I hail from a small place called Aligarh. Well, there's nothing special about that place per se ;), but still, I miss the environs, the culture, and most of all, the university. The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) , and surrounding areas are places that I grew up in. We did not have any happening places. When I was little, going to the Staff Club on weekends forĀ a bowl of ice-cream had its own charm, and was eagerly awaited.
Every once in a while I'm reminded of the aura and the tranquility of that place. Although I did not have the honour to pursue academics at AMU much, still I felt, and still do, being a part of it. May be that's because my parents were working there, and my momĀ and sis still are.
Me and my sisters used to love the AMU taraana, or the university anthem. Albeit little did I understand the hand-picked urdu words used in it. But it did invoke a sense of belonging in my heart everytime we used to listen to it. The taraana was sung on special occasions in chorus. I used to (try to) sing along, but had to hum at a number of places, which had tough words ;).
It went something like:
Ye mera chaman, hai mera chaman,
Main apne chaman ka bulbul hun...
and towards the end, there's a verse:
Jo abr yahan sey uthha hai...
Woh abr yahin par barsegaa...
Khud apne chaman par barsegaa..
Ghairon ke chaman par barsegaa..
Roughly translated to english as:
The clouds that have risen from here..
Shall pour here...
Shall pour in this land...
Shall pour in others' lands...
Well, not many a clouds have poured in AMU, than have elsewhere. But I believe this would change.
Salutations to the place that is, and shall always be, close to my heart.