So, 2025 is about to slip away from us. December-end inevitably brings its share of introspection — the personal bucket list, the hits and misses. If the deep dive gets too intense, here’s comfort from Sahir Ludhianvi.
Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya from the 1961 film Hum Dono, is not just a song, it’s a philosophy. Produced by Dev Anand and Navketan films and directed by Amarjeet (though Dev Anand insisted his brother Vijay Anand ghost-directed it), the film on two identical soldiers fighting personal battles after the war had truly stellar music by Jaidev to match Sahir’s lyrics.
Each song rivals the other in sheer brilliance — from the cajoling love duet, Abhi na jao chhod kar, to the evolved anti-war prayer, Allah tero naam, ishwar tero naam — but there’s something zen-like about Main zindagi ka saath sung by the inimitable Rafi.
Sahir writes: Barbadiyon ka sog manana fizool tha, barbadiyon ka jashn manata chala gaya. The poet knows how futile it is to lament over devastations, he celebrates them instead. Note that he writes barbadiyon, not takleefon (troubles) or dukhon (sorrows).
The last couplet completes the poem’s contemplative arc. Ghum aur khushi mein farq na mehsoos ho jahan, main dil ko us maqam pe leta chala gaya. Leading one’s heart to a plane beyond grief and joy is hard, but the poet uses the present continuous — leta chala gaya — to say that this is work-in-progress. He’s trying, but he’s human.
Jaidev and Rafi embellish these lyrics with their genius. Jaidev polishes their sparkle with his delicate music. Notice the use of the jal tarang in the song, particularly the interludes. Rafi’s voice and diction give the song the emotional heft it needs.
That’s the magic of Sahir. In the introduction to his anthology of film songs, Gaata Jaaye Banjara, Sahir wrote that he had always strived to use songwriting “to provide new political and social perspectives to people”. Forty-five years after Sahir’s death, his words live on as comfort or conscience or a companion. Especially when the year draws to a close.