In this episode, we sit with the Urdu word 'mehnat' which is usually translated as 'hard work', but carrying far more tiredness, repetition, and lived experience.
Moving between everyday life and Urdu poetry, the episode pushes back against the idea that hard work always guarantees success. From the comforting language of motivational culture to the kind of labour that happens quietly, without visibility or reward, 'mehnat' here is effort that continues even when energy runs low and outcomes remain uncertain.
At the centre of the episode is Kaifi Azmi’s nazm Makan, which speaks directly to inequality, to those who build homes, palaces, and comfort for others, while having no place of rest themselves.
This is not a motivational talk. It’s a conversation about work that doesn’t shine, effort that isn’t applauded, and the kind of labour that changes life gradually, over time, rather than all at once. Tune in. 

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In Urdu poetry, dua is never just prayer but it is a reflection of how a poet relates to hope, faith, and control.
For Ghalib, dua is too uncertain. He chooses action over waiting, offering his entire self instead of trusting outcomes.
For Munawwar Rana, dua is absolute assurance, a mother's prayer that walks beside him like protection, unquestioned and complete.
And for Kaifi Azmi, dua becomes the final gift that a father offers when strength, means, and time have run out, leaving only blessing and trust in the child’s choice.
Three poets. One word.
And three very different ways of believing in what prayer can do.

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Reading Ghalib's 'Koi Umeed Bar Nahin Aati': Ego and Self Awareness Without ApologyDescription: Mirza Asadullah Beg Khan, known to the world as Mirza Ghalib, remains a towering figure in Urdu poetry for his rare ability to capture complex emotions with striking simplicity. In this episode, we step into Ghalib’s world through one of his most well-known ghazals, 'Koi Umeed Bar Nahin Aati.' The reading reveals a poet who is deeply human and full of flaws and contradictions, and yet remarkably alert to his own shortcomings.

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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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