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Ghalib’s Legacy

With this episode of Yun Hota To Kya Hota — The World of Ghalib, host Amit Basole brings the six-part series to a climactic finale, leaving you with signposts and resources to continue your journey of discovery.

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Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. And it’s no surprise that Ghalib is one of the most adored, emulated (and imitated) Urdu poets. More than a hundred and fifty years after he passed into the ages, Ghalib’s legacy lives on and has acquired new vigour in contemporary music, literature, cinema and pop culture.

Perhaps the most enduring of his legacies is the ghazal, a poetic form that is often misconstrued to be a form of song. Ghalib’s ghazals have been rendered and interpreted by voices ranging from Suraiya and Iqbal Bano to Mehdi Hassan, Ghulam Ali and Jagjit Singh. His poetic tradition has been borne forth by titans of Urdu poetry like Muhammad Iqbal and Faiz Ahmed Faiz, to Gulzar in the present day.

Encompassing themes both pedestrian — love and heartbreak — and weighty — existence and god, Ghalib remains relevant and evergreen in our times. With this episode of Yun Hota To Kya Hota — The World of Ghalib, host Amit Basole brings the six-part series to a climactic finale, leaving you with signposts and resources to continue your journey of discovery. 

Credits:

Akshay Ramuhalli, Bijoy Venugopal, Bruce Lee Mani, Narayan Krishnaswamy, Prashant Vasudevan, Sananda Dasgupta, Seema Seth, Shraddha Gautam, Supriya Joshi and Velu Shankar

Explore further:

Acknowledgements:

  • YouTube | Dil-e-nadaan from the film Mirza Ghalib (1954) starring Bharat Bhushan and Suraiya (YouTube)
  • YouTube | Jab us zulf ki baat chali — performed live at the BBC by Mehdi Hassan 
  • YouTube | Aah ko chahiye performed by Ghulam Ali on the PTV program Nikhar (1970’s vintage)
  • YouTube | Mirza Ghalib’s Diya hai dil agar usko bashar hai kya kahiye performed by Iqbal Bano 
  • YouTube | Naqsh Fariyaadi Hain Kiski from the film Mirza Ghalib starring Naseeruddin Shah and performed by Jagjit Singh
  • YouTube | Dil-e-Nadaan performed by Ayushmann Khurrana and Shweta Subram from the film Hawaizaada (2015) | Label: T‑Series
  • YouTube | Former BJP leader Sushma Swaraj Vs former Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh engage in a parliamentary debate in shayari style | ABP News 
  • YouTube | Naseeruddin Shah informal on Gulzar’s Mirza Ghalib in Urdu Studio with Manish Gupta 
  • Netflix | Bridgerton on Netflix | Season 2 
  • YouTube | Mirza Ghalib ka hai Kaifiyat har ek ki apni apni | Label: Saregama India

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