Boston Hindi-Urdu Speakers and Learners

Lunch & discuss Hindi/Urdu Poem: Mirza Ghalib's ghazal 'Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi'

Sat, Apr 4 · 11:15 AM EDT

Masala, 1127 Broadway, Somerville, MA, US

Join us for a buffet lunch at Masala as we read and discuss one of Mirza Ghalib's most loved ghazals, Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi (Thousands of Such Desires). Use the dropdown menu at the link to switch from the Romanized version to Hindi or Urdu. pdf versions with inline glossaries can be found here (romanized, Hindi, Urdu). If you have any issues accessing the poem, please DM Mariyam. You may also enjoy Jagjit Singh's and Abida Parveen's renditions of the ghazal.

About the location: There are several restaurants called "Masala," so please be sure to go to Masala Buffet, at 1127 Broadway Somerville, a few minutes' walk north of the Davis Square T. There is limited seating at Masala; please keep your RSVP updated, so someone else can attend if you can't make it.

Language for the Meetup: This Meetup will be conducted in Hindi, Urdu, Urdu-Hindi, Hinglish, and Urdlish. If you can have a basic literature discussion in any of those languages, without resorting to pure English (and with a little help as necessary), feel free to attend. Deep knowledge of Urdu / Hindi poetry isn't required -- we will read and interpret the poem together -- so the poetry-curious are especially welcome!

Meeting Format
11:15-11:25: Intros and greetings.
11:25-11:30: Get food at the buffet.
11:30-11:40: Facilitator will place the poet in historical and cultural context. Attendees are encouraged to share what they know of the poet, e.g., familiarity with ghazals through music, films, paintings, study of South Asian history, etc. We also welcome questions throughout the discussion!
11:40-11:50: Read through the poem.
11:50-12:25: We'll go over the literal meanings of the difficult words and cultural references in each sher (couplet), and then 'make our own personal meaning' of each sher. Meaning can be literary / intellectual, experiential / emotional, historical, cultural, etc. We hope each attendee will have a personal experience of the poem and its meaning.
12:25-12:45: Open conversation, either freeform chats about themes from the poem, or about other matters entirely.

About the poet: Mirza Asad Ullah Khan Ghalib (1797 - 1869), arguably* the greatest Urdu poet of all time, is as beloved by speakers of Hindu and Urdu today as he was in his own time. Many--including Mariyam--attribute their enduring love for Urdu poetry to being introduced to Ghalib's work at a formative age. Some devotees explain their love for Ghalib thus: 'Ghalib articulates what I think and feel, but cannot put into words.'

The young and frighteningly talented Ghalib wanted to be recognized as a great Farsi poet rather than an Urdu one, Farsi being the more high brow of the two languages. His early Urdu poetry used so many complex references and Farsi words that a contemporary composed these famous satirical couplets as a critique.

Ghalib only ever got modest recognition for his Farsi work, and ended up as the greatest Urdu poet ever instead, despite having written about 80 percent of his poetry by the age of 25. He wrote a total of about 20,000 shers, but ended up discarding the majority as not good enough--only 2,000 passed his exacting standards and make up his final, official anthology. The discarded poetry is stellar by any but Ghalib's standards, and continues to be published in its own anthologies today.

Ghalib's other major contribution to Urdu literature is his letters to his friends, many of whom were also literary giants of the time. The backdrop for these was Delhi, during and after the First War of Indian Independence (1857), a time of great violence and turmoil.

Ghalib and his poetry continue to live in the imaginations of Hindi and Urdu speakers around the world, and many of his turns of phrase have become Urdu idiom. His ghazals are read and sung by leading singers of each era, movies and TV series based on his life are made in India and Pakistan every few years (the two most famous being the 1954 movie starring Bharat Bhushan, and the 1988 TV series starring Naseeruddin Shah),

*Some argue that Meer Taqi Meer (1723-1810) was the greater poet. Ghalib himself acknowledged that Mir might be as good as himself in two famous couplets (couplet 1, couplet 2)--quite the compliment because even though Ghalib lived in the golden age of Urdu poetry, he flatly refused to acknowledge any others of his contemporaries (and friends!) as his equals. Mariyam, your opinionated host, is Team Ghalib.