

8. gOvadhanambella goDugugA baTTi
kAvaramuna nunna kamsubaDagoTTi
nIvu madhurApuramu nElajEpaTTi
ThIvitO nElina dEvakI paTTi

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

9. angugA tALLapAkannayya cAla SRngAra racanagA ceppE nIjOla
sangatigA sakala sampadala nIvELa mangaLamu tirupaTla madanagOpAla

jO achyutAnanda jO jO mukundA ||

Here the poet transforms himself into YasOda and sings this lullaby to Baalakrishna.
He teases Baalakrishna, calling him a thief who steals butter from all the houses when he is offered milk in a golden bowl in his own house. The poet sings this romantic lullaby and also refers to the beautiful women who look after the needs of Baalakrishna.....



Sri Tallapaka Annamacharya

(శ్రీ తాళ్ళపాక అన్నమాచార్య) or Annamayya (May 9, 1408-February 23, 1503) was the official songmaster of the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple and a Telugu composer who composed thousands of keertana songs,many of which were in praise of Lord Sri Venkateswara Swami. The musical form of the keertana songs that he composed have strongly influenced the structure of Carnatic music compositions, which are still popular among Carnatic music concert artists.Sri Annamacharya is remembered for his saintly life, and is honoured as a great Bhakta/devotee of Bhagwaan Govinda by devotees and saintly singers.

He is widely regarded as the Pada-kavita Pitaamaha (grand old man of song-writing) of the Telugu language.

Annamacharya was born on Vaisakha Suddha Pournami in the year Sarwadhari (May 9, 1408) in Tallapaka, a remote village in current day Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh, India.His wife, Thimmakka, had written Subhadra Kalyanam, and is considered the first female poet in Telugu literature. Their son, Pedda Tirumalacharya, and grandson, Tallapaka Chinnayya, were also composers and poets. The Tallapaka compositions are considered to have dominated and influenced the structure of Carnatic music compositions.Annamacharya lived for 95 years until Phalguna Bahula Dwadasi (12th day after full moon) in the year Dhundhubhi (February 23, 1503).

[edit] Literary career
Annamacharya is said to have composed as many as 32,000 sankeertanas (songs) on Bhagwaan Govinda Venkateswara,of which only about 12,000 are available today. His sankeertanas are of two kinds - composed for Bhagwaan Govinda. His keertana compositions are based on the Vishishtadvaita school of thought. Annamayya was educated in this system of Ramanuja by Sri Sathagopa Yateendra of the Ahobila matham.

In his keertana, he espouses subjects such as morality, dharma and righteousness. His songs worship Bhagwaan Venkateswara by describing his amorous and romantic adventures, a tradition now known as Madhura Bhakti. Most of these songs describe the adventures of Venkateswara and Alamel Manga, while others describe the Bhakti of Krishna's devotees.

He was one of the first few who opposed the social stigma towards the untouchable castes in his era, with his sankeertanas explaining that the relationship between God and human is the same irrespective of the latters' color, caste and financial status, in beautiful yet powerful usage of words in his song "Brahmam Okkate Parabrahmam Okkate..."

His choice of words gives a mellifluous tone to his songs, charming the listener. His prodigious literary career earned him a place among the all-time greats of Telugu literature.

According to legend, Annamacharya met up with Purandara Dasa and both of them composed music and lyrics.They met when Annamacharya had invited Purandara Dasa to join him in singing priase.

While enjoying popularity in his own days, his compositions were forgotten for over three centuries for some inexplicable reason. They were later found engraved on copper plates, hidden for centuries inside the Sri Venkateswara temple at Tirumala.

Annamacharya considered his compositions as floral offerings to Bhagwaan Govinda. In the poems, he praises Venkateswara, describes his love for him, argues and quarrels with the Lord, confesses the devotee's failures and apprehensions, and surrenders himself to Venkateshwara. His songs are classified into the Adhyaatma (spiritual) and Sringaara (romantic) sankeertanas genres.

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, also known as TTD, has been endeavouring to preserve the rich heritage of his compositions .Garimella Balakrishna Prasad (born 9 November 1948) set the musical tune for more than 600 Annamacharya songs. He has been the Asthana Gayaka of the Tirumala temple at Tirupati since 1983. He is regarded as a pioneer in rendering devotional music in classical style, especially the Annamacharya sankirtanas. He composed tunes for famous keerthanas such as Vinaro Bhagyamu Vishnukatha, Bhramha Kadigina Padamu, Jagadapu Chanuvula and Pidikedu Thalambralu... which became popular among the devotees. All these devotional songs are predominantly in Sanskrit and Telugu.

S.M. Vijay, an ardent devotee of Lord Venkateswara and Annamacharya since 1992, has devoted his life for the propogation of Annamacharya Kirtanas. Currently residing at Tirupati, he has written 8 books and a lot of articles in the Tamil edition of Saptagiri (published by TTD), Annamacharyar Kirthanaigalum adhan Arthangalum (Vol 1-8) for the Tamil speaking people. He also has an idol of Annamacharya and performs Nama Sankeerthanam daily. He believes that in Kali Yuga, Nama Sankeerthanam is the only easy way to attain Moksha.

The sankeertanas engraved on copper plates were found in the Tirumala temple just opposite the Hundi, concealed in a very small room. It is said only 12,000 of the 32,000 sankeertanas were found. No leads have been available to trace the remaining sankeertanas. Some personnel involved in deciphering the plates say that the people of those days could have melted the copper plates for personal use.

In the programme, LakshaGala Sankirthanarchana, some 160,000 people sang seven Annamayya keertanas in Hyderabad, creating a new Guinness record on May 10, 2009

Telangana Rain Song


Gorati Venkanna

http://www.telugulo.com/view_news.php?id=1905

http://www.crazyfinger.org/2009/08/translating-gorati-venkanna.html

Maa Vollu Ma Inti Kaada.....


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