— Divan-e-Ghalib, from the ghazal "poochhte hain wo ke Ghalib kaun hai"
About this quote
देवनागरी:
पूछते हैं वो कि ‘ग़ालिब’ कौन है
कोई बतलाओ कि हम बतलाएँ क्या
English: They ask, ‘Who is this Ghalib?’ — someone tell me, what am I to say?
Meaning: The beloved pretends not to know who Ghalib is; the poet stands mid-sentence, disarmed. Vanity, hurt, and amusement in perfect balance — how do you introduce yourself to someone determined not to know you?
अर्थ: वो पूछते हैं ‘ग़ालिब कौन है?’ — इस अनजान बनने पर क्या ही जवाब दिया जाए। अनदेखी का इतना ख़ूबसूरत गिला और कहाँ।
An authentic couplet from the Divan-e-Ghalib, the collected Urdu ghazals of Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib (1797–1869), from the ghazal beginning “poochhte hain wo ke Ghalib kaun hai”. Transliteration and English rendering are our own.
