Ek bagal mein chaand hoga (Lyrics and Meaning) – Piyush Mishra

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When I heard the first few lines of the song, I felt it was just another song, big deal!  Then I saw Piyush MIshra’s name, and knew there is more to the song than what I see at the surface. And I found this video and the lyrics and its interpretation posted along with it. Though I do not completely like the interpretation, but that put the whole song in a completely different perspective! Now I recognize the subtlety in the song and its beyond words! (I took inspiration from the  interpretation of the song posted with the video so I cannot take complete credit for the interpretation of the song.) For each line there is the literal meaning and the interpreted/subtle meaning. 🙂  I read somewhere that this song was originally written (before being used in the movie) keeping in mind an underprivileged family where the mother sings this song to her daughters. So the song could be just as simple as it sounds,and as innocent as the actual words (chaand, roti, seepi) used. But I like to dig deeper into words and sentences for subtleties 🙂 🙂 …so here it is “Ik bagal mein” from the movie Gangs of Wasseypur

Ik bagal mein chaand hoga, ik bagal mein rotiyaan , 

Ik bagal neend hogi, ik bagal mein loriyaan,

Hum chaand pe roti ki chaadar daalkar so jayenge,

Aur neend se keh denge lori kal sunaane aayenge 

Literally : One one side is the moon and on the other side there is bread (food) , On one side there is sleep and on the other there are lullabies, We will cover the moon with the flat bread and tell “sleep” that we will sing a lullaby tomorrow. 

Interpretation: On one side are dreams (moon) and one side are daily needs (food). One one side are will be peace of mind (sleep) and on one side will be the means to attain it (lullabies). But we will always choose to fulfill our needs while ignoring our actual dreams completely, and as for the peace of mind, we will choose to walk on that path tomorrow (i.e. sometime later) 

Ik bagal mein khankhanati sipiyaan ho jayengi, 

Ik bagal mein kuch rulaati siskiyaan ho jayengi

Hum seepiyon mein bhar ke saare taare chun ke aayenge

Aur siskiyon ko gudgudi kar kar ke yun behlayenge

Literal Meaning : On one side there will be tinkling oysters, one one side there will be cries and sobs. We will gather stars and fill the oysters with them and we will pacify the sobs with tickles. 

Interpretation: One one side there will be happiness (the oysters) and one side there will be worries and tensions in life. We will collect/gather all the happy moments and treasure them  (just like pearls in oysters) and we will turn the sobs (sad moments) to happy ones with smiles, giggles and tickles. 

Amma teri siskiyon pe koi rone aayega, koi rone aayega

Gham na kar jo aayega wo fir kabhi na jayega, wo fir kabhi na jayega 

Yaad rakh par koi anhoni nahi tu laayegi,laayegi to fir kahani aur kuch ho jayegi 

Literal Meaning : Oh mother someone will come to weep with you as you sob, and don’t you worry once that person arrives he will not leave you. But remember you will not bring anything improbable with you, as then it will be a different story all together. 

Interpretation: There is a hidden hope that someone someday will definitely help us out of the situation we are in no matter how bad it is! Someone will come to share our sorrows and then probably stay with us and support us for the rest of our lives. However we need to be careful we do not make choices that spoil our life to the point of no repair, because then its a different story all together. (Then there might be no support, no help and probably no life, we might be just be left to die) 

Honi aur anhoni ki parvaah kise hai meri jaan 

Hadd se jyada ye hi hoga ki yahin mar jayenge 

Hum maut ko sapna batakar uth khade honge yahin 

Aur honi ko thenga dikhakar khilkhilakate jayenge 

Literal Meaning : Who cares about the happenings and mishappenings, the worst that can happen is that we will die here, we will call death a dream and stand up again, and will mock at the happenings and laugh our way out of it! 

