Ghar by Piyush Mishra
Ghar, or home, is often a feeling more than it is a place. We are searching for a home all our lives. Sometimes, we get lucky and our homes are where we were born and raised. Other times, we find our homes in lands far and foreign. Sometimes, our homes are set up with our family. Other times, we set up new homes with people we meet later in life. Either way, the longing for home is essential to the human experience.
In Ghar, Piyush Mishra imagines a home — one made with a loved one. The protagonist imagines how her home with her love will look like, and how living there will feel. As with imaginations steeped in love, this one is tender yet bold. The song is quite simple musically, but the lyrics paint quite a picture of this home. It sets the scene with the descriptions of the house itself (velveteen walls, door frames with sandalwood and fragrant breezes), and uses it to narrate the bold vision of love by the protagonist. We particularly like the lines at the end where she describes their journey together as paving the way for the roads themselves. The optimism and the joy is infectious, and takes you with itself.
Piyush Mishra is a lyricist with quite a few hits under his belt, and he keeps things simple and beautiful in this one. He performed this for Coke Studio India (video below), and seems to be lost in the words himself while performing. As usual, the translation follows the video. Scroll all the way to the end for bonus thought-provoking content on homes and how we define one. Happy listening !
Lyrics and translation:
Zu zu zu zu zu, Zu zu zu zu zu…
Ujla hi ujla shahar hoga, jis mein hum tum banayenge ghar,
The city will be bright, where we will build our house.
Dono rahenge kabutar se, jis mein hoga na bazonn ka darr.
We will stay there like doves, where there will be no fear of hawks.
Zu zu zu zu zu, Zu zu zu zu zu.
Makhmal si nazuk diwarein bhi hongi, konon mein baithi baharein bhi hongi,
The walls will be soft like velvet, wind will flow in the corners,
Khidki ki chaukhat bhi resham ki hogi, sandal se lipti haan sehan bhi hongi,
Window frames will be of silk, and the patios will be engulfed by sandalwood,
Chandaan ki khushboo bhi tapkegi chhat se, fulon ka darwaza kholenge jhatt se,
Sandalwood’s fragrance will drip from the roof, we will suddenly open the door made out of flowers,
Dolenge mai ki hawa ke jhonke, aankhon ko chhu lenge gardan bhigo ke,
And gusts of wind will blow, touching our eyes and wetting our necks.
Aangan mein bikhre pade honge patte, sukhe se naazuk se pile chhitakke,
The courtyard will have leaves lying around, dry and soft and yellow and bouncing off the walls,
Paon ko nanga jo karke chalenge, char-par ki aawaaz se vo bajenge,
We will walk bare feet, and they will make musical crunching noises,
Koel kahegi ki main hun saheli, myna kahegi nahi tu akeli,
The cuckoo will say that she is a friend, the myna will tell me that I am not alone,
Battakh bhi choncho mein hasti si hogi, bagule kahenge suno ab utho bhi,
The ducks will also probably be smiling within their beaks, and the herons will come wake us up.
Hum phir bhi honge pade aankh munde, kaliyon ki ladiyan dilon mein haan gundhe,
We will still lie there with our eyes closed, kneading strings of flower buds in our heart,
Bhoolenge uss paar ke uss jahaan ko, jaati hai koi dagar,
We will forget that to the world on the other side, goes a road.
Chaandi ke taaron se raatein bunenge toh chamkili hogi sehar…
If we knit together a night full of silver stars, the dawn will shine.
Ujla hi ujla shahar hoga, jis mein hum tum banayenge ghar,
The city will be bright, where we will build our house.
Aaoge thak kar jo haan saathi mere, kaandhe mein lungi tika saathi mere,
When you get home tired, I will hold you on my shoulders,
Bologe tum jo bhi haan sathi mere, moti sa lungi utha saathi mere,
Whatever you say, o my lover, I will pick it up like pearls,
Palkon ki koron pe aaye jo aasun, main kyon darungi bata saathi mere,
Even if my eyes tear up, Why will I be scared, o lover?
Ungli tumhari toh pehle se hogi, gaalon pe mere toh haan saathi mere,
Your finger will already be there on my cheeks, o lover!
Tum hanss padoge toh main hanss padungi,
When you laugh, then I will also laugh.
Tum ro padoge toh main ro padungi,
When you cry, I will cry too.
Lekin meri baat ik yaad rakhna, mujhko hamesha hi haan saath rakhna,
Just remember one thing, always keep me by your side.
Judti jahan yeh zameen aasman se, hadd haan humari shuru ho wahan se,
Where the earth meets the sky, our limits will begin there.
Taaron ko chhu lein zara saa sambhal ke, uss chaand pe jhatt se jaye phisal ke,
We will touch the stars cautiously, and then slip and fall on the moon
Beh jaaye dono hawa se nikalke, suraj bhi dekhe humein aur jal ke,
We will flow away from the air and the sun will look at us and burn with jealousy,
Hoga nahi hum pe maaloom saathi, tino jaahaan ka assar,
But we won’t know anything about the effect of the three worlds on us
Raahon ko rahe bhulayenge saathi hum, aisse haan hoga safar…
We will show the way to the roads, such will be our journey.
Ujla hi ujla shahar hoga, jis mein hum tum banayenge ghar,
The city will be bright, where we will build our house.
If you made it all the way here, here is an interview of Piyush Mishra in Hindi:
Also, here are two talks we like on the idea of home:
Happy thinky-thoughts!
