Today I was reading this poem by Hugo Williams and I was reminded of Ranjish hi Sahi, ghazal of Ahmed Faraz immortalized by the singing of Mehdi Hassan (ghazal).
Please Come Late
by Hugo Williams
Please come late,
so that I gave almost given you up
and have started glancing round the room,
thinking everyone is you.
Ranjish hi Sahi
Ranjish hi sahi dil hi dukhane ke liye aa
Aa phir se mujhe chod ke jaane ke liye aa
Let it be anguish, even to torture my heart, come
Come even if only to abandon me to torment again.
Pehle se marasim na sahi phir bhi kabhi to
Rasm-o-reh.e.duniya hi nibhane ke liye aa
Come, if not for our past commerce,
Then to faithfully fulfill the ancient barbaric rituals.
Kis kis ko bataayenge judaaii ka sabab hum
Tu mujh se kafa hai to zamane ke liye aa
How many people will I explain my grief to?
If you are mad at me, come just for the sake of this world
Kuch to mere pindaar-e-muhabbat ka bharam rakh
Tu bhi kabhi mujh ko manane ke liye aa
Respect, even if only a little, the depth of my love for you;
Come, someday, to offer me consolation as well.
Ek umr se hoon lazzat-e-giriya se bhi mehroom
Aye raahat-e-jaan mujh ko rulaane ke liye aa
Too long you have deprived me of the pathos of longing;
Come again, my love, if only to make me weep.
Ab tak dil-e-khush faham ko tujh se hain ummiiden
Ye aakhri shamme bhi bhujaane ke liye aa
Till now, my heart still suffers some slight expectation;
So come, snuff out even the last flickering torch of hope!
Maana ki muhabbat ka chupaana hai muhabbat
Chupke se kisi roz jataane ke liye aa
Agreed, silencing your love is the real form of love
Some day, come to silently express your love
Jaise tujhe aate hain na aane ke bahaane
Aise hi kisi roz na jaane ke liye aa
The way you find excuses to not come,
Some day, come with an excuse to stay forever
Alternative Translation (from rekhta)
ranjish hī sahī dil hī dukhāne ke liye aa
aa phir se mujhe chhoḌ ke jaane ke liye aa
even if you are annoyed come just to give me pain
come even if you have to then leave me yet again
kuchh to mire pindār-e-mohabbat kā bharam rakh
tū bhī to kabhī mujh ko manāne ke liye aa
the notion of my love's self-pride please do pacify
you should surely come one day and try to mollify
pahle se marāsim na sahī phir bhī kabhī to
rasm-o-rah-e-duniyā hī nibhāne ke liye aa
even tho no longer close we are as used to be
come even if it's purely for sake of formality
kis kis ko batā.eñge judā.ī kā sabab ham
tū mujh se ḳhafā hai to zamāne ke liye aa
the reason for our parting to whom should I relate
if cross with methen come and to the world narrate
ik umr se huuñ lazzat-e-girya se bhī mahrūm
ai rāhat-e-jāñ mujh ko rulāne ke liye aa
a lifetime have I missed the joy of tearful ecstasy
life's comfort thus to make me cry, you should come to me
ab tak dil-e-ḳhush-fahm ko tujh se haiñ ummīdeñ
ye āḳhirī sham.eñ bhī bujhāne ke liye aa
my heart is optimistic yet, its hopes are still alive
come to snuff it out, let not this final flame survive
Please Come Late
by Hugo Williams
Please come late,
so that I gave almost given you up
and have started glancing round the room,
thinking everyone is you.
Please don’t come
until I have started missing you,
thinking I will never see you again,
praying you are lost.
Come too late for me not to notice.
Make me suffer,
wondering what you are doing
on the other side of town,
still in your dressing down.
make me beg for mercy
when you pick up a magazine.
Are you looking in your mirror,
suddenly remembering me?
I’m on my second coffee by now,
eating the little bits of sugar in my cup.
Haven’t you even set out yet?
I decide I don’t want to see you after all.
I don’t really like you.
I’d rather be on my own.
I know it is all over between us.
but I go on sitting here,
reading a newspaper,
not understanding a word.
If you came in now, I wouldn’t recognize you.
Don’t come anywhere near me
until I have gone slightly mad for love of you.
Singing oneness!
1 Comments
Yikes Hugo William is so lame in comparison
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