Interpretation: I think this last stanza is written as a continuation of the previous one, but on a positive and carefree note, stating the fact that no matter how hard we try we all know we cannot get out of here alive anyway!  So whatever happens or does not happen should not worry us! Worst come worst we will die (that we will anyway), so for now think of death as one long dream and stand up as if nothing happened! And laugh at whatever just happened. (This is something we all must have experienced at some point in life! At one moment a problem might seem so big that it might just kill you, and then probably a couple of days later, we might be explaining the problem (that got resolved) as a funny story 🙂 …atleast I have done that many times) 

I must say each stanza now feels like a complete story in itself! Love the finesse and the completeness of the whole song! The way I see the song, its a very practical take on how we all live our lives, how we always have some reasons to be happy and some others to be sad, its about that confusion that exists in all our minds, the confusion between what we like to do, and what we have to do, and how we always choose what we have to do (roti over chaand), how we can always keep ourselves happy in spite of the compromises, and the end of the song mocks at death and the tolerance and patience of mankind to bear all that happens to us and still continue with our lives as though nothing happened.

I am not sure what the author had in mind when he wrote the song, but that’s how I feel about it! Thanks Darshan and Neeraj for introducing the song to me!

(On repeat mode, till I absorb every word of it :))

127 thoughts on “Ek bagal mein chaand hoga (Lyrics and Meaning) – Piyush Mishra”

  1. Hey there,loved your interpretation of the song.I just got to watch the movie and this song was stuck in my head.I didnt knew hindi ,but i knew it meant something profound…Needful to say i wasnt disappointed at all after knowing the meaning.

    As I am here, I went through your bucket list too…Learned your interest in learning my mother tongue.I am happy to help in case you need any…..

    Reply

    • I am so glad this helped you understand the song better. It is a deep one, a song that ages well!
      Thanks for offering help with Malayalam. I think having been around enough Malayalis, I have started to understand it, but not confident enough to speak it yet…some day 🙂

      Reply

  4. i guess in last stanza you missed the intent, it is in the sense of soul which never dies. So knowing myself as immortal soul i dont worry for good /bad. At max one body will perish. Next will come in presence. So death is like dream only. And we will tease the death on our resurrection and keep going on laughing.

    Reply

  8. Brother the overall interpretation is awesome but dont you think in the last paragraph he is talking about rebirth when he says maut ko sapna batakar fir kahde honge yahin?

    Reply

    • Thanks!
      That could be an interpretation too.
      Though in the movie, this song is in the context of the last surviving member of a family, so it could be talking about how he escaped death (See comment from Darpan Shinde below)
      And not sure if it matters but this post was written by a Sister 🙂

      Reply

  10. Thanks Krithya for writing this beautiful interpretation. Believe me you did total justice to the Song and to the Piyushji as well.
    I personally am very particular about correct interpretation whether it is a songs, poems, gita or upanishads. Sometimes it becomes very hard to compile a correct interpretation out of this kind of songs.
    Made my day 😊

    Reply

    • I am glad you think I did justice to the song. Thank you for dropping by and sharing your thoughts.
      Though I believe, the true beauty of any form of literature is that it can be experienced and interpreted in multiple ways, each different from the other, none more correct than the other. There is probably just one literal meaning, but the interpretations can be many. My two cents – and entirely my opinion, you are obviously entitled to yours.

      Reply

  12. I am not a native speaker. But can understand enough Urdu and Hindi to appreciate the beauty in their writing.

    Heard this song while I was watching the movie. The first two lines itself got me hooked. And this song always reminds me of my mom, there is this longing every time to go sleep on her lap for one last time.

    Your translation adds more to its depth. Thank you.

    Reply

    • “To fall asleep on one’s mom’s lap” – very few songs have that kind of power, to invoke such pure feelings of comfort and love.
      Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts. Glad this translation was able to add more value to the song.

      Reply

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  14. Beautiful interpretation. I feel lucky to have read this page. The song has always mesmerized me. But now after this interpretation it feels like a song which cannot be praised in words. THANK YOU.

    Reply

  17. Thank you for such an amazing interpretation of the song. I never tried to know the meaning that it holds. Can’t thank you enough for this beautiful translation. ❤️

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  18. Lots of love from my side! The composition and the song are both so beautiful. 7 years after you post it, here I am. Despite everything, the internet ain’t all that bad a place, no?

