Husn wale tera jawaab nahin

As you might have guessed from two previous pages, praising the beauty of a woman is a full time job for the poets of Bollywood. Almost every Bollywood movie had the mandatory courtship scene with the heroine traipses shyly through the gardens at Powai Lake in Bombay, with the hero breaking into a dance and song while running after her. Of course, it may just start at Powai, but each line in the song took us sightseeing into the other famous gardens of India; the two love-struck characters had no trouble keeping pace with the hectic travel, and managed to sing the song without running out of breath from the long distance runs. Another favorite spot for such romps was the Brindavan Gardens at the palace of the Maharaja of Mysore, from where they often make it to Dal Lake  in Kashmir effortlessly while the orchestra is playing.

Every hero had his own trademark style of behaving in such scenes. Shammi Kapoor's memorable antics endeared him to us all with the jumping and energetic dance moves unmatched by anyone else on the Bollywood screen. At the other end is Joy Mukherjee running in the style of a marathon runner in training, behind the totally fetching Saira Banu who does her trotting gracefully ahead in Door ki Awaaz, singing Muqaddar azmana chahta hun (my apologies for bringing this scene in front of your mind). If it were not for Shakeel Badayuni's lyrics and some fine songs by Rafi Saheb, for example Husn se chand bhi sharmaya hai (there is that moon again), that would be a movie to forget. Sorry, Joy. 

Husnwale Tera Jawaab Nahin
Asha Parekh, Rajendra Kumar

Rajendra Kumar had his own style of getting up and close to sing his songs in the gardens. He looks into the eyes of Asha Parekh while singing Jabse tumhe dekha hai in Gharana (1961). In the same movie, Shakeel Badayuni showed his mastery at describing the beauty of a woman with the words, Husnwale tera jawaab nahin, Koi tujhsa nahin hazaron me. If we had a genre for such courtship songs which extol the beauty of a woman, this song would be up there with the best of them. 'O beauty, there is no match for you; among thousands, there is none like you'. 

This may not one-up Yun to hum ne lakh haseen dekhe hai, Tumsa nahin dekha (1957), where thousands were not enough of a yardstick for Shammi Kapoor, he had to have lakhs. But that does not take away from the Gharana serenade. After all, Tumsa nahin dekha did not have Asha Parekh. You choose. (Sorry, Ameeta.)

As an aside, even though Majrooh Sultanpuri is listed as the lyricist for the movie Tumsa nahin dekha, the title song was actually written by Sahir Ludhianvi, who opted to step out of the position, and Sultanpuri was chosen to continue with the rest of the songs in the movie.

Husnwale tera jawaab captured its place in the top spot with Mohammed Rafi's mellifluous voice. If you did not understand a word of Hindi, you would still know exactly what he was singing about. The expression and the yearning that comes through his voice is a universal language of love.

Both Shakeel Saheb and Manrooh Sultanpuri were adept at creating new similes and metaphors for the task at hand. The possibilities are endless, of course, but the theme always seems to revolve around the eyes, the black tresses, the rosy cheeks, the fragrance of the garden and the shapely form, all generally understood as the yardsticks of a woman's beauty in Indian culture. In every such song, the joy is not in just in the physical attributes, but the love that flows from the words and the voice. This joy plucks at your heartstrings, and you feel an indescribable euphoria. You ache, not for the physical form of the woman that is being described, but for the elation of having such love in your heart for someone. Such is the beauty of their poetry.

As you read the lyrics below, sit back and enjoy the scene - click here.

Lyrics in Hindi:

हुस्नवाले, तेरा जवाब नहीं

कोई तुझ सा नहीं हज़ारों में....

हुस्नवाले, तेरा जवाब नहीं

तू है ऐसी कली जो गुलशन में,

साथ अपने बहार लाई हो,

तू है ऐसी किरन जो रात ढले,

चाँदनी में नहा के आई हो,

ये तेरे नूर, ये तेरे जलवे 

जिस तरह चाँद हो, सितारों में 

हुस्नवाले, तेरा जवाब नहीं

तेरी आँखों में ऐसी मस्ती है

जैसे छलके हुए हो पैमाने

तेरे होटों में वो ख़मोशी है,

जैसे बिखरे हुए हो अफ़साने

तेरी ज़ुल्फ़ों में ऐसी रँगत है,

जैसे काली घटा बहारों में

हुस्नवाले, तेरा जवाब नहीं

तेरी सूरत जो देख ले शायर

अपने शेरों में ताज़गी भर लें

एक मुसव्विर जो तुझ को पा जाये

अपने ख़्वाबों में ज़िंदगी भर लें

नग़्मगर ढूंढ ले अगर तुझ को

दर्द भर लें वो दिल के तारों में

हुस्नवाले, तेरा जवाब नहीं

In English Script:

Husn wale, tera jawaab nahin,

Koi tujh saa nahin hazaron me

Husn wale, tera jawaab nahin

Tu hai aisi kali jo gulshan me

Saath apne, bahar laayi ho

Tu hai aisi kiran, jo raat dhale,

chandni me naha ke aayi ho

ye tera noor ye tere jalve

jis tarah chand ho sitaron me

Husn wale, tera jawaab nahin

teri aankhon me aisi masti hai

jaise chhalke hue ho paimane

tere hoton me wo khamoshi hai

jaise bikhare hue ho afsaane

teri zulfon ki aisi rangat hai

jaise kali ghata baharon me

Husn wale, tera jawaab nahin

teri surat jo dekh le shaayar

apne sheron me taazgi bhar le

ek musavvir to tujh ko pa jaye

apne khwabon me zindagi bhar le

nagmagar dhoondh  le agar tujh ko

dard bhar le, vo, dil ke taaron me

Husn wale, tera jawaab nahin

Translation:

O beauty! there is no match for you

Among thousands, there is none like you.

You are like a flower come to the garden

bringing springtime with you

You are like a ray of light which, by night,

has bathed itself in moonlight

Your radiance and splendor are like

the brilliance of the moon among the stars.

There is an intoxicating quality in your eyes

as if a goblet has spilled its wine

There is a silence on your lips,

as if the tales have been strewn in the wind

The color of your dark tresses is like

the black clouds of spring.

(The poet shows his dexterity with imagery in this verse. When he speaks of the silence on the lips, he in fact implies their eloquence. The tales that have strewn into the wind are really the messages that the lips are sending. The juxtaposition of two opposites to equate them in just one line is marvelous in its subtlety.

In English, a black cloud has a rather negative meaning, as the English no doubt look for a break from the dreary skies often, and to them spring is clear blue skies. But in India, the spring of poetry comes, not in March, but as a relief after a torrid heat that lasts till the monsoon comes. The old leaves fall with the first rainfall, and everything comes to life, a new beginning, the flowers blossom and bring color and hope. This is the spring in India, and bahar in poetry refers to this season. In Hindi poetry, the same image is brought to you with the word saavan, the name for the month in which the rains appear. The most desirable color for a woman's hair is black, the blacker the better. Hence, a woman's tresses are often likened to the darkest of clouds, the ones that burst into rain in spring.)

If  a poet were to lay eyes on your face

he would fill his poems with sparkle

If a sculptor could could replicate your image 

he would fill his creation with life

If a songster were to find you, 

he could bring the sweet melody of a lover's ache

to resonate at our heartstrings

Oh wow! You can see, in the eyes of Asha Parekh, the devastating effect of these words. I long, as I have no doubt you do, for the return of poets and songs like this. But alas, memories are all we may have left to us. Time marches on, but I believe these creations will live on forever,

Enjoy. Please remember to share with others, and give me your comments.

Venkat