Ajj aakhaan Waris Shah nu
Ajj akhaan Waris Shah nun (Punjabi: اَج آکھاں وارث شاہ نُوں, ਅੱਜ ਆਖਾਂ ਵਾਰਸ ਸ਼ਾਹ ਨੂੰ) is a famous dirge by the renowned Punjabi writer and poet Amrita Pritam (1919-2005) about the horrors of the partition of the Punjab during the 1947 Partition of India.[1] The poem is addressed to the historic Punjabi poet Waris Shah (1722-1798 CE), who had written the most popular version of the Punjabi love tragedy, Heer Ranjha (ਹੀਰ ਰਾਂਝਾ, ہیر رانجھا).[2] It appeals to Waris Shah to arise from his grave, record the Punjab's tragedy and turn over a new page in Punjab's history.[3]
The poem found resonance in both Punjabs - Indian and Pakistani.[2] It featured in the Pakistani Punjabi film, Kartar Singh, where it was performed by Inayat Hussain Bhatti. It is one of the most widely read poems in modern Indian literature.[4] This was also sung by the Mekaal Hasan Band, and featured on their albums, Sampooran (2004) and Saptak (2009).
Excerpt
These are the opening lines of the poem[5][6][7] -
Punjabi - Gurmukhi script | Punjabi - Shahmukhi script | English translation |
---|---|---|
ਅੱਜ ਆਖਾਂ ਵਾਰਸ ਸ਼ਾਹ ਨੂੰ ਕਿਤੋਂ ਕਬਰਾਂ ਵਿਚੋਂ ਬੋਲ। |
اج آکھاں وارث شاہ نوں، کتھوں قبراں وچوں بول |
Today, I call Waris Shah, “Speak from your grave,” |
Mekaal Hasan Band's "Waris Shah"
Pakistani band, Mekaal Hasan Band included a 7 minute, 27 second song "Waris Shah on their albums Sampooran and Saptak. Javed Bashir was the vocalist. The song was extremely good, though a bit lengthy. The band also released an animated video for this song, which was directed by Zeeshan Pervaiz.[8]
See also
References
- ↑ Gur Rattan Pal Singh, My reminiscences, Gur Rattan Pal Singh, 1999,
... referring to the famous lines of Mrs. Amrita Pritam, the celebrated Punjabi writer, about the partition of India: "Aj aakhan War is Shah nu kiton ... tenu Waris Shah nu kahen Uth dard mandan diya dardia Tu tak apna Punjab Aj bele ...
- 1 2 Manohar Singh Gill, Agriculture cooperatives: a case study of Punjab, Vikas, 1983, ISBN 978-0-7069-2371-1,
... Her cry of sorrow and despair, to Waris Shah the immortal bard of the Punjab, finds an eternal echo of shame in both Punjabs. She wrote: Aj aakhan Waris Shah nu kiton kabran vichon bol te aj kitabe Ishaq da koi agla ...
- ↑ Marian Arkin, Barbara Shollar, Longman anthology of world literature by women, 1875-1975, Longman, 1989, ISBN 978-0-582-28559-0,
... Aj Aakhan Waris Shah Nu Speak from the depths of the grave, to Waris Shah I say and add a new page to your saga of love today. Once wept a daughter of Punjab your pen unleashed a million cries, a million daughters weep today ...
- ↑ ""Popular Indian Poems"".
- ↑ Academy of the Punjab in North America (APNA).
- ↑ Complete verse with Translation
- ↑ Ajj Aakhan Waris Shah Nu- Poetry in Amrita's Own Voice Academy of the Punjab in North America (APNA).
- ↑ http://www.pakium.com/2009/06/09/mekaal-hassan-band-waris-shah-video