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Waris Shah

from Saptak 2020 by Mekaal Hasan Band

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Kyle Schirmann
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about

Amrita Pritam (1919-2005) was an Indian writer and poet, considered the first prominent Punjabi woman, poet, novelist, essayist, and the leading 20th-century poet of the Punjabi language with over 100 books to her name. Her poignant poem, Aj Aakhaan Waris Shah Nu,
(Today I invoke Waris Shah) - is an elegy addressed to the 18th-century Punjabi poet, capturing her anguish over massacres during the Partition of India (1947).

Waris Shah (1722 - 1798) was a Punjabi Sufi poet, born in what is now Pakistani Punjab.
He is best-known for his epic work 'Heer Ranjha', based on the traditional and tragic folk tale of Heer and her lover Ranjha, considered one of the quintessential works of classical Punjabi literature.
He was also a consummate artiste, deeply learned in Sufi and local cultural lore and his verse is a treasure-trove of Punjabi phrases, idioms and imagery.

lyrics

I implore Waris Shah, to speak from
His grave and add a new page to
His book of love
Arise, O friend of the
Afflicted; arise and see the state of
Punjab, corpses strewn on fields and
The Chenab flowing with blood
I implore Waris Shah, to speak from
His grave and add a new page to
His book of love
The flute that was tuned to love is lost
And all have forgotten the ways of love
And humanity
I implore Waris Shah, to speak from
His grave and add a new page to
His book of love
Blood has rained on the soil; the
Graves ooze with blood, the princesses'
Of love now weep in graveyards
Today all have become Quaidos*
Thieves of love and beauty
Where can we find another one like
Waris Shah to write about this calamity?
Waris Shah! I implore you. Speak from your grave and add a new page to your book of love

*Quaido, a maternal uncle of Heer in "Heer Ranjha" the love epic written by Waris Shah, is the villain who betrays the lovers.

credits

from Saptak 2020, released June 27, 2020

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Mekaal Hasan Band Lahore, Pakistan

The only Indo-Pak band of it's kind featuring the best contemporary musicians from both India and Pakistan!

Mekaal Hasan Band (MHB) was formed in 2000 by guitarist/composer Mekaal Hasan.The music that MHB plays is a progressive mix between the traditional melodic sensibility of the East and the harmonic sophistication of the West. ... more

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