    Reply

    • Glad you found your way to this post. 7 years is a long time indeed.
      Internet like everything else is great if used right, and bad if abused, depends on who uses it and how! Too preachy! I guess I am getting old.
      I should have stopped at thank you for dropping by. 🙂

      Reply

    • Thank you so much for letting me know. Your comment and concern are much appreciated and it is righteous people like you who keep the hope of a better tomorrow alive.
      That said, as much as it hurts to see my blogposts being shared without credit, it is hard to be policing around all the time. I have seen it happen before and it will keep happening in the future too. Some do it unknowingly, others because they know they can get away with it. When I point it out, sometimes people acknowledge my word, sometimes they just ignore it, so I have given up. My idea behind translating songs was to share my ideas with others, and with or without credit at least the ideas are floating out there, I have made my peace with that. 🙂
      Aakhir kab tak qaid rahe alfaaz, likhne kehne waalon ke daayiron mein
      Khule asmaan ke parinde hain, uDte hain to uDD jaaye
      Ab kaun laDe malqiaat ki jung in allfaaz ke raahzano se
      Bas lafzon ka wajood bana rahe, chaahe jis se juD jaaye

      Thank you again though for dropping by and letting me know and I hope you visit again.

      Reply

  21. I like this song since I heard it first. I am not into these deep meaning songs but I like the odd music n vocal. I always knew that it has some deep meaning to it which I never took pain of knowing. But today I did n now it has a whole new meaning to it. I can write a book with just one line of this song.
    Thanks for the translation !!

    Reply

    • Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts. I am glad this post helped you experience a different side of this song.
      P.S. I would love to read that book 🙂

      Reply

  22. That’s a beautiful translation and interpretation. I first heard the song in the movie itself so I interpreted the song as someone wanting to escape death. SPOILERS
    Piyush Mishra remains the only surviving member of the family and in doing so sees the beginning and end of his family members.

    There are four stanzas of the poem
    The first could be of the humble beginnings of Sardar Khan’s father. He finally gets a good income and job but wastes it away and gets killed instead by choosing his desires over security.

    The second stanza could be for Sardar Khan himself, the notorious gangster who lived life like he ruled the stars.

    The third stanza reminds me of Faizal who tried to wash away the tears of his mother but ended up creating the biggest chaos the family had EVER seen.

    Fourth and last, of course, is about Piyush Mishra who showed “thenga” to death and remained the unfortunate sole survivor of the family.

    Reply

    • Thanks for sharing your thoughts Darpan. Your interpretation in the context of the movie is fresh and insightful and probably more apt for anyone who has had the pleasure of watching the movie. (I haven’t yet!)

      Reply

      • A lot of people have provided a very good insight of that song. Piyush Mishra is a genius he has not only explained the entire movie in this song, but also has provided a good clarity of an entire human life in it. Apart from this you can also notice that the entire movie can be explained in the form of metaphor . The story starts in 1941 in wasseypur with a train being stopped . The train signifies the transient pleasure ( Worldly pleasure is always accompanied by pain) of the human world which is temporary, in 1941 the train is being stopped which means that a human being got attracts to the illusionary pleasure and gets pleasure from robbing (transient) and being chased out of the village where this song first comes (But have they realised the true meaning of the song– No) . But who is the hero and who is the villian . We can see many khans (Shahid , Sardar , Asghar , Danish , Faizal , Definite , Perpendicular) , Ramadhir Singh, JP Singh, Sultan, Shamshad Alam all in the world for gaining power. There is no specific hero or villain as all are searching for pleasure through unfair means whose story is an anectode that even worldly pleasure gained through unfair means can result in misery (sorrow or death) . Desire interconnected through three types 1) Power 2) Sex 3) Money – Denotes Shahid, Ramadhir, JP , Definite , Perpendicular , Faizal, Sultan, Sardar. Here Nasir (Piyush Mishra) being the narrator and the only survivor who lived for three generations was too entangled in the web of desires. He doesn’t have the courage to hit Shahid’s boss, kills a man at Petrol Bunk , supports Sardar’s way , had sex with Nagma , he was never respected by Faizal for that (He punishes himself for each mistake he had made in a strange way). Only when he realised that only God is the ultimate one and all worldly pleasures are transient he starts Praying, makes himself aloof, discourages Faizal in the final battle . But after faizal is killed he moves to mumbai in 2009 and the scene starts with two trains running which is not stopped (it denotes that he no longer needs the worldly desires and it is not even bothered about it and they see the mosque on the other side and with the song being played again (Now he has realised the true extract of the song) —– Sorry for the poor narration and forgive me if there is wrong interpretation if any.

