70 Urdu ash'ar / shaayari (shers, couplets) on the theme:
Voice, Expression, & Language
shahr waale mera
mauzoo-e-sukhan jaante hain
in how many sheaths of words
can i hide you
people of the city know
you are the subject of my speech
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phir baat kehte
luknat aane lagi zabaan mein
at first, there was a
a little fondness between us
and then, i started to stutter
when i spoke to her
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bahar-surat khula
ek kam-sukhan aahista aahista
the beauty of eloquence turned into
beauty of insight, slowly, slowly
the reticent one opened up
in every way, slowly, slowly
beauty
speech, eloquence
slow, deliberate
in all forms
reserved, reticent
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24
mashuqa ke liye seekhi urdu
urdu mashuqa ho gayi hai
what was our love
and what has it now become?
i learned urdu for my beloved
urdu has now become my beloved
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kuchh woh bhi ikhtisaar se
aage na jaa saka
i too was not generous
in my conversing
he too couldn't
get past his reticence
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har baat mein lazzat hai
agar dil mein mazaa ho
loyalty and tyranny,
both are equals in love
when there is joy in the heart
every word is delightful
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2.6K
kya khabar ahl-e-mohabbat ka
taraana ban jaaye
that poem written today
on separation from you
who knows...could become a song
for those in love tomorrow
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4.5K
sukhan wo hai jise
har shakhs apna hi bayaan samjhe
her/his understanding relates to
the language of every heart
and the speech is such that
we all feel it is our own voice
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dhyaan mera
teri nazar par tha
what you said
i didn’t hear
my attention was
on your eyes
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qaafiya seti milaaya
qaafiya to kya hua
a verse is precious
for the depth of its thought
what's the use of just
matching rhyme with rhyme
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wo lab-e-ney
nawaaz kya jaane
that passes through
the heart of the flute
what do the lips
the caress it know?
Anonymous
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so hum bhi mojaaze apne
hunar ke dekhte hain
i hear that she is also
fond of couplets and poetry
so let me try impressing her
with the magic of my poetic skills
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4.5K
kya kaha main ne
aap kya samjhe
describing my condition
sounds a complaint to you
i say one thing,
you construe something else
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woh shakhs lahja
bahut dil-nasheen rakhta tha
the promises were false
yet, i believed in them
that person possessed
a voice so enchanting
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woh naam loonga toh khushbu
zubaan se aayegi
intoxication comes with
pleasant thoughts narrated well
if i utter her name
fragrance flows off the lips
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aankhen zubaan naheen hain
magar bezubaan naheen
the secret of love
is revealed through them
eyes are not tongues
but not voiceless either
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bahaar-e-aalam-e-faani
rahe, rahe na rahe
the lightning of thought
shall remain forever
whether the beauty of this
fleeting world stays or fades away
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32
aur woh samjhe naheen
ye khaamoshi kya cheez hai
i could never speak
my heart to her
and she never understood
what my silence meant
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main jaantaa huun
jo vo likhenge jawaab mein
while the messenger returns
i will keep another letter ready
for i know what
she would be writing in reply
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deewaana be-paDhe-likhe
mashhoor ho gaya
bookworms died
buried in paper
while the unschooled madman
became famous
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main bhool gayaa aksar
yaad aayi huyi ghazalein
whenever my muse of grace
asked me to say something
i forget, often and again,
the poetry i memorized
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izhaar-e-muddaa ki
ijaazat agar mili
in the throng of emotions
i lost my words
when i was allowed
to express my desire
Anonymous
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kaun si shai hai jo teri
khush-bayaani mein nahin
fragrance of flowers,
rustle of breeze, tinkling of glass
what is not there
in the beauty of your talk
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har dil mein mohabbat ki
ek aag laga denge
i will make the world
listen to tales of woe
in every heart i will
light a fire of love
1961: Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist
1962: Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist
1963: Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist
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aur main saada
use lutf-e-zabaani samjha
she scolded me,
her words sharp with anger
i, in my innocence,
found it delightfully eloquent
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mila to rah gaye
lafzon ke intekhaab mein hum
never found one with whom
i could share matters of the heart
when i met someone
i was found searching for words
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insaan ke sach jhoot
ki pehchaan hain aankhen
no matter what the lips say
the reality is not revealed
the eyes are the real markers
of truth and lies
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jaan kaalbad-e-soorat-e-deewar
mein aawe
in the gathering where you come
speaking with grace
life takes form
and appears all around
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jo alfaaz mein aayi
woh sirf kahaani ban gayi
words that didn't find voice
settled in the heart as hurt
those that did
turned into just tales
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de aur dil un ko
jo na de mujh ko zabaan aur
oh god, she doesn’t understand me
nor will she ever
either give her another heart
or give me more eloquence
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wan ek khaamoshi teri
sab ke jawaab mein
millions of words
in turmoil on my lip
and your reply for them all
is just silence
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yahi to hai mere
jazbaat ka izhaar
poetry is the balm
for the wounds of my heart
and this is the
voice of my emotions
1959: Sahitya Akademi
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aare daleel-e-raah-e-haqeeqat
majaaz hai
without word, meaning is not
within mind’s reach
certainly, abstraction is the
beacon in the path of truth
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kitne aadaab ke parde
mein hai inkaar ki baat
these manners, these gestures
these beautiful words and promises
how a refusal is hidden
behind these layers of etiquette
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aur phir vo bhi
zabaani meri
when did she listen
to my sorry state
that too when i
narrated it myself
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mera lahja bhi tere saath
badal sakta hai
change the manner
of your speech, or else
i will be compelled to
change my tone as well
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vagarna sher mera kya hai
shaayari kya hai
my ecstastic wanderings
brought joy to the world
if not, what is my poem,
of what worth is my poetry
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karu kaise mohabbat?
