Makaan ki upari manzil par ab koi nahi rehta…Gulzar and me

Gulzar saab mesmerizes again with this beautiful description of a house, full of nostalgia and yearning, leaving you with a sense of familiarity and belonging. The link below has Gulzar saab reading the Urdu poem, which is equally enchanting:

Makan ki upari manzil pe aab koi nahin rehta
Woh kamre band hain kabse, jo chaubeez seediyan untak pahunchti thi woh ab upar nahin jati
Makan ki upari manzil pe aab koi nahin rehta

Wahan kamron mein itna yaad hai mujko, Khilone, ek purani tokri main bhar ke rakhe the
Bahut se toh uthane, phekhne, rakhne main churan ho gaye
Wahan ek balcony bhi thi, Jahan ek bayeth ka jhula latakta tha
Mera ek dost tha, woh tota woh roz aata tha, usko hari mirch khilata tha
Usi ke samne ek chathh thi jahan ek mor baitha aasmaan pe raat bhar meethe sitare chubta rehta tha

Mere bachon ne woh dekha nahin, Woh neeche ki manzil par rehta hain
Jahan par piano rakha hai, purane Parsi style ka Frasier se kharida tha, Magar kuch besuri awaazain karta hai ke uski ritzs saari hil gaye hain ke, Suron par doosre sur chad gaye hain

Usi manzil par ek pushtainee baithak thi jahan purkhon ki tasveerain latakti rehti thee, Main seedha karta retha tha hawa phir tedha kar jati, Bahu ko moochoon wale saare purkhe cliché’ lagte the
Mere bachon ne aakhair unko keelon se utaara, Purane newspaper main unhe mehfooz karke rakh diya tha,
Mera ek bhanja le jata hai filmon main kabhi set par lagata hai, kiraya milta hai unse

Meri manzil pe mere saamne mehmaan khana hai,
Mere pote kabhi America se aayain toh rukte hain, Alag size mein aate hai who jitni baar aate hai, Khuda jaane wohi aate hain ya haar baar koi doosra aata hai

Woh ek kamra, joh peeche ki taraf band hai, Jahan batti nahin jalti
Wahan ek rosary rakhi hai woh usse mehekta hai, Wahan woh daai rehti thi ke jisne teen bachon ko bada karne mein apni umr de di thi, mari toh maine dafnaya nahin, mehfooz karke rakh diya usko

Ab uske baad, ek do seediyaan hai, neeche tayekhane main jaati hain
Jahan khamoshi roshan hai, sukoon soya hua hai bas itni si pehloon main jagah rakhkar, ki jab seediyoon se neeche aoon toh usi ke pehloon main, baazoon pe sar rakhkar gale lag jaoon, so jaoon.

Makaan ke upri manzil per ab koi nahi rehta, Koi nahi rehta.