        My comment is there in Quora too

        Reply

        • Thank you for your elaborate comment. A few other readers have also mentioned the connection of the song with the flow of the movie. I am yet to find time to watch the movie, so I am not sure I have anything to add to your thoughts, but I am sure others will benefit from your insight on this blog and I am sure on Quora as well.
          Thanks for dropping by and taking the time to comment.

          Reply

  23. Thanks Krithya, like while I get the overall meaning of the song, I don’t know its meaning word by word, thanks for the translation and the interpretation.

    Reply

  25. This song is very close to my heart. It gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. You have done an amazing job illustrating it. Thank you.

    Reply

  27. Hi Krithya, at the outset, thank you for the translation.

    I was introduced to gangs of Wasseypur just recently and although all the songs are quite marvellous, this has to be the crown jewel.

    I think music, like art, is best left to every individual’s imagination. But as you’ve rightly said, knowing what the artist had in mind while writing this song would’ve been a treat to know; but certainly feels this way.

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  32. Thanks krithya g
    यह बहुत ही गहन अर्थ है। धन्यवाद इसे इस तरह से समजाने के लिए। सिर्फ गाना सुन कर और इसका अर्थ समज कर ही रोंगटे खड़े हो गए। में तो अंदाज भी नहीं लगा सकता कि मिश्रा के सामने बैठ कर अगर यह गाना सुना जाये तो क्या होगा।

    Reply

  33. Thanxxxxx … Have listened this song for hundreds of times ….
    Will u plz post the same for ye duniya song from movie gulal?

    Reply

  37. Hey Krithya,

    Subtle interpretation. Absolutely delighted and feeling enriched after reading this.

    Can u plzz help me and explain “ARDHSATYA” poem in the same way (line by line; Stanza by Stanza) written by Dilip Chitre. And beautifully used and recited in the movie with the same name “Ardhasatya”; Directed by Govind Nihilani.

    Reply

  40. in the song’s original version (seems to be) a yogi who’s in search for enlightenment said these words….a bit confused btwn the 2 of these…

    Reply

  41. your interpretation is way off…

    Ik bagal mein khankhanati sipiyaan ho jayengi,
    Ik bagal mein kuch rulaati siskiyaan ho jayengi
    Hum seepiyon mein bhar ke saare taare chun ke aayenge
    Aur siskiyon ko gudgudi kar kar ke yun behlayenge

    In interpretation you wrote it as comparison between sad moments and happy moments and you r inferring how protagonist will convert sad into happy one…
    but in reality its a comaprison between rich and poor… and how poor is trying to console himself with fake items when he can not get the real ones…word ‘behlayenge’ is important here to understand this here

    Reply

    • That could be one way of looking at it and I appreciate the time you took to comment 🙂
      I however fail to understand why tickles and laughter cannot be used to entertain or console sadness, and why “behlaayenge” could not have been used in that context.
      That said, I do not claim this is THE interpretation, it is just ‘an’ interpretation. I wonder though what Piyush jee had in mind when he wrote it, but then once out there isn’t the interpretation at the discretion of the listener?

      Reply

      • Yes, it is. And that’s the essence of good poetry, no ?
        There can be many interpretions and every interpretation as genuine as the other depending on how it emotionally connects with the reader/listener.
        However, for me the context is enmeshed with the plot of the movie GoW and as such I do agree and appreciate your interpretation, I would prefer a bit more intensity, as in every step being struggle for survival. I don’t have alternative interpretation though :p but 3 lines that strike discordant.

        “Yaad rakh par koi anhoni nahi tu laayegi,laayegi to fir kahani aur kuch ho jayegi ”

        In rendition Piyush Mishra makes it threatening which confuses me since it is addressed to mother. My only guess would be, it is being addressed to destiny/fate/life because of the meaning of the verse that follows but then, as I said I am not sure..

