The Humsafar OST undoubtedly brings back countless Ashar-Khirad memories to our minds. Starting from the early ‘stranger’ phase, to the smooth ‘falling-in-love’ phase, and eventually the heart-wrenching ‘judaai’ phase, thus making the song a national ballad for all those suffering in love. But little did we know that the song was written for an entirely different purpose altogether.
Naseer Turabi wrote the song when he heard about East Pakistan (Bangladesh) being partitioned from West Pakistan.
He termed the two parting nations as Humsafars who were originally meant to have a future together, but as political chaos ensued, the countries were split apart. Just like the typical tale of two lovers who love each other beyond death, but are unable to endure the test of time.
Here’s a clip of the man himself explaining the true inspiration behind his breathtaking shaiyiri:
Without a doubt, 16th December 1971 is marked as a dark day in the history of Pakistan. Two nations that were unified by culture and religion were separated after a long and bloody war. To Turabi, this came as devastating news, and being the miraculous poet that he was, he picked up his pen and created this piece of melancholic magic.
We may have listened to the song in reference to romantic relationships, but let’s look at some ways in which it captures the separation of two nations:
Naseer Turabi’s mesmerizing words convey to us the intensity of trauma the event withheld for every Pakistani.
‘Woh humsafar tha magar uss se humnavaayi na thi,
Ke dhoop chaon ka aalam raha judaai na thi’
Even though there was so much in common between Pakistan and Bangladesh, countless reasons for them to co-exist and succeed, there was still somehow a lack of ‘humnavaayi’ (like-mindedness) which caused the partition to happen. Whether it’s between lovers or nations, separation is always devastating.
‘Bichartay waqt un aankhon main thi hamari ghazal,
Ghazal bhi woh jo kisi ko abhi sunayi na thi’
The moment of separation is said to be the hardest of all. When it happened between the two countries, it was as if they still had so much to give each other, so many scores to settle, but it was all taken away from them in an instant. And all that was left was a ‘ghazal’ in the eyes.
‘Kabhi ye haal ke dono main yak-dili thi bohat,
Kabhi ye marhala jaisay ke aashnaayi na thi’
Through the varying phases of conflict between East and West Pakistan, there was often peace and bonding between the two. However at other instances, it was as if they barely knew each other. The extent of misunderstandings and distrust between them caused the inevitable to happen.
‘Ajeeb hoti hai raahe-sukhan bhi dekh Naseer,
Wahan bhi aagaye aakhir jahan rasaayi na thi’
And finally, the path of love and togetherness is surely unpredictable and mysterious, it never meets our expectations. It leads us to places where we never though our reach could extend. Naseer Turabi envisions the irony as hope literally transformed into defeat.
Humsafar will always be a song that lifts our spirits, its rich shayri feeding our souls.
Heartbroken or not, we’ll always, always sing along to its tune. Give the song another listen.
Here’s the OST.
Does it click? Share your views with us in the comments section below!
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Cover image via MD Productions