Daily Times

Nasir Kazmi had once said, “Yu Kis Tarah Katega Kari Dhoop Ka Safar, Sar Par Kheyal-e-Yaar Ki Chaadar Hi Le Chalein”. The editor of the book Generations of Ghazals, Debjani Chatterjee, a Bengali born scholar living in the United Kingdom (UK) translated this couplet as, “In such scorching heat, how may the journey end? Let me shade my head with the thought of my friend.”

The author has come out with this excellent book comprising the translations of ghazals of Nasir Kazmi and his elder son Basir Sultan Kazmi living in Manchester, UK paying tribute to the two generations, hence justifying the title of the book. Chatterjee states in the prologue to this book that Nasir’s legacy continues not only through Basir Sultan Kazmi, but by his younger son Hassan as well. Even Wajiha, the able daughter of Basir continues his legacy to the third generation. She quotes Basir as saying, “Shairi Mein Aaj Bhi Milta Hai Nasir Ka Nishan, Dhoondte Hain Hum Usay Bazm-e-Sukhan Koi Bhi Ho.” She translated it as “Even today Nasir’s mark is on poetry, we look for him wherever poetry is shared.”

Chatterjee therefore feels that both father and son belong to a much wider international family of poets leaving their mark on the poetry of future generations. Here she goes back to Nasir saying, “Daim Abad Rahegi Duniya, Hum Na Hongey Koi Hamsa Hoga.” This means, “The world will remain forever, I won’t be, but there will be someone like me.”

Basically directed towards the Western audience, Chatterjee gives the chronology of ghazal writers since Amir Khusrau to Jiger Muradabadi including all the prominent ones falling in between. She feels that the translations of the asateza and the current poets if available are of poor quality. She quotes excellent translations made by Ahmad Ali, Amer Hussain, Rukhsana Ahmad, Francis W Pritchett and Mahmud Jamal. Perhaps, she is unaware of the superb translations being made in Pakistan in the recent past by individuals and through the Pakistan National Council of the Arts, Academy of Letters and other literary organisations. We have to aggressively distribute these works to the Western audience. Those she mentions have omitted the translations of ghazals as she quotes Mahmood Jamal as saying, “I have completely omitted the ghazal which almost every Urdu writer, both modern and traditional, has written with great effect and beauty.”

Chatterjee now gives the history of the advent of Urdu language until the time that it became the official language of Pakistan. National poet Muhammad Iqbal used this language to great effect to wake the Muslims up of the East against the tyrannies of their rulers successfully ending in the creation of our homeland. Earlier, Mughal rulers in Delhi and later in Lucknow and Allahabad and Hyderabad promoted this language. Bahadur Shah Zafar was an excellent Urdu poet. I feel that by adopting Hindi language and totally neglecting Urdu, India did great wrong to this language. They use it in everyday life but it is like talking in Urdu and writing it in English.

Chatterjee also talks about the other genres of Urdu poetry like Masnavi, Qasida and Nazm. After stating that Urdu ghazal is a traditional type of short lyric poem that can be set to music contributing towards its popularity, Chatterjee says that Basir’s narration of his father’s ghazals enticed her to translate their poetry. Born in Delhi, Chatterjee studied at universities in Cairo, Canterbury, Lancaster and Sheffield. She is a full time writer now. She has translated 30 books for children followed by award-winning anthologies. She has served as chair of the Arts Council of England’s Translations Advisory Group and is currently chair of the National Association of Writers in Education.

Now let’s see what sort of translations she has done. Nasir’s “Mein Ne Jab Likhna Seekha Tha, Pehle Tera Naam Likha Tha” has been translated as “When I first learnt how to write, I wrote your name first.” Then she gives the treatment to Nasir’s couplet “Phir Sawan Rut Ki Pawan Chali Tum Yaad Aey, Phir Paton Ki Pazeb Baji Tum Yaad Ae” as “Once more the monsoon wind blows and I remember you, Once more the leafy anklets chime and I remember you.” The best part of a translation is that it gives you the basic spirit of the poetry being written and the worst part of it is that one does not find appropriate words for a typical sense another word gives in the language in which it has been written. For example ‘Sawan Rut’ translated as Monsoon Wind and ‘Paton Ki Pazeb’ as Leafy Anklets leaves much to be desired. Perhaps, it’s due to Chatterjee not knowing the Urdu language text herself and got it translated when she heard the poetry and had written it in the script she understood. It’s like singing a song in a language one doesn’t know. Even if one knows its essence through translation, the typical original pronunciation despite a lot of practice leaves a gaffe here and there.

Chatterjee states that both Kazmis use many conventional images as befits the ghazal: the teasing – even cruel – beloved, the wounded lover, the moon and the firefly and wine cup. This reviewer finds Basir’s poetry different from his father’s in the sense that Basir talks of his own experiences of everyday life that has been different from his father, perhaps the experiences he underwent in a different era and the society his father had interacted with. Chatterjee translated Basir’s ghazal “Bala’a Sey Gar Shab-e-Hijran Mein Jal Bujhein Aankhein, Raha Na Dil Hi Salamat Tou Kyun Rahein Aankhein” as “So what if the eyes are drowsed on the parting night, When the heart itself died, then why not eyes?”

Another famous Matala’a of Basir “Khat May Kya Kya Likhu, Yaad Ati Hai Har Baat Pe Baat, Yehi Behter Ke Utha Rakhu Mulaaqat Pe Baat” as “So much comes to mind for writing in my letter, that it’s better saved for when we finally meet.”

In Chatterjee’s own words, Generations of Ghazals contain a selection of the two generations of celebrated poets, Nasir perhaps one of the finest ghazal poet of the last century who gave a new life to ghazal when it was dying down and Basir, who has brought ghazals to the Western audience. His verse is rich with the resonance of an Urdu tradition stretching back to the early fourteenth century. It is fine attempt indeed!

The writer is the recipient of the prestigious Pride of Performance award. He can be reached at doc_amjad@hotmail.com

Published in Daily Times, February 6^th 2019.