Ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
Posted on: August 30, 2011
This article is written by Sudhir, a fellow enthusiast of Hindi movie music and a regular contributor to this blog.
A diffident soul for most part of his life, Saigal Saab avoided calling or causing any attention to himself in public. BN Sircar (founder of New Theaters, Calcutta), recalls that Saigal Saab would never take himself too seriously. People that he took seriously were the people who were less fortunate than himself. He apparently lived only for music and singing. Everything in life was just for a song. And for his friends. Before he left for Jullundur in the winter of 1946, he met with Phani Mazumdar in Bombay. Phani had produced and directed the film Street Singer, for New Theatres. Saigal Saab told Phani that he wanted to work together again. When Phani Mqzumdar indicated that he may not be able to afford the star of his eminence any more, Saigal Saab promised him that finances would be the least of the issues and that he would take care of it. Leaving Phani Mazumdar to start working on script and start planning for the film, Saigal Saab traveled to Jullundur, in what turns out to be his final travels. For Phani Mazumdar, the story was forever unfinished, for he could never think of completing it with any other star.
This ghazal by Aarzoo Lucknawi, is seemingly a simple read, but then it carries such significant implications. The poet is dealing with the concept of belief, and the power of belief to vanquish the sorrows and regrets in life. The poet says that a mind without belief is easily overwhelmed by regrets and sorrows in life. For those, who are not “connected” with Him, even the day time is a time of darkness.
ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
raat do raat ka baseraa hai
Know that this (world, life) is not forever, neither for you nor for me. It is, but, a resting place for a night or two.
The poet is alluding that there is another journey (or a larger context, a larger scheme of things) that we are a part of. Being here on this world is incidental, like stopping on way for a night or two, to rest and take a breather.
ghar = home, residence, abode
ye = this
tera = yours
sadaa = for ever
na = not
mera = mine
hai = is
raat = night
do = two
raat do raat = one or two nights
ka = of
baseraa = abode, resting place, nest
hai = is
jee ko badhti hui udaasi ne
kyaa akelaa samajh ke gheraa hai
There is a gloom that continues to mount and grow. This gloom has laid siege to my mind, finding it alone and unsupported.
The gloom that the poet refers to is the realization that there is a futility associated with life, that has no answers. This gloom has a power over only those minds that consider themselves to be alone. That we think ourselves to be alone, i.e unconnected to Him is the reason that this gloom has a power over us.
jee = mind, heart
badhti hui = increasing, rising
udaasi = sadness, gloom, melancholy
akelaa = alone, unaccompanied
samajh = understanding, realization
gheraa = surroung, besiege
hai = is
jin se ojhal hai tu in aankhon mein
raat kaisi ke din andheraa hai
Those, for whom, You are as yet unseen, as yet a just an imagination (or not even that); those, for whom You do not exist or that they do not believe in You; for them, what to say of the night, even the days are full of darkness.
jin = whom
se = from
jin se = from whom
ojhal = invisible, concealed
hai = is
tu = You – referring to the Almighty
in = these
aankhon = eyes
mein = in
raat = night
kaisi = how is it
din = day
andheraa = dark, without any illumination
hai = is
chaah mein yun huaa hai deed-e-aab
ke na teraa na ab ye meraa hai
The self is so full of regret of the unfulfilled longings, that this regret has overpowered the existence and cognizance of the self. So much so that it has even lost its identity, and is nowhere (neither here nor there). Or that there is no hope to resurrect the self now, from under the burden of regrets (of unfulfilled desires).
Deed-e-aab is tears in the eyes. The tears are an expression of sorrow and regret. The poet says, that under the inducement of the (unfulfilled) desires ‘yun huaa hai’, the existence of the self is simply transformed into tears, i.e. regret. The impact of these desires is such that merely regret remains in life and everything else is obliterated. The self has lost its identity to the extent that no redemption may be possible; the self is neither under its own power, and that it has slipped away from His influence too.
chaah = desire, longing
mein = in
yun = how; this is how
huaa hai = (has) become
deed = eyes
aab = water
deed-e-aab = water from the eyes, tears
ke = that
na = no, not
tera = yours
ab = now
ye = this
mera = mine
hai = is
‘aarzoo’ bojh badhtaa jaayega
chal khadaa ho abhi saveraa hai
Get up and start (to do something, to make a belief), now that there still is time and opportunity and hope, lest it is too late and the weight of your deeds, and their consequences will simply multiply and weigh you down so much.
The use of the word ‘aarzoo’ (longings, desires) is very interesting. Aarzoo is also the signature (takhallus) of the poet. He says – the desires in this world are endless, they cannot possibly be all satisfied. The regret of unfulfilled desires will simply continue to grow within one’s mind, till this regret will overwhelm everything else in life.
But all is not yet lost, there still is time, to get up (to realize this folly). Make amends in life, there still is some time and some opportunity.
‘aarzoo’ = longing, desire; also poet’s signature (takhallus)
bojh = burden, weight
badh, badhnaa = grow, increase, intensify
badhtaa jaayegaa = will continue to grow and intensify
chal = walk, to more; in this context, it is an exhortation to start, to do something
khadaa ho = get up
abhi = now
saveraa = day, daylinght; in this context, opportunity, chance
hai = is
Song-Ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai (Saigal NFS) (1940) Singer-K L Saigal,Lyrics-Aarzoo Lucknowi
Lyrics
aaaa
aeyy ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
aeyy ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
raat do raat ka baseraa hai
raat do raat ka baseraa hai
raat do raat ka baseraa hai
jee ko badhti hui udaasi ne
jee ko badhti hui udaasi ne
kyaa akelaa samajh ke gheraa hai
kyaa akelaa samajh ke gheraa hai
kyaa akelaa samajh ke gheraa hai
jin se ojhal hai, haan haan
jin se ojhal hai tu in aankhon mein
jin se ojhal hai tu in aankhon mein
raat kaisi ke din andheraa hai
raat kaisi ke din andheraa hai re
ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
chaah mein yun huaa hai deed-e-aab
chaah mein yun huaa hai deed-e-aab
ke na teraa na ab ye meraa hai
ke na teraa hai ab na meraa hai
haan ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
‘aarzoo’ bojh badhtaa jaayega
‘aarzoo’ bojh badhtaa jaayega, re
chal khadaa ho abhi saveraa hai
chal khadaa ho abhi saveraa hai
ghar ye tera sadaa na mera hai
Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
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