        “Hum maut ko sapna batakar uth khade honge yahin
        Aur honi ko thenga dikhakar khilkhilakate jayenge ”

        This could mean defiance of death even in death or not fearing death nor regretting while dying, thus not giving life/death the ultimate satisfaction and mocking fate by saying we go on our own terms and not because it was predestined. Do note the preceding lines belittle death “Hadd se jyada ye hi hoga ki yahin mar jayenge”, a dialogue Nawazuddin repeats in the movie “Ek hi jaan hai, Allah lega, mohalla lega” echoes the sentiment. As I said before, my understanding is also based on the plot of the movie which in essence depicts a world of violence and the characters fight for survival every moment.
        Makes sense ?

        Reply

  42. this interpretation actually changed the while meaning of the song.
    jaw dropping composition….and thanks to you for introducing this hidden winder to me/all!!!
    :):)

    Reply

  43. Thanks for the interpretation .I hope we witness more songs like these, this one is truly wonderfull . Such a simplicity in lryics though i find very hard to understand what he really wants to say . I will sure try to be more fearless in my life . Piyush mishra has really touches everones’s soul.

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  45. Suddenly i hit across this while i was looking for lyrics to read for one of my all time fav. I just loved the work and sweet narration and interpretation! Appreciate your thoughts and write-up Krithya 🙂

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  49. Dear

    Thanks a lot to make me cry , I may die very soon but I will listen to this song till the moment my last breathe leave my body and I will meet someone …..?

    Reply

  54. How i reached your page—
    I was listening to the song but i didn’t understand the meaning. So i asked my mother if she could explain to me what is the meaning of the song but she also didn’t understand .So the only option left for me was google.
    And first webpage that came while searching was yours

    Reply

  59. it was a great interpretation…. now i have started liking this song, even more! I always new tht there is a good interpretation to this song but never found out… well done!!!

    Reply

  63. Very nice work. I agree with both your and the youtube’s description, though more inclined towards the youtube’s one 🙂 I never learnt Hindi like it was supposed to be learnt 😦 This song has rekindled the love for my mother tongue. Piyush Mishra and Anurag Kashyap are my heroes 🙂

    Reply

  64. Hi Krithya,

    Thanks a lot for Lyrics & a beautiful interpretation.
    Actually i saw the movie last month only, both the parts one after another in a stretch.

    When i heard the song it reminds me of old hindi songs of 1950-60 era.

    I was going on listening the song, but could not make meaning of it.

    Today literally i heard the song 10 times, continuosly while coming from home to office but still the song was like some mystery , then just googled and found this meaning blog.

    Many many thanks to u.

    Regards
    Irshad

    Reply

  65. Hey Rahul
    Thank you! Yea I should have added this to the interpretation too. That was the way I saw the song too but I realize i did not mention it anywhere. Thank you for making that point!

    Reply

  66. Thanks for sharing. Its mesmerizing!

    Just to add a part here.

    The 1st and 2nd stanzas are by a mother to his child
    The 3rd stanza is,
    the boy talking to his mom saying that someday someone will come to share their sorrows, and to not to give up

    The 4th stanza is,
    mom telling the son that she is not afraid and that he too should not be afraid and be brave

    Reply

  71. Thanks for posting this! The first time I heard this song, I was left misty-eyed, did not quite understand what quality of the song made me so emotional. Now I get it, totally get it. Many thanks.

    Reply

      • Very nice interpretation, thanks for posting this. but just want to know , meaning of dat last line, hum honi ko thenga dikha kr khilkhilate jaenge, agar honi ki jgh anhoni likhta to kya meaning nikalta iska

        Reply

        • Thanks for dropping by, and well if “honi” was to be replaced by “anhoni”, the meaning would differ in the sense, “honi ko thenga dikha kar” would mean just mocking at everything that happens in life and moving on, like having a carefree attitude, while “anhoni ko thenga dikha kar” would mean mocking at a mishap and moving on, like overcoming a grief or accepting a loss, demonstrating strength in difficult times. In my opinion that is how the meaning would change. In the context of the song, well I am not very sure, because the song talks about a way of living and not a one time event. My two cents.

          Reply

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