Laaj bharey in nainan mein
Posted on: May 14, 2012
This article is written by Sadanand Kamath, a fellow enthusiast of Hindi movie music and a regular contributor to this blog.
It still surprises some of my friends when I tell them that I completed my high school studies in Hindi medium. It was unthinkable that a person belonging to one of the southern states would join the Hindi medium school. It was a surprise for me as well.
As I advanced to higher classes, my curiosity increased as to why my parent put me in a Hindi medium school when most of my cousins were in English or Marathi medium schools. It was much later I came to know from my mother that it was my father’s decision whom I had lost in my early age. And what had led him to this decision? The answer was – it was my father’s vision that with the adoption of the Constitution of India in 1950 under which Hindi was to become an official language after 15 years and the use of English as official language was to cease thereafter, learning Hindi would be an advantage.
Though my father was off the mark in his vision, I have absolutely no regrets over his decision. The school atmosphere was great. At no time I ever felt that I was a student out of sync with other students who were mostly from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Our teachers whom we used to address them as ‘Guruji’ were of high calibre. Those days, a single teacher used to teach us most of the subjects in the primary school. As a result, there was an affinity between the students and the teacher in the school in the same way we had towards our parents at home.
As I look back, I realised now that they were in the teaching profession more for their love for teaching than for a livelihood. But for the Hindi medium school, I would have missed the vast repository of Hindi literature. Those days, I was an admirer of the trinity of ‘chhaayawadi’ poets viz. Jaishankar Prasad, Sumitra Nandan Pant and Suryakant Tripathi ‘Nirala. I remember that they were collectively called as Prasad-Pant-Nirala and were compared with the trinity of English poets Byron, Shelley and Keats. Among the writers, I liked the short stories of Munshi Premchand the most and I still read his short stories.
One of the problems I faced after the completion ofthe high school studies was conversation in Hindi with the people at large in Mumbai. The Hindi spoken by the people at large was quite different from what was taught to us. Our Hindi teachers were very strict in regard to use of pure Hindi words in conversations and also in writings. The use of words from other languages like Urdu and English which were commonly used in Hindi conversations was frowned upon by our teachers. With this background, I had some tough time in conversing in Hindi with other students in the college and later with my office colleague. Probably, some may have even thought that I was trying to impress them with my chaste Hindi.
As saying goes ‘ when in Rome, do as Romans do’ , I unwittingly followed this dictum as years passed. I was mostly in the company of those who were speaking in local Hindi dialect (called Bombaiya Hindi). I realised that my Hindi had already veered towards the local Hindi dialect and there were not much options available to me to correct it as it was very rare to come across persons with whom I could converse in pure Hindi. I did not want to lose touch of Hindi as spoken during my school days. I started watching Hindi news on Doordarshan. Although this refreshed my pure Hindi to some extent, at the same time I realised that I was hearing some of the ‘sanskritised’ Hindi words for the first time which I had never heard during my school days. Still it was the next best option for me in my quest to keep in touch with pure Hindi. Nowadays,I have stopped watching news which are not only full of depressing contents, but the quality of language spoken by the news readers has deteriorated over time especially on the private channels.
It is in this context that whenever I come across Hindi film songs written in pure Hindi it is ‘eurekha’ for me. This type of songs reminds me of my school days, my Hindi teachers, Hindi poets and novelists whose works I had read in those days. I get the same pleasure in listening to film songs written in pure Hindi as that from the songs with predominantly Urdu words. Unfortunately, both these genre of songs have become rare now as most of the present day Hindi films’ dialogues and songs have switched from Hindustani ( mix of Hindi and Urdu) to‘Hinglishtani’ ( mix of Hindi and English). These genre of songs may have already become ‘heritage songs’ for the new generation.
So here is one such song ‘ laaj bhare in nainan mein adhik sudha bharo naa’ from the film UTTARA ABHIMANYU (1946). What a romantic couplet to start the song! I have come across for the first time, some of the Hindi words in this song like ‘vihwaltaa’ (restless or in Urdu probably ‘bekarar’) and ‘moorchhit’ (faint/ to lose consciousness). The film was produced under the banner of Paras Pictures and directed by Sarvottam Badami. Shahu Modak and Shanta Apte were in lead roles with Chhaya Devi, S N Tripathi in supporting roles.
In some websites including IMD, Ashok Kumar’s name also appears in the starcast list. S N Tripathi composed the music for the film. There were two lyricists for this film – Saraswati Kumar Deepak and Roopdas. I am not able to find outas to who wrote this song. I request our knowledgeable readers to help us in this regard.
Only the audio clip is available. One of the commentators on YT has stated that Ashok Kumar was not in this film but he gave playback for Shahu Modak. If it is so, this may be the only occasion where Ashok Kumar sang for another actor.
This song is one of the examples of how songs with pure Hindi words can be pleasing to the ears. Ashok Kumar has done a commendable rendition of this song in a restrained voice.
