THE HISTORY OF URDU IN HINDI MUSIC

Arabic and Persian words in Bollywood music

First, let me correct a misconception. Bollywood music has traditionally come from Urdu poetry (I’ll explain why below). Urdu (and to a lesser extent, Hindi) vocabulary is comprised of many Arabic and Persian words. If you compose a poem in Urdu, it will, by definition, contain Arabic and Persian words. So, if a decision is made to write a song based on Urdu poetry you cannot escape Arabic/Persian words.

The language of films in 1913 and 1931

It is an irony of history that the Hindi film industry was spawned in Bombay, whose native language is Marathi. The Indian film industry started in Bombay circa 1913 because the founding father of Indian films, Dadasaheb Phalke, lived there and started the Marathi film industry there. But, in 1931, when sound technology made the transition from silent films to talking films – talkies – the medium of films was chosen to be Hindi (actually Hindustani which was a highfalutin mix of Hindi and Urdu, sounding almost like Urdu – hereafter when I refer to Urdu, I mean Hindustani).
The reason was commercial.
a) From 1913-1931, films were silent, so the language didn’t matter.
b) Bombay was a cosmopolitan, industrial city with emigres from all over India, so Hindi was already a link language among the studio staff.
c) Urdu films would have the maximum market penetration in India.

Why is Hindi filmi music composed from Urdu poetry?

The first Bollywood talkie was in Urdu, a musical called Alam Ara (1931). Both the movie and its songs became such a big hit, that the police were called in to regulate the huge throngs of movie-goers in Bombay.

At this point, I need to explain some political history of North India in 1931, so we don’t misunderstand the role of Urdu and get bogged down in debate as to where it came from. In 1931, the region of British India that is now in Pakistan, comprised of the provinces of Sindh (native language Sindhi), Balochistan (native tongue Balochi), Punjab (which got partitioned but whose language is Punjabi), and North West Frontier Province (whose people were Pathans who spoke Pashto). It is important to note that in 1931, Urdu was not the native language of any of the inhabitants of what is today Pakistan, although it was spoken in a few parts like Karachi and Lahore, because of cultural mixing. However, Urdu was a thriving language in North India (Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh).

The success of Alam Ara started a “gold rush” into Bombay of script writers, lyricists, music composers, singers, actors, producers and directors from all over India who wanted to partake in the fame and fortune of film-making.

Since the music of Bollywood became more famous than the films themselves, careful attention was paid to the poetry of music. Only the finest Urdu poets were selected as lyricists for song writing. Urdu poetry became the medium of songs for several reasons.

• • Urdu is a flowery language which is a natural for poetry writing and for song adaptation.
  • The rich Arabic/Persian vocabulary of Urdu lends itself well to matching the meter and rhyme of poetry writing. This is perhaps why Urdu film music appears to have a preponderance of Arabic and Persian words.
  • It has a rich tradition and archive of poems, many written under the patronage of Mughal emperors more than two hundred years ago by poets such as Mirza Ghalib (1797-1869), Mir Taqi Mir (1723-1810), etc. These poems are sung as ghazals even today, or should I say especially today, because the art of Urdu poetry is a dying art in India.
    
    The Momin poem that Ghalib would give up all his lines for has another stunning couplet: “Haal-e-dil yaar ko likhun kyon kar/Haath dil say juda nahin hota (I ache to pick up a pen and write how much I miss her/I cannot, for my hand is occupied with nursing my heart).” What melancholy is contained in these words. That is the magic of Urdu.
    
    A Ghalib couplet.
    Hathon ke lakiron pe matt jaiye Ghalib,
    Naseeb unkay bhi hotay hain jinkay haath nahi hotay …
    
    Ghalib was a liberal and he lived in tolerant times.
    Waiz! Teri duaon mein asar ho to masjid ko hila kay dikha
    Nahin to do ghoont pee, aur masjid ko hilta dekh
    (Mullah! If your prayers have devotion, make this mosque move
    Else have a couple of shots, and watch the mosque shake).
  • The tradition of Urdu poetry was alive in Bollywood lyricists of the twentieth century with names like Sahir Ludhianvi, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Asad Bhopali, Hasrat Jaipuri, Shakil Badayuni, Shailendra, Anand Bakshi. It is true that most of these were Muslim poets.

• The peer pressure to sing in Urdu was so intense that Lata Mangeshkar, a Maharashtrian, learnt Urdu in order to thrive in the music industry. Of course, she was such a savant that she learnt not just the language but that unique Urdu lilt and intonation that is evident in the song below.

I’ll end with this beautiful song which is a pleasure to hear but difficult to understand.

Urdu Song Title: Dikhayi Diye Yoon Ke Bekhudh Kiya

Singer: LATA MANGESHKAR

Bazaar (1982)

Dikhayi Diye Yun Ke Bekhud Kiya

Whenever I see you, I am enraptured;

Hamein Aap Se Bhi Juda Kar Chale

You leave me with an out of body feeling.

Jabheen Sajda Karte Hi Karte Gayi

When I bow before you, I keep doing it;

Haq-e-bandagi Ham Adaa Kar Chale

I thus express my duty of devotion (to you).

Parastish Kiya Tak Kiye But Tujhe

I adore you so much, that I make you my idol;

(Parastish in Persian means Adoration, Worship)

Nazar Mein Sabhon Ki Khuda Kar Chale

I leave making you a God in everyone’s eyes.

Bahut Aarzoo Thi Gali Ki Teri

I so longed to be on the street where you live;

So Yaas-e-lahoo Mein Naha Kar Chale

Almost literal translation: That I left, bathed in the blood of my despair.

Alternate metaphorical translation: But I left feeling very pessimistic.

(This last sentence is so metaphorical that it is difficult to interpret.)

Yaas means Despair, Dejection, Disappointment, Fear, Hopelessness, Pessimism, Terror.

Yaas-e-lahoo literally means blood-of-despair/hopelessness/pessimism.