Gulzar, the Progressive Poet in Popular Culture

Born in Deena, Pakistan, Gulzar came to India after Partition and had witnessed the killings and the massacre from close quarters. This sensitivity is reflected through his writings and he has poems and story not only on Partition but also on the other riots that he witnessed later in life. A poet of brilliant creativity, Gulzar has been a filmmaker too. But the poet in him is reflected in all his works.

However, the signature style of Gulzar is his use of unusual imagery and the manner in which he juxtaposes it. Although his ‘entry-pass’ to Hindustani cinema is Bandini’s (1962), mora gora ang lae lei/mohe shyaam rang dae de, (Take away my fair colour/Give me the dark skin of Krishna) the song that brought him to limelight was Khamoshi’s (1969) humne dekhi hai in aankhon ki mahakti khushboo (I have seen the fragrance of your eyes), for use of the so-called ‘unconventional imagery’. It is this imagery that is seen running through his poetry, his favourite image being that of the moon, about which he himself claims that he has the ‘copyright’ on:

Chaand jitney bhi shab se chori hue

Sab ke ilzaam mere sar aaye

(For all the moons that got stolen from the night

Blame for all came upon me)

If the moon is also perceived as a sad figure, a ragged cloth as in, Daaman-e-shab pe latakta hai chaand ka paiband (The moon hangs as a rough patch on the edge of night), in another place, the bright and radiant moon becomes, chaand ki chamkeeli athanni (a shiny fifty-paisa coin). And yet in the song in his first directed film, Mere Apne (1971), where he says Roz akelee aaye/Roz akelee jaye/Chaand katora liya, bhikarin raat (Comes every night, alone/Goes back every night, alone/Moon like a begging bowl, on each beggarly night), the moon takes to a very different level altogether.

Gulzar, is a progressive poet in popular culture. With his themes and the issues that he picks upon, he is progressive in nature and through the manner in which he treats those very issues, he appeals to the masses. If his poetry has a foothold in classical poetry, folk and oral traditions, with language and his characteristic style, he is a stalwart in the popular world, bridging the gap with immeasurable ease. It is through the efforts of poets like Gulzar that literature comes close to people.

On his birthday, one can only show the love, respect and admiration through reliving life through his words,

Ek sabab marne ka, ek talab jeene ki

Chaand pukhraj ka, raat pashmine ki

(A reason to die, a craving to live

A topaz moon, a warm, cosy night)

(The writer is the author of the book, I Swallowed the Moon: The Poetry of Gulzar, published by HarperCollins. She has also translated Gulzar’s short story, ‘Khauf’ for an anthology and the screenplays (written by Gulzar, which were aired at Doordarshan earlier) of Premchand’s ‘Godaan’ and ‘Niramla and Other Stories’, published by Roli Books)