To Remember

And then (Spoiler), one Thursday, more two thousand years after one man had been nailed to a tree for saying how great it would be to be nice to people for a change, one guy sitting on his own on a small bed in his room, recollected this poem he had learnt in a Hindi class in class VI.

Hum panchi unmukt gagan ke, We are the birds of the free skies,
Pinjar baddh na gaa paayenge, Caged, we won't be able to sing,
Kanak teeliyon se takraakar, Hitting against golden bars,
Pulkit pankh toot jaayenge... Our tender wings will be broken...

Hum behta jal peene waale, We used to drink flowing water,
Mar jaayenge bhooke pyaase, But we will die of hunger and thirst,
Kahin bhali hai katuk nibori, The bitter fruit of the neem is way better,
Kanak katori ki maida se... Than grain served in a golden vessel...

Svarn shrinkhla ke bandhan mein, In this prison behind golden bars,
Apni gati udaan sab bhoole, We forgot our days of flying and our speed,
Bas sapnon mein dekh rahe hain, Only in our dreams do we see,
Taru ki phungi par ke jhoole... how we swung on the branches of trees...

Aise the armaan ki udte, We used to wish that we'd fly,
Neel gagan ki seema paane, to reach the top of the blue sky,
Laal kiran si chonch khol, Open our beaks, red as sunrays,
Chugte taarak, anaar ke daane... and eat all kinds of seeds...

Hoti seemaheen kshitij se, With the endless horizon,
In pankhon ki hoda-hodi, would our wings take a challenge,
Ya to kshitij milan ban jaata, We'd either meet the horizon
Ya tanti saanson ki dori... or die trying...

Need na do, chaahe tehni ka, Don't give us a nest, (don't know the meaning)
Aashray chinn-bhinn kar daalo, Destroy all our support,
Lekin pankh diye hain to, But if we've been given wings,
Aakul udaan mein vighn na daalo. Please don't stop us from flying

Interestingly enough, when looking for lines that I didn't remember, I found the same poem posted in a totally different context, on another IITM fellow's blog...
Let me make it clear though, that the context for me is only pleasant memories and some nostalgia. Somehow reminds me of how rendition can make a difference...