Let's talk about the song "Aarambh Hai Prachand"
from Gulaal. I've seen people discussing the song, and the only way it
is (mostly) admired is for being one of the very few songs from recent
Bollywood music scene to be in "Veer Rasa". Well that, and the use of immaculate Hindi by Piyush Mishra. Both very valid points.
And what a song it is, too! It begins with the sounds of bells, shankhas and nagadas approaching you from a distance. The visuals show the fearless Ran-sa and Dukki bana getting ready for battle (the upcoming elections). This is their battle cry, and like Krishna urging Arjuna for war, you too, are propelled into this war that demands that you give it everything - your fear, inhibitions, pride and if need be - your life.
आन-बान-शान, या कि जान का हो दान, आज इक धनुष के बाण पे उतार दो!
The first antara
is where the song rises up from being a simple battle cry and goes into
the first philosophy of the Geeta: It is a man's job to do his duty
(fight his own battles) and be without fear or favor while doing so. It
is not a he who is killing people in the battlefield. God, the
omnipotent one, is the only one who can give and take lives at will.
मन करे सो प्राण दे, जो मन करे तो प्राण ले, वही तो एक सर्वशक्तिमान है
कृष्ण की पुकार है, ये भागवत का सार है, कि युद्ध ही तो वीर का प्रमाण है
कौरवों की भीड़ हो, या पांडवों का नीड़ हो, जो लड़ सका है वो ही तो महान है
You are not fighting for victory or control over anybody. Life hardly matters, as death is not the end. So, just go out there and conquer the world!
जीत की हवस नहीं, किसी पे कोई वश नहीं, क्या ज़िन्दगी है ठोकरों पे मार दो
मौत अंत है नहीं, तो मौत से भी क्यूँ डरें, ये जा के आसमान में दहाड़ दो
** Mild spoilers below for the movie Gulaal beyond this point **
Even thematically it makes sense for having this song here; as Ran-sa is going to fight an election against his step-sister. Granted, the opposite party also has the support of his bitter enemy, Jadwal - which is the main reason he agreed to stand at all. But it does mean he has to fight his own family. While Ran-sa didn't really pause and think (like Arjuna) on its moral implications or question the need for an outright war; it is the perfect place to insert this song.
Piyush Mishra really is genius. All the songs in the movie say something - say a lot, in fact - Jab sheher humara sota hai, Duniya etc. can shake you up and/or make you break down. The dialog interwoven with poetry are just as scathing. It's a really unfair world where people of his caliber are not loaded with work. It's deeply ironical that he wrote these lines (in the same film) questioning how the world of the idealistic poets is worth living in, now that it has been reduced to what it is today -
फ़ैज़ों-फ़िराक़ों, ग़ालिब-ओ-मख़दूम, मीर की, ज़ौक़ की, दाग़ों की दुनिया
ये दुनिया अगर मिल भी जाए तो क्या है
And what a song it is, too! It begins with the sounds of bells, shankhas and nagadas approaching you from a distance. The visuals show the fearless Ran-sa and Dukki bana getting ready for battle (the upcoming elections). This is their battle cry, and like Krishna urging Arjuna for war, you too, are propelled into this war that demands that you give it everything - your fear, inhibitions, pride and if need be - your life.
आन-बान-शान, या कि जान का हो दान, आज इक धनुष के बाण पे उतार दो!
मन करे सो प्राण दे, जो मन करे तो प्राण ले, वही तो एक सर्वशक्तिमान है
कृष्ण की पुकार है, ये भागवत का सार है, कि युद्ध ही तो वीर का प्रमाण है
कौरवों की भीड़ हो, या पांडवों का नीड़ हो, जो लड़ सका है वो ही तो महान है
You are not fighting for victory or control over anybody. Life hardly matters, as death is not the end. So, just go out there and conquer the world!
जीत की हवस नहीं, किसी पे कोई वश नहीं, क्या ज़िन्दगी है ठोकरों पे मार दो
मौत अंत है नहीं, तो मौत से भी क्यूँ डरें, ये जा के आसमान में दहाड़ दो
** Mild spoilers below for the movie Gulaal beyond this point **
Even thematically it makes sense for having this song here; as Ran-sa is going to fight an election against his step-sister. Granted, the opposite party also has the support of his bitter enemy, Jadwal - which is the main reason he agreed to stand at all. But it does mean he has to fight his own family. While Ran-sa didn't really pause and think (like Arjuna) on its moral implications or question the need for an outright war; it is the perfect place to insert this song.
Piyush Mishra really is genius. All the songs in the movie say something - say a lot, in fact - Jab sheher humara sota hai, Duniya etc. can shake you up and/or make you break down. The dialog interwoven with poetry are just as scathing. It's a really unfair world where people of his caliber are not loaded with work. It's deeply ironical that he wrote these lines (in the same film) questioning how the world of the idealistic poets is worth living in, now that it has been reduced to what it is today -
फ़ैज़ों-फ़िराक़ों, ग़ालिब-ओ-मख़दूम, मीर की, ज़ौक़ की, दाग़ों की दुनिया
ये दुनिया अगर मिल भी जाए तो क्या है