mujhe urdu nahi aati
no elegance in my words
as i don’t know urdu
how do i love?
if i don’t know urdu
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aisi boli wohi bole
jise urdu aaye
when she speaks, from every word
a delightful fragrance
she speaks like those
who know urdu
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haan bhari bazm mein
woh bol na paayi hogi
i do not concede silence is
the temperament of desire
yes, maybe she couldn’t
speak out in a crowded gathering
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itne khoobsoorat lab
jhooT kaise bolenge
thinking this i
believed all that you said
how can such beautiful
tell any lies?
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jis se har dil ki choT
aati hai ubhar
what is a sher couplet
with its aah’s and wah’s
but every heart’s hurt
coming out in the open
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mazaa har ek leta hai
mohabbat karta hai kaun
what is urdu
but a courtesan in a brothel
everyone has fun with her
but who loves her really?
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3.6K
agar nahi hain mere ashar
mein maane na sahi
no craving for appreciation
nor a concern for reward
if my words makes no sense
it is what it is
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mulla, gul-e-urdu ki mehak
aur hi kuchh hai
every flower of indian literature
has a wonderful scent
but the fragrance of urdu, mulla,
is something else
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na us dayaar mein samjha koyi
zabaan mere
my heart held
my untold tale
and, not a soul there
understood my language
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us ke bina to aaj
adhuure apne fasaane lagte hain
if there is someone to listen
i’d share the matters of my heart
without them, today,
even my stories seem incomplete
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sheron ke intekhaab
ne ruswa kiya mujhe
why should my heart’s matters
be open for all to see
my selection of poetry
has disgraced me enough
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harfon ki zubaan aur hai
aankhon ki zubaan aur
the eloquence of silence
outweighs any expression
the language of words is one
the language of eyes is something else
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jii chaahta hai
main teri aawaaz chuum lu
your manner of inflection is like the
morning fragrance calling out to prayer
oh, my heart so desires
to kiss your voice
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varna duniya mein
koi baat nai baat nahin
the style of narration
changes everything, ‘saif’
if not, in this world
there is nothing new to say
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main jo urdu mein
wasiyat likhoon, beta padh le
of god, rashid has
just this small prayer
when i write my will in urdu
my son can read it
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aye jahaan sun le abhi
mera bayaan baaqi hai
don't place faith
in his testimony
for my statement
is yet to be heard
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tum bhi aawaaz mila do
meri aawaaz ke saath
i have called out to you
with utmost grace
won't you now blend
your voice with mine
Anonymous
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45
ye ghazal, ye rekhta
ye sher-khvaani phir kahaan?
when i, nazeer, go quietly
into the city of death
where will be this poetry,
this reciting of verses?
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ilm se shayari
nahi hoti
find a place for pain
in your heart, o poet
no poetry comes
from just knowledge
Anonymous
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jigar ka khoon bhi chaahiye
kuch asar ke liye
just a string of words is
not enough to make a poem
you also need a drop
of your heart's blood for it to last
Anonymous
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chup rahoge to
log sun lenge
please do keep
saying something
if you remain silent
people will hear
silent, quiet
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tum jhuuT kah rahe thay
mujhe eitbaar tha
is it magic or spell
that's in what you say
you kept telling lies
and i kept believing
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kitna khaamosh hoon
main andar se
i keep talking
constantly
but how silent
i am within
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jab ruu-ba-ruu ho
tere guftaar bhool jaave
what, abroo, you think of
a thousand things to say
but when face-to-face,
you can't remember a thing
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tumhare husn-e-takallum se
kya naheen hota
lamps light up,
fragrance in morning breeze
what can’t happen
with your beautiful eloquence
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rakh de koyi
paimaana-e-sahbaa mere aage
behold the flourish
of my bloom-laden eloquence
when someone
places a goblet of wine before me
mannerism, style
boasting, flowery speech
speech, speaking
cup, measure
wine
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nutq ne haivaan se
musht-e-khaak ko insaan kiya
can one truly be human
who does not value speech?
it is eloquence that
turned a lump of dust into a human
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11
jo dil pe guzarti hai raqam
karte rahenge
we will keep nurturing
the pen and the paper
we will continue to capture
that which flows through our heart
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woh chaahta hai abhi dekhna
jhuka ke mujhe
with a weird style of speech
he tests me
and he wishes to
see me in submission
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32
guftaar ka ghaazi ban to gaya
kirdaar ka ghaazi ban na saka
iqbal is an eloquent moralist
captivating minds with his talk
he became a warrior of speech
but failed to become one of action
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main ne ye jaana ke
goya ye bhi mere dil mein hai
see the charm of his speech
as what he said, i figured
resonates within me
as if it is in my heart too
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kahin se tum bayaan karte
kahin se hum bayaan karte
it is such a delight
reliving stories of the past
you narrate from one end
and i from the other
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ab jigar thaam ke baiTho
meri baari aayi
you laughed listening to
nightingale’s passionate lament
now hold your heart and listen
for my turn has come
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