Song-Laaj bhare in nainan mein (Uttara Abhimanyu)(1946) Singer-Ashok Kumar, Lyrics- MD-S N Tripathi
Lyrics
laaj bhare
laaj bhare in nainan mein
adhik sudhaa bharo naa
sakhi adhik sudhaa bharo naa
laaj bhare in nainan mein
adhik sudhaa bharo naa
sakhi adhik sudha bharo naa
vyathit hriday ki vihwaltaa ko
ugra adhik karo naa
vyathit hriday ki vihwaltaa ko
ugra adhik karo naa
karo naa
karo naa
karo naa
laaj bhare in nainan mein
adhik sudhaa bharo naa
sakhi adhik sudhaa bharo naa
ang upar nav yauwan dhar kar
ang upar nav yauwan dhar kar
ras bhare adhar
upar smrit(?) jhar kar
ras bhare
ras bhare
ras bhare adhar
upar smrit(?) jhar kar
hey manmohini
hey manmohini
mere man ko
moorchhit ab karo naa
karo naa
karo naa
karo naa
laaj bhare in nainan mein
adhik sudhaa bharo naa
sakhi adhik sudhaa bharo naa
he lalnaa chhal karo naa
he lalnaa
he lalnaa chhal karo naa
chhalak chhalak itnaa dharo naa
chhalak chhalak itnaa dharo naa
pal pal roop jhalak jhalkaa kar
chitt chalit karo naa
karo naa
karo naa
karo naa
laaj bhare in nainan mein
adhik sudhaa bharo naa
sakhi adhik sudhaa bharo naa
21 Responses to "Laaj bharey in nainan mein"
May 14, 2012 at 9:53 am
Kamath ji,
Ashok kumar was very much in the film and he sang only for himself.
-AD
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May 14, 2012 at 10:16 am
Thanks for clearing the doubt.
Do you know the lyricist of this song?
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May 14, 2012 at 10:54 am
Kamath ji,
The lyricist is Saraswati kumar Deepak,whose real name was Gopal Sharma.In 1946,he wrote songs in 4 films-Bhakta Prahlad,Dev Kanya,Maan sarovar and Uttara Abhimanyu.All songs in these films were in ‘Shuddha and sanskritised Hindi’.This actually sealed his fate and he was branded as a ‘Mythological’ song writer,though he has written songs in films like Aag,Boot Polish,Didi, naya Raasta,Aankhen etc.His 90% songs were for Mytho or Historical films.(1918 to 1986).
-AD
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May 14, 2012 at 11:39 am
Thanks for solving one more ‘puzzle’.
I was aware of Saraswati Kumar ‘Deepak’ more as a poet in my school days than as a lyricist. The same was with Gopaldas Saxena ‘Neeraj’. Those days, I used to feel why these poets had to ‘stoop low’ to write film songs.
Much later I heard the song ‘dhande ki kuchh baat karo kuchh paise jodo’ from NAVRANG and got the answer 🙂
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May 14, 2012 at 2:53 pm
Arunji,
Which song in BOOT POLISH is by Saraswati Kumar Deepak?
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May 16, 2012 at 10:00 am
Gupta ji,
The song is
‘o o Raat gayee phir din aata hai’ sung by Manna Dey/Asha and chorus.
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May 16, 2012 at 10:49 am
Arunji,
In that case, we do need to change the lyricist’s name in the song Raat gayee phir……from Shailendra to Saraswati Kumar Deepak.
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May 14, 2012 at 11:04 am
Again I am yet to listen the song,
But Sadanandji superb post,
I enjoyed reading you post very much
and those words
“vyathit,moorchhit,vihwaltaa”
They are all words used in KANNADA poetry and literary works. I can understand a little bit of those words, that`s why I enjoyed your post very much.
Main bhi Kannada medium mein hi mera 10th tak ka shikshan poora kiyaa hai. That`s why I get fumbled with my English knowledge & usage always. Samay par teek teek angerzi shabd soojhthe nahin hain.Issee liye main khud ke post likhne mein jhijhak mehsoos kartaa hoon.
But your English language is perfect,flawless. Aap tho aap hai,Right???
I will try a little bit of Hindi langauage, Please don`t laugh and correct me:
“aapke shabd padhke mere prathahkaleen samay aahladmay reethi se vyathit huye.apaar dhanyawaad”
prempoorn/saadarpoorn pranaamon ke saath
Prakash
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May 14, 2012 at 11:45 am
Prakash ji,
The words you mentioned are actually Sanskrit words.Since most of the Indian languages(except Tamil,as per my knowledge) originated from Sanskrit,all languages in their pure form are akin to Sanskrit.
Hence the pure form of any Indian language like,Marathi,Hindi,Telugu,kannada etc can be understood by people who have actually no knowledge of that language.
Sanskrit words are very tricky and even one alphabet here and there can make a disastrous difference.
for example-Vyathit means pained,sorry or hurt whereas
Vyateet means passed,spent or used up.
In your above sentence the correct spelling should have been
Vyateet and not Vyathit, which has given wrong meaning.
-AD
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May 14, 2012 at 11:54 am
OMG!, Vyathit vs Vyateet. I am reminded of Omi Vaidya in ‘3 Idiots’ 🙂
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May 14, 2012 at 11:49 am
Your Hindi has to be flawless if many of the Hindi words derived from Sanskrit is also used in Kannada. Except for Tamil, all other southern languages have a fair share of words derived from Sanskrit.
