Baabul ki duaen leti ja

Baabul ki duaen leti ja, ja tujhko sukhi sansaar miley
Baabul ki duaen leti ja, ja tujhko sukhi sansaar miley
Maike ki kabhi na yaad aaye, sasuraal mein itna pyaar miley
Baabul ki duaen leti ja, ja tujhko sukhi sansaar miley

Naazon se tujhe paala maine, kaliyon ki tarah, phoolon ki tarah
Bachpan mein jhulaaya hain tujhko baahon ne meri jhulon ki tarah
Mere baag ki ai naazuk daali, tujhe har pal nayi bahaar miley
Maike ki kabhi na yaad aaye, sasuraal mein itna pyaar miley

Jis ghar se bandhe hain bhaag tere, uss ghar mein sadaa tera raaj rahey
Hothhon pe hansi ki dhup khiley, maathe pe khushi ka taaj rahey
Kabhi jiski jyot na ho phiki, tujhe aisa roop-singaar miley
Maike ki kabhi na yaad aaye, sasuraal mein itna pyaar miley

Beetey tere jeevan ki ghadiyaan aaram ki thandi chhaav mein
Kaanta bhi na chubhne paaye kabhi, meri laadali, tere paav mein
Uss dwaar se bhi dukh dur rahey, jis dwaar se tera dwaar miley
Maike ki kabhi na yaad aaye, sasuraal mein itna pyaar miley
Baabul ki duaen leti ja, ja tujhko sukhi sansaar miley
Baabul ki duaen leti ja, ja tujhko sukhi sansaar miley

Movie: Neel Kamal (1968)
Director: Ram Maheshwari
Singer: Mohammed Rafi
Lyricist: Sahir Ludhianvi
Music Composer: Ravi

I had another song picked out for this week, but then this one came up on my playlist.

Now, ordinarily, this is a song I pause for only because of Mohammed Rafi’s rendition. I used to think of this movie and its portrayal of marriage and interpersonal relationships as mawkish and a thing of the past. But I was listening to this song and the sentiment it expresses against the backdrop of news of dowry deaths and marital abuse flooding in from different parts of the country! In 2025! And what makes it worse is that even today, people believe that it is shameful for a woman to leave her husband, regardless of what treatment is meted out to her in her marital home.

This song is still played at weddings, but apparently the sentiment is often hollow, because social stigma seems to be a greater concern than the well-being of a supposedly cherished daughter.~ R