Kaifi Azmi

Kaifi Azmi, the renowned Urdu poet and lyricist, was born in 1925 in Mijwan, Azamgarh District, Uttar Pradesh. He died in Mumbai on May 10, 2002, fifteen months after recording for the Library of Congress in New Delhi. At the time of his death he was one of the last remaining representatives of the Progressive Writers Association, a writers' association that wielded unparalleled influence during India's freedom struggle.His poetry remains solidly rooted in the tradition of Urdu poetry with its ardent longing for intense emotions and passionate espousal of radical causes. His poems celebrate love, compassion and human equality. The lyrical beauty and powerful expression of his film songs have captivated millions. Despite the political and economic shifts in India, he retained his idealism and remained to the end optimistic of a socialist future for India. This optimism was reflected in poetry replete with dreams of a socialist egalitarian society in which the voice of another fellow human being will be felt like melodious music. "I was born in enslaved India, have lived in independent secular India, and God willing, I will die in socialist India." (The Indian Express, September 9, 1998)
Kaifi Azmi received many awards and accolades including the Soviet Land Nehru Award and Sahitya Akademi Award. In 2000, he was conferred the first Millennium Award by the Delhi Government and Urdu Academy. He was the recipient of "Padma Shri" one of the Indian Government's highest civilian awards. The Maharashtra government conferred the Dnyaneshwar award on him in 1998.The Library of Congress owns nine of his works.






Somnath

but-shikan ko’ii kahiiN se bhii na aane paaye
hamne kuch but abhii siine meN sajaa rakhe haiN
apnii yaadoN meN basaa rakhe haiN
dil pe ye soch ke path-raao karo diivaanoN
ke jahaaN hamne sanam apne chhupaa rakhe haiN
vahiiN Ghazni ke Khudaa rakhe haiN

but jo TuuTe to kisii tarah banaa leNge unheN
tukRe-tukRe sahii daaman meN uThaa leNge unheN
phir se ujRe hu’e siine meN sajaa leNge unheN
Gar Khudaa TuuTegaa ham to na banaa paayeNge
uske bikhre hu’e tukRe na uThaa paayeNge
tum uThaa lo to uTha lo shaayad
tum banaa lo to banaa lo shaayad

tum banaao to Khudaa jaane banaao kaisaa
apne jaisaa hii banaaya to qayaamat hogii
pyaar hogaa na zamaaneN meN muhabbat hogii
dushmanii hogi, adaavat hogii
hamse uskii na ibaadat hogii

vahshat-e-but-shikanii dekh ke hairaan huuN maiN
but-parastii mera shevaa hai ke insaan huuN maiN
ek na ek but to har ek dil meN chhupaa hotaa hai
uske sau naamoN meN ek naam Khudaa hotaa hai

Doosra Banbaas in Hindi

दूसरा बनबास

राम बनबास से लौट कर जब घर में आये
याद जंगल बहुत आया जो नगर में आए
रक्स ऐ दीवानगी आंगन में जो देखा होगा (रक्स- तांडव)
छह दिसम्बर को श्री राम ने सोचा होगा
इतने दीवाने कहां से मेरे घर में आये।
जगमगाते थे जहां राम के कदमों के निशां
प्यार की कहकशां लेती थी अंगड़ाई जहां
मोड़ नफ़रत के उसी राहगुजर में आये।
धर्म क्या उनका है, क्या जात है, यह जानता कौन
घर न जलता तो उन्हें रात में पहचानता कौन
घर जलाने को मेरा यार लोग जो घर में आये।
शाकाहारी है मेरे दोस्त तुम्हारा खंज़र
तुमने बाबर की तरफ फेंके थे सारे पत्थर
है मेरे सर की खता जख्म जो सर में आये।
पाँव सरयू में अभी राम ने धोये भी न थे
कि नज़र आये वहां ख़ून के गहरे धब्बे
पाँव धोये बिना सरयू के किनारे से उट्ठे
यह कहते हुए श्री राम द्वारे से उट्ठे
राजधानी की फि़ज़ां आयी नहीं रास मुझे
छह दिसम्बर को मिला दूसरा बनबास मुझे।