Babu Rajab Ali: the Man in the Dock

Babu Rajab Ali was born in 1894 in a village Sahoké, near Moga. He was a great
writer of Kavishari, the poems sung in tarannam in Punjab on stages in melas,
mazãrs, and gurdwaras. This man, as I know him from his poetry, was a Punjab from
toe to head pooray da poora Punjabi - no trace of any religious bias etc. Here is what
he says about Punjabi:

khanD toN miThi boli, piyaare wattan Punjab di.
mukh choN lapTaN maaran, jaise attar ghulaab di.
hor sataun zubaanaN, akhoN jall bhar doli da...
karde na hamdardo, dard Punjabi boli da.

Here is what he says about Punjab:

vekhay mulakhaN de gunn gunniyaN, saaroi phir tur vekhi duniyaN.
kull jagg diaN kariyaN sairraN, ikk nazam banauni shaiyeraN,
jeebh kutrat lafaz Punjabi de, saaki nasha chaRhaa de uttre na,
laa mukh nu jaam sharaabi de.

Jawaan sohnay shaam FrancoN, goal gardhan kanch glassoN,
sheraN warge ubhray seenay, chehray jhagray nain nagheenay,
aissa ghabroo jagg wich hona naaaaaa
vekhay desh bathairey duniya de, koi desh PunjaboN sohna na.......

He was a civil engineer by training and worked in all of Punjab but always came back
to his village Sahoké in 1947 all his shagirds, all his poems in praise of Sikh gurus,
and all his love for Punjabi and his pochwiN pagg could not save his relation to his
village. Poor Babu ji packed his belongings and children and settled near OkãRa in
West Punjab where he died in 1979. He lived their rest of his life but his soul never
left East Punjab and particularly his village Sahoké and its people. Some of his best
poems came from Pakistan all drenched with his love for all of Punjab, Punjabis and
his beloved Sahoké.

His famous poem ãwe Wattan Piyãra Chetay I read in my 8th grade Punjabi class.
Irony that this guy born in East Punjab writes this poem in West Punjab that no one
in West Punjab probably read it. But it finds way back to East Punjab and some good
soul dared to include this in syllabus of Punjab School Education Board. That was my

introduction to Babu ji who's Kull-Kalãm a 470-page book now rests in my bedroom
in the headboard of my bed. Here is a part of aaawe wattan piyaara chetay:

mann lai jo karda Rabb paak aai, aundi yaad wattan di khaaq ay,
tutt phutt tukRay bann gaye dill de, haye! main bhujj giya wanghooN khill de,
bhaRhtha bann gai dehi aiiiiiii, vichhray yaar piyaare, bani mussebat kehi aiiiiiii.

jaanday lok nagar de rass boo, pind di paun phullaN di khashboo,
ho hiya jigar faaRhiyO faarhi, vadd'di chakk chinta bagheyaaRhi,
haddiyaN sittiyaN chabbtaaN jeeeeeeeee,
aawe wattan piyaara chetay, jadd khich paun mohabbataN jeeee.

sohniye "Saho" pinD diey veehay, bachpan de wich paRhe "Bambheehay",
choori khuwa maaN paate rastay, chakk lai kalam dawaataN bastay,
Sher, Niranjan, Mehnghay ne.....bhulldiyaN na bharjaiyeaN......
paye ghumbraN lehnghay ne..........

murh piya vekhan pind diyaN galliyaN,
pind diyaN mittiyaN, khanD diyan dalliyaN,
baankay ghabroo dill nu mohnay,
building New York toN sohnay, rahe chubaare phabb taaN jeee
aawe wattan piyaara chetay jadd khich paun mohabbtaN jeee.

Babu Rajab Ali had to leave East Punjab in 1947 but his legacy lives on to this day.
Young boys of Sahoké and surrounding villages still sing his poems –Kavishari- on
school stages and compete to be better at it. I was totally surprised while sitting in our
local Gurdwara kitchen one evening I heard some Kavishars sing a poem on chhotay
sahibzãdé and Sarhand sãka, I recognised the patent "72 kalla chhand" a poetic meter
that no other poet has probably used after Babu ji. Singers were young men in their
30's belonging to village Sahoké on a tour of USA singing Babu ji's poems.

Another amazing thing is Babu Rajab Ali wrote qissay related to Hindu and Sikh
mythology and history, something unthinkable today.

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[Unsigned]

Courtesy: www.apnaorg.com

Further reading and listening:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babu_Rajab_Ali

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWJgGABTw_s
and more