Javed Akhtar’s “Aansu” is a deeply introspective poem that explores the mystery of human emotion and the hidden origins of empathy. At first glance, the poem seems to describe a simple reaction—tears forming after hearing a friend’s sorrow. Yet Akhtar gradually reveals that this tear is not born in that moment; it has existed long before, stored somewhere between the heart and the eyes, in a shadowed inner world of memories, disappointments, and buried grief.
The poet turns a single tear into a symbol of emotional inheritance. It carries the weight of unexpressed sorrows, forgotten wounds, and suppressed compassion. Akhtar suggests that sensitivity is not created by one event alone; it is shaped by countless unseen experiences. The tear becomes “orphaned” because its original pain has already died, leaving it without a clear cause or owner. Still, it longs for meaning and release.
When another person’s story of suffering passes by, the tear finally finds a reason to exist. It attaches itself to that pain, using it as a path to the surface. In this moment, grief becomes shared, and compassion becomes visible.
Through simple language and powerful metaphors, “Aansu” transforms a tear into a moving reflection on human connection, emotional memory, and the quiet ways we carry one another’s pain.
Aansu – JAVED AKHTAR
kisī kā ġham sun ke
merī palkoñ pe
ek aañsū jo aa gayā hai
ye aañsū kyā hai
ye aañsū kyā ik gavāh hai
merī dard-mandī kā merī insān-dostī kā
ye aañsū kyā ik subūt hai
merī zindagī meñ ḳhulūs kī ek raushnī kā
ye aañsū kyā ye batā rahā hai
ki mere siine meñ ek hassās dil hai
jis ne kisī kī dil-doz dāstāñ jo sunī
to sun ke taḌap uThā hai
parā.e sho.aloñ meñ jal rahā hai
pighal rahā hai
magar meñ phir ḳhud se pūchhtā huuñ
ye dāstāñ to abhī sunī hai
ye aañsū bhī kyā abhī Dhalā hai
ye aañsū
kyā maiñ ye samjhūñ
pahle kahīñ nahīñ thā
mujhe to shak hai ki ye kahīñ thā
ye mere dil aur merī palkoñ ke darmiyāñ
ik jo fāsla hai
jahāñ ḳhayāloñ ke shahr zinda haiñ
aur ḳhvāboñ kī turbateñ haiñ
jahāñ mohabbat ke ujḌe bāġhoñ meñ
talḳhiyoñ ke babūl haiñ
aur kuchh nahīñ hai
jahāñ se aage haiñ
uljhanoñ ke ghanere jañgal
ye aañsū
shāyad bahut dinoñ se
vahīñ chhupā thā
jinhoñ ne is ko janam diyā thā
vo rañj to maslahat ke hāthoñ
na jaane kab qatl ho ga.e the
to kartā phir kis pe naaz aañsū
ki ho gayā be-javāz aañsū
yatīm aañsū yasīr aañsū
na mo’tabar thā
na rāstoñ se hī bā-ḳhabar thā
to chalte chalte
vo tham gayā thā
ThiThak gayā thā
jhijhak gayā thā
idhar se aaj ik kisī ke ġham kī
kahānī kā kārvāñ jo guzrā
yatīm aañsū ne jaise jaanā
ki is kahānī kī sarparastī mile
to mumkin hai
raah paanā
to ik kahānī kī uñglī thāme
usī ke ġham ko rūmāl kartā
isī ke baare meñ
jhūTe sachche savāl kartā
ye merī palkoñ tak aa gayā hai