[ghazals] [found in translation] [info]

02

Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo

आज जाने की ज़िद न करो

Lyricist
Fayyaz Hashmi 1920–2011
Form
Geet often sung and listed as a ghazal
Music
Sohail Rana Raag Yaman Kalyan
First sung by
Habib Wali Mohammad film Badal Aur Bijli, 1973

“Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo” is a timeless geet written by Pakistani poet Fayyaz Hashmi and composed by Sohail Rana. Originally popularized by classical vocalist Habib Wali Mohammad in the 1973 Pakistani film Badal Aur Bijli, the song later gained legendary status through ghazal singer Farida Khanum’s rendition in 1993. Sung in Raag Yaman Kalyan, this deeply romantic and melancholic piece expresses a lover’s desperate plea for their beloved to stay a little longer, cherishing fleeting moments of togetherness. Unlike the other pages here, it is a geet: its refrain returns, so repetition is part of the text rather than only of the performance.

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Lyric and translation

  1. आज जाने की ज़िद न करोआज जाने की ज़िद न करोयूँ ही पहलू में बैठे रहोआज जाने की ज़िद न करो

    Don’t insist on leaving todayJust stay a little longerSit close beside me

    ज़िदzid
    insistence, stubbornness
    पहलूpahlū
    side; to sit in someone’s pahlū is to sit close beside them

  2. हाय मर जाएंगेहम तो लुट जाएंगेऐसी बातें किया न करोआज जाने की ज़िद न करो

    Oh, I swear I’ll perishI’ll be utterly lostPlease don’t say such thingsDon’t insist on leaving today

    लुट जानाluṭ jānā
    to be robbed; to be undone

  3. तुम ही सोचो ज़राक्यूँ न रोकें तुम्हेंजान जाती है जबउठ के जाते हो तुम

    Think for a moment, my loveHow could I let you go?It feels like my life fades awayEvery time you rise to leave

  4. तुमको अपनी क़सम जानेजाँबात इतनी मेरी मान लोआज जाने की ज़िद न करो

    For my sake, my loveGrant me just this one wishDon’t insist on leaving today

    क़समqasam
    oath: “I make you swear on yourself”
    जानेजाँjān-e-jāṅ
    life of my life, a term of endearment

  5. वक़्त की क़ैद में ज़िन्दगी है मगरचंद घड़ियां यही हैं जो आज़ाद हैंइनको खो कर कहीं जानेजाँउम्र भर न तरसते रहो

    Life is trapped within time’s graspBut these few moments are oursLose them now, my loveAnd you’ll long for them forever

    क़ैदqaid
    captivity
    तरसनाtarasnā
    to long for, to pine

  6. कितना मासूम रंगीन है ये समांहुस्न और इश्क़ की आज मे'राज हैकल की किसको ख़बर जानेजाँरोक लो आज की रात को

    The night is innocent and beautifulA rare meeting of love and desireWho knows what tomorrow brings?Hold onto this night, my love

    समांsamāṅ
    the scene, the atmosphere
    मे'राजme‘rāj
    ascent, zenith: the highest point

  7. आज जाने की ज़िद न करोआज जाने की ज़िद न करो

    Don’t insist on leaving today

Notes and sources

Text. The lyric as transcribed here, refrain included; refrain lines are set lighter. Rekhta’s text of the geet has further stanzas that are not transcribed on this page. Texts used here: Devanagari, transcription by Found in Translation.

Reading. The English translation sits beside the stanza it carries, matched by meaning rather than line by line. Glossary notes, shown when you select a stanza, explain single words; they are not translations.

Recordings.
  • Habib Wali Mohammad, playback for the film Badal Aur Bijli (1973), music by Sohail Rana. No verified recording of the film version has been found yet.
  • Farida Khanum, Coke Studio Pakistan, Season 8, Episode 7 (2015). Listen on YouTube, Official audio, on YouTube
  • Asha Bhosle, live at the Paramount, Oakland (2011). Audience upload listed on Rekhta. Listen on YouTube
References.