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The Quint

Bollywood songs turn us all into Grammy award-winning bathroom singers! But wait, do you know the meaning of every word you sing? Especially the ones in Urdu? On Urdunama, our host Fabeha Syed takes one word at a time and breaks it down for you.

Be it the protest poetry of Faiz, or Sameer's 90s nostalgia, we have it all. If you like Urdu and poetry, this podcast is for you!

Urdunama

What is Falsafa? It’s the philosophy that pushes us to explore ideas with wisdom, and with a humility in which every certainty melts away. We explore this week's theme, 'falsafa' through Iqbal’s 'Falsafa-e-Gham'. He shows that grief isn’t just pain but it’s the light inside the heart, the silent music and the rouge for the soul that beautifies it. He goes on that loss and sorrow awaken us, polish the spirit, and reveal life’s deeper truths, depth and beauty we might otherwise miss. tune in.
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Falsafa in Life: Understanding Iqbal’s Philosophy of Grief

This week in UIrdunama, we explore poems that live inside our zehn, meaning our mind. But this internal world of the zehn keeps colliding with the one that belongs to the heart and its jazbātiyat (emotion driven clarity) that won’t be silenced. From Barelvi’s guiding light in confusion, to Jazib’s heart triumphing over intellect, to Javed Akhtar’s inner world in flames where only one surviving corner remains, these ashaar show how thoughts and feelings collide, break, and endure in every human experience. Tune in. 
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Zehn and Jazbātiyat: Heart vs Mind in Urdu Poetry

In this week's Urdunama, we speak about 'Soch', meaning a personal lens through which we look at everything.With the intensity of Mohsin Naqvi, the softness of Bashir Badr, the sharp pain of heartbreak from rejectioon in Parveen Shakir's ghazal, and the mature understanding of boundaries in intimacy in Ahmad Faraz's nazm 'bhali si ek shakl thi', Fabeha Syed unpacks how thoughts shape love, loss, and the stories we tell ourselves.Because real life isn’t just about what happens to us, it’s about hum kis soch mein mubtala hain? (what kind of thinking are we caught up in?) tune in. 
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Kya Sochte Ho? : Exploring 'Soch' Through Urdu Poetry

In this week’s Urdunama, we remember Dharmendra not only as Bollywood's "Greek-God" hero but essentially as a man defined by two qualities - Pur-kashish (full of charm) and Shaista-mizaaj (gentle in nature). From humble beginnings in Punjab to a stunning, record 300 plus film-career, he was a man in love with Urdu zabaan. 

Join us for a brief tribute to a star whose charm and grace remain unforgettable.
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Dharmendra - Pur Kashish, Shaista Mizaaj Fankar

Tasalli is a feeling of comfort, reassurance, and emotional support. It is what helps the heart feel calm when someone listens without judgment, shares your pain or simply lets you be with your emotions. Urdu poets like Aarzoo Lakhnavi write about tasalli as the space to process grief, letting tears flow and giving the heart time to settle. or, rather the lack of it when the poet is also expecting more than just words to pacify him. Jan Nisar Akhtar shows how tasalli can come from presence and intimacy, like a hand on the heart or words that make someone feel truly seen. Hasrat Mohani writes about its fragile and cyclical nature, how peace can come and go and memories can trigger those familiar unsettling old feelings. And in the episode you will also find yourself in the embrace of Faiz’s reminder that you are your own biggest and most effective healer in his iconic nazm, Mere Humdum Mere Dost. So tune in. It’s time to heal. 
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Tasalli: Where Grief Meets Gentle Healing

In poetry, “Sannata” isn’t just silence but the stillness where everything stops. It is the absence of sound, of presence, of movement, yet it carries a strange weight. Poets like Gulzar, Ameer Qazalbash, Abbas Tabish and Manmohan Shukla ‘Talkh’ have turned this silence into a living emotion. For Gulzar, sannata comes sneakily, filled with the fear of losing someone. Ameer Qazalbash writes of a silence that feels like the aftermath of a tragedy. Abbas Tabish’s interpretation of sannata shows emotional distance between two people, And in Talkh’s verse, sannata becomes deeply personal, its the kind that takes away the sense of self.Tune in to explore how sannata speaks louder than words.
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Sannata - The Sound Between Words

In Urdu, chain means comfort, meaning when the heart finally feels at ease. Bechaini is the opposite. It is the restlessness that keeps you awake, searching for something more, something else.Poets like Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Shaikh Ibrahim Zauq, and Josh Malihabadi wrote from this space between calm and chaos. Maybe that’s what it is. Not choosing between comfort and restlessness, but learning to live with both and to let chain and bechaini speak to each other inside of us. Tune in as Fabeha Syed reads works of these masters among others. 
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Chain and Bechaini: The Space Between Rest and Restlessness

Roshni, meaning 'light', in Urdu poetry is never alone. It gains meaning only when contrasted with darkness, whether that’s doubt, loneliness, or the moments that challenge our hearts. Poets show us that hope isn’t about perfection; it’s about courage, resilience, and the quiet moments when even a small glimmer can guide us.From Shakeel Badayuni’s faith tested by doubt, to Bashir Badr’s morning breeze reminding us of small joys, and Waseem Barelvi’s light that moves and spreads wherever it can — roshni is alive and shared. In Urdu poetry, roshni is more than illumination. It is hope, presence, and the courage to shine even through the shadows of lurking tareeki meaning darkness. This Diwali, may we all try to stop looking for light outside, and become roshni ourselves. Tune in. 
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In the Glow of ‘Roshni’, Every Poem Finds Clarity

In this episode, we explore Urdu word Ranj, sorrow, grief, and the small heartbreaks that shape our lives. From Sahir to Dagh, Shakeel, and Irfan, each poet has experienced, expressed, and understood Ranj in their own way. Sometimes it becomes empathy, sometimes resilience, and sometimes a quiet irony.We unpack these layers through poetry and reflection, showing how Ranj is not just about pain but also about how we feel, endure, and even find meaning in it. Tune in.
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Ranj: The Quiet Ache Beneath Every Verse

In this episode, we explore the word Hazir — a simple word that means “present,” but in Urdu poetry it holds much deeper weight. With verses from Parveen Shakir and Ahmad Faraz, we look at how hazir shifts in its context and scope. the couplets curated in this episode reminds us that being hazir is never just about attendance. It’s about presence with all its complexity — love, loss, surrender, resistance — and it asks us what it really means to show up fully in front of another person, or in front of the truth. Tune in.
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‘Haazir’ - More Than Just Being Present

Philosophers, scientists, thinkers, have been trying to understand the secrets of the universe through the various disciplines of inquiry. 

Universe, they tell, is all about energy, time and matter. Once we internalise this belief, the universe then moves quickly as we decide. But, how?

To understand this, we explore through Urdu poetry, what does 'kainaat' mean to poets and how they see the universe through the galaxies of their words. 

Tune in.
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How ‘Kainaat’ Works—It Moves When You Move

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