Thanks for appreciating the post.
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May 14, 2012 at 12:38 pm
Sadanandji
Kshama maangthaa hoon.-“Vyathit vs Vyateet”khaand ke liye.
It should be “Vyateet ”
Asha karthaa hoon, aap mujhe khshama karenge.
Abhi 2 line likhne mein ye haal hai, saaraa post likh daalaa tho kyaa hogaa??????
Better again to say sorry in ENGLISH.
Please ,SORRY………YYYYYYY
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May 14, 2012 at 1:51 pm
Prakash ji,
I am sorry once again.
The word Khand or Khaand(as you have written) means a piece of land,portion or division.
What you,probably,wanted to write/say was kaand-which means the issue,ghatanaa,a happening,something that has happened about which discussions took place,or a point in question,matter in disussion etc.
As I said,using pure Hindi/Sanskrit words is a risky proposition if you are not careful or knowledgeable.
Its best to use colloquial language or ‘Boli bhasha’,which is common.
-AD
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May 14, 2012 at 12:34 pm
This is a very heartwarming write up. I love pure hindi too, but as time passes, my language has become such a mix of various languages, that I don’t even realise it any more.
I still like to listen to people who speak correct language. I can’t hear the song at the moment, but will make it a point to listen to it in the evening from home. I am sure I will like it 🙂
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May 14, 2012 at 4:58 pm
Great combination of an extremely well- written introduction, great song, and an interesting exchange of comments. I have something of my own to add regarding the exchange on Kannada/Sanskrit words.
I lived for many years in Bangalore. A very famous Hindi novelist I know was visiting from Delhi. While driving him home for dinner I was showing him some landmarks of the city. I pointed out the Vidhan Soudha (Karnataka Legislative Assembly) to him. He immediately remarked that unlike the Hindi-speaking people of North, the people of South had preserved the purity of language. What he meant was they used Sanskrit derived words. Soudha is the Kannada version of the Sanskrit word “saudh” which means a building.
This gentleman always tells everyone to speak in “Sanskrit-nishth” Hindi. I once made the mistake of referring to my wife as my “biwi” and I got severely taken to task for the crime. “Patni sey sambodhit nahin kar sakte tum?”
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Sambodhit hona – to address or in urdu ‘mukhaatib hona’
sambodhan – to refer or referral
Thanks to hindi film songs, we are still reminded of some urdu words now and than. I heard a latest film song today which goes “Mukhtasar si mulaaqat hai” . My daughter said “mukhtasar kya?”
I could immediately recall that ‘Mukhtasar’ means “brief”.
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It is sambodhit karna =to address.
Like neta ne janta ko sambodhit kiya = The leader addressed the public.
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May 14, 2012 at 5:39 pm
Very interesting write-up, Kamathji.
I am also very fond of shudh Hindi – just as I am fond of shudh Urdu. As it turns out, I do mix up Hindi and Urdu a lot. And, if you have to make yourself understood, it is difficult (unless you are in places like MP), to do this only with shudh Hindi. Even then, I do enjoy listening to it – which is one reason I like listening to Sushma Swaraj in Parliament. 🙂
I see a couple of comments here about South Indian languages being close to Sanskrit. I can talk about Kannada for sure – there is major Sanskrit influence. For example, temple is called “dev-sthaan”.
Strangely, even Tamil (though it may have different roots than Sanskrit) has a fair share of words that can relate to Sanskrit (though typical Tamilians may not like to admit it. ;-)).
For example, the words “sankoch” and “upyog” are also used in Tamil, albeit with a Tamil pronunciation variant. Maybe there are “pure” Tamil words for these too (I don’t know) but in colloquial Tamil, these words are what are used. Could be to do with migration of people all over the country also.
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May 14, 2012 at 7:56 pm
Raja,
Your observations about the influence of sanskrit on Tamil language have reminded me of some Tamil devotional songs I used to listen in my younger days, courtesy mu uncle. Neither of us knew Tamil. But the use of some Sanskrit words in Tamil devotional songs made me to understand at least the subject matter of the songs.
Those devotional songs were sung by M K Thyagaraja Bhagavatar (MKT). You may have listened to those devotional songs. I could find on YT a couple of songs of MKT I used to hear those days. Links are : (1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LZGwwdGvAA&feature=related
(2)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wTGjx4lIQY
I guess the influence of Sanskrit on Tamil may have come through devotional songs.
Incidentally, my uncle used to call MKT as K L Saigal of the South. As I found out later, both were contemporaries and actor-singers.
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Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
May 14, 2012 at 9:03 am
It should be vifalta. smrit is ok. But jhar should have been ghar. (Do not ‘house’ the smile on your lips). The lyric writer seem to give Bharat Vyas run for his money.
This is sung flawlessly unlike his earlier forays in Kangan etc…The way Ashok Kumar has sung the song I feel he should have continued with it. He would have blossomed into another Kishore Kumar
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