Faiz will Remain

Faiz's brand of revolutionary poetry is an unparalleled realm of resistance and dissent. Perhaps there hasn't been any other poet, whose works have been so moving and inspiring in the lives of thousands of people out there, who for eternity are bound in the struggle against oppression. Faiz's poems were arrows sharply targeted against the injustice meted out to millions by the existing societal and political structure- and the governing regime was well aware of the potential danger his poems pose to their continued existence.

Perhaps his poem "Hum Dekhenge", is one of the most influential poems in modern history. The poem fearlessly talks about a day, when tyranny will be washed away and the oppressed will be restored what is rightfully theirs. This was one poem which shook the military government under Zia-ul Haq in Pakistan fiercely.As part of his conservative drive, Zia-ul-Haq banned women from wearing Saree in Pakistan. In protest, Iqbal Bano, the famous Pakistani singer, dressed in a black saree, sang the poem to a crowd of 50,000 spectators in Lahore. Inspite of the  microphone being disconnected and the lights being switched off, Bano continued with unfaltering courage. By the time the song ended, the mob resounded with cries of "Inquilab Zindabad" and were charged to resist. Faiz was in prison at the time and Iqbal Bano was later banned from singing anywhere in Pakistan.

"Lazim hai ke hum bhi dekhenge
Wo din ke jis ka wada hai
Jo lauh-e-azl mein likha hai
Jab zulm-o-sitam ke koh-e-garan
Rooi ki tarah ur jaenge
Hum mehkoomon ke paaon tale
Ye dharti dhar dhar dharkegi
Aur ahl-e-hakam ke sar oopar
Jab bijli kar kar karkegi"

"We shall Witness
It is certain that we too, shall witness
the day that has been promised
of which has been written on the slate of eternity

When the enormous mountains of tyranny
blow away like cotton.
Under our feet- the feet of the oppressed-
when the earth will pulsate deafeningly
and on the heads of our rulers
when lightning will strike." 

'Bol' is yet another example of Faiz's firebrand poetry. And its not just a poem, its a manifesto on the fundamental right to expression, that Faiz time and again urges others to exert. For him, this freedom was central to his existence. And even when he was targeted mercilessly by the regime, his struggle to express remained as strong as ever. And few would have noticed how the poem beautifully fit into 'Manto", the film on Faiz's great contemporary.

Bol, ke labh aazaad hain tere
Bol, zubaan ab tak teri hai
Tera sutwaan jism hai tera
Bol, ke jaan ab tak teri hai

 Speak out!
Your words are free.
Speak up!
Your tongue is still your own.
Your body remains yours
ramrod, erect.
Speak out!
Your life is still your own.

Any writing on Faiz's poetry is incomplete without a mention of 'Intesaab'. The poet in Faiz expresses his deep anguish towards the state of affairs that his people are forced to normalise. When he goes on to proclaim " For the wilderness of yellowing leaves- which is my homeland, For this carnival of suffering - which is my homeland", Faiz is not that pseudo nationalist who is expected to paint a bright picture of everything about his homeland. He is an anguished soul, deeply troubled by the sufferings of his people and  makes no concession in potraying reality as it is. 

 "padnewaalon ke naam
wo jo asahaab-e-tablo-alam
ke daron par kitaab aur qalam
kaa takaazaa liye, haath phailaaye
pahunche, magar laut kar ghar na aaye
vo maasuum jo bholepan mein
wahaan apne nanhe chiraagon mein lau kii lagan
le ke pahunche jahaan
bant rahe the ghataatop, be-ant raaton ke saaye"

"Let me write of the students  

Those seekers of the truth  

Who came seeking the truth at the doorstep 

 Of the great and the mighty  

Those innocents who, with their dim flickering lamps 

Came seeking light  

Where they sell naught but the darkness of long endless nights" 

The reason why people are still deeply attached to Faiz's poetry is because his poems are never out of context. The index of relatability remains still high. When in Intesaab he talks about mothers whose wailing children are never pacified, the stolen lives of farmers and the women whose bodies lie on loveless bedsteads- you can still identify with the imagery he uses. When in 'Bol' he urges you to speak out, you can still relate to the importance of his clarion call. Faiz's poetry remains immortal for the reason that the issues he stressed upon are issues that plague the consciousness of our society, even today.

In a political environment where increasing curbs on dissent and intellectual opinion is being imposed, where those in power turn tyrannical and where oppression continues unfaltered- Faiz is a reminder. A reminder that the voices of the unheard must never be suppressed and that democratic rights must never be stifled with. And to let Faiz be out of fashion would entail a long struggle for democracy and equality. Till then Faiz will remain.