Heer Ranjha[a] (Punjabi:[ɦiɾɾaːnd͡ʒ(ʱ)aː]) is a traditional Punjabi folktragedy with many historic poetic narrations;[1] with the first one penned by Damodar Gulati in 1600s, on the preexisting oral legend; and the most famous one, Heer, written by Waris Shah in 1766, in the form of an epic. Set in Takht Hazara and Tilla Jogian, it follows the story of love, forced separation, and eventual simultaneous demise of two youths in the Punjabi countryside.[2]
Heer Ranjha has been written by several poets. Damodar Gulati, who was first to narrate the tale, claimed to be its eyewitness. His Qissa is deemed to be the oldest Heer in Punjabi literature. He stated himself to be from Jhang—the home of Heer. 16th century poet Shah Hussain also used the tale in his Kafi. Waris Shah later re-narrated the story in his novel in 1766, in which he stated that the story has a deeper meaning, referring to the unrelenting quest that man has towards God.[8]
Plot
Luddan ferries Ranjha across the Chenab
Heer (Izzat Bibi) is an extremely beautiful woman, born into a wealthy family belonging to the Sial clan,[9] while Dheedo Ranjha, who is from the Ranjha clan, is the youngest of four brothers and lives in the village of Takht Hazara by the Chenab river in rural Punjab.[10][11] Being his father's favourite son, unlike his brothers who have to toil in the lands, he leads a life of ease, playing the flute ('Wanjhli'/'Bansuri'). After the death of Ranjha's father, Mauju Chaudhry, Ranjha has a quarrel with his brothers over land, and leaves his home. In Waris Shah's version of the epic, Ranjha leaves home because his brothers' wives refused to serve him food.
Eventually he arrives in Heer's village and falls in love with her. Heer's father offers Ranjha a job of herding his cattle. Ranjha, routinely, plays his flute in the fields after work and Heer becomes mesmerized by it and eventually falls in love with him. They meet each other secretly for several years until they are caught by Heer's envious uncle, Kaido, and her parents Chuchak and Malki. Heer is forced by her family and the local priest (Maulvi) to marry another man named Saida Khera, belonging to the Khera clan.[2]
Ranjha is left heartbroken. He wanders the countryside alone, until he eventually meets a Jogi (ascetic). After meeting Gorakhnath, the legendary founder of the Kanphata (pierced ear) sect of Jogis at Tilla Jogian ("Hill of Ascetics"), Ranjha becomes a jogi himself, piercing his ears and renouncing the material world. While reciting the name of the Lord, he wanders all over Punjab, eventually finding the village where Heer now lives.
The two return to Heer's village, where Heer's parents agree to their marriage – though some versions of the tale state that the parents' agreement is only a deception. On the wedding day, Kaido, Heer's uncle, poisons her food in order to punish the girl for her behaviour. Hearing this news, Ranjha rushes to aid Heer, but is too late, as she has already eaten the poison-laced food and has died. Brokenhearted once again, Ranjha eats the remaining poisoned food and dies by her side.
Heer and Ranjha are buried in Heer's hometown, Jhang. Love-smitten couples and others often pay visit to their mausoleum.[2][12][13]
Because its plot involves a romance opposed by family members and ends with the two lovers dying, the story is often compared to the Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet.[15][16]
In popular culture
The epic poem has been made into several feature films since 1928:[17]
Sulochana and Dinshaw Billimoria in the movie Heer Ranjha (1929).
In 2013, the television serial Heer Ranjha, directed by Shahid Zahoor and produced by Yousuf Salahuddin, aired on PTV Home. Heer Ranjha is a 2020 Indian Punjabi-language period drama television series starring Amaninder Pal Singh and Sara