Every December, or perhaps October, a song comes along that just captivates me. This year I was lucky to have encountered such songs in both October and December; this is the December one. (October was St. Lucia's "Elevate" which needs no English translation!)
Any corrections to lyrics or comments on how I can improve the translation would be welcomed. I am really just a beginner at this.
Thanks to Supriyo S. Daisy P. Sangeeta D. Rajlakshmi R. Anabil P., Anirban M., Rakesh S., and all other wonderful people who have given their input and entertained my obsessive discussions :)
হাওয়া - ডামাডোল
Hawa - Damadol
Wind (from the film Damadol - "Chaos")
chup chap kichu kotha
ure beray
emni kichu kotha
ghure beray
silently some thoughts fly away
and like that, other thoughts wander about
bolte gelei bhul ekrash uro chul
pathore photena holud buno phool
misunderstood words fly around
like your hair in the wind
yellow wildflowers don't bloom on stone
sudhu hawa... eshe songe niye jay
kichu kotha hariye jay
only the wind comes to take them away;
these details get lost
purono chithi, notun ekta kham
paltaina kichui tobu rakhi daknam
an old letter in a new envelope
nothing has changed, but still i give it a new name
thonter kone hashi, bhetore jokhon
aajkal shob kichui khub onnorokom
i'm laughing on the outside,
but inside i feel very different these days
tai hawa... eshe songe niye jay
kichu kotha hariye jay
so the wind comes to take them away,
these details get lost
teen char te mon kharap
ekta bhanga din
baloonwalar beshe dukhi aladin
restless at three or four in the morning; a ruined day
sad Aladin in balloon-seller guise*
*(balloon-seller is someone who gives happiness to others)
bondhur pocket-e ochena ticket
mitthe ashwashe kobita likhi
in my friend's pocket hides an unknown ticket...
but it is in false hope that i write this song
aaj hawa... eshe songe niye jay
kichu kotha hariye jay
today the wind comes to take me away
these details get lost
Any corrections to lyrics or comments on how I can improve the translation would be welcomed. I am really just a beginner at this.
Thanks to Supriyo S. Daisy P. Sangeeta D. Rajlakshmi R. Anabil P., Anirban M., Rakesh S., and all other wonderful people who have given their input and entertained my obsessive discussions :)
হাওয়া - ডামাডোল
Hawa - Damadol
Wind (from the film Damadol - "Chaos")
chup chap kichu kotha
ure beray
emni kichu kotha
ghure beray
silently some thoughts fly away
and like that, other thoughts wander about
bolte gelei bhul ekrash uro chul
pathore photena holud buno phool
misunderstood words fly around
like your hair in the wind
yellow wildflowers don't bloom on stone
sudhu hawa... eshe songe niye jay
kichu kotha hariye jay
only the wind comes to take them away;
these details get lost
purono chithi, notun ekta kham
paltaina kichui tobu rakhi daknam
an old letter in a new envelope
nothing has changed, but still i give it a new name
thonter kone hashi, bhetore jokhon
aajkal shob kichui khub onnorokom
i'm laughing on the outside,
but inside i feel very different these days
tai hawa... eshe songe niye jay
kichu kotha hariye jay
so the wind comes to take them away,
these details get lost
teen char te mon kharap
ekta bhanga din
baloonwalar beshe dukhi aladin
restless at three or four in the morning; a ruined day
sad Aladin in balloon-seller guise*
*(balloon-seller is someone who gives happiness to others)
bondhur pocket-e ochena ticket
mitthe ashwashe kobita likhi
in my friend's pocket hides an unknown ticket...
but it is in false hope that i write this song
aaj hawa... eshe songe niye jay
kichu kotha hariye jay
today the wind comes to take me away
these details get lost
Very interesting, Andrea!
ReplyDeleteSome words in Bengali have such an expanded meaning, I hardly know what to think of them when I read them. Kotha is one such. "Thoughts" sounds right to me in the first lines, but then I am surprised by "small things". Not that I am saying it's wrong...I actually don't know if "small things" is appropriate or not.
It's interesting also to see "daaknaam", which has it's own specific meaning. But seems to me it would be impossible to get that meaning into a poem and stll keep the mood. There is just no word in English. Nickname? That would be strange.
The rest of it sounds right to me, for whatever good that does. As far as translation goes, if you are a beginner, I am a beginner in the sense that it is used on Livemocha, meaning, haven't even got started yet, but have occaisionally entertained the notion of trying ! :)
On the other hand, I have known a lot of translators and writers over the years. Many of them are more poets than linguists, don't know the TL very well at all, and work extensively with native speakers. !
That said, I like the mood a lot.
I'll post this on our site too, to share.