A cry in vain….

The night was surprisingly not as cold as I had expected and the overcast conditions probably contributed to the blanketing of terra firma.

I woke up with the song playing in my head. I must’ve heard this one many a moons ago.

A combination of very expressive verse, a melodious composition and some effective singing from an unpredictable singer who has mastered the technique of frustrating the audience when he goes down a bizarre path of playing to an imaginary gallery of nonexistent fans who make outlandish demands. If he feels like singing without gimmicky showboating, he can be very good, as in this very soulful ghazal. Unfortunately in the latter part of his career, he has fallen into a disturbing and frustrating habit of getting on the connoisseur’s nerves by senseless ( & at times tuneless ) vocal tricks that can best be called बेसुरी हरकतें , if one were to be charitable towards such flippancy on his part. I do believe his place in the Pantheon on Ghazal greats is under threat by such meaningless diversions. Never have I heard of the true greats, say a Begum Akhtar , a Mehdi Hassan or a Talat Mahmood ever resorting to such despicable juvenile stuff. But this is one ghazal where he sticks to the basics and the result is, I must admit, very pleasing to the ear.

Here it is this wonderful ghazal by the mercurial and thoroughly unpredictable Ghulam Ali. https://youtu.be/CattANui0AI

कभी आह लब पे मचल गई: ………. राशिद कामिल

कभी आह लब पे मचल गई कभी अश्क़ आँख से ढल गये (लब- होंठ)
वो तुम्हारे ग़म के चराग़ हैं कभी बुझ गये कभी जल गये (चराग़- दिये)

मैं ख़याल-ओ-ख़ाब की महफ़िलें न ब-कद्र-ए-शौक़ सजा सका (ब–कद्र: कद्र करने के लायक,)
तेरी इक निगाह के साथ ही मेरे सब इरादे बदल गये

कभी रंग में कभी रूप में कभी छाँव में कभी धूप में
कहीं आफ़ताब-ए-नज़र हैं वो कहीं माहताब में ढल गये

जो फ़ना हुये ग़म-ए-इश्क़ में उन्हें ज़िंदगी का न ग़म हुआ
जो न अपनी आग में जल सके वो पराई आग में जल गये

था उन्हें भी मेरी तरह जुनूँ तो फिर उनमें मुझमें ये फ़र्क़ क्यूँ
मैं गरिफ़्त-ए-ग़म से न बच सका वो हुदूद-ए-ग़म से निकल गये (गरिफ्त: कैद, हुदूद: सीमा)

He has sung this ghazal in most concerts in the same vein and one will find renditions of varying durations depending on his mood, really. But at times he has sung in an entirely different style. Check this out. I must say I liked the different version as well. https://youtu.be/F25S6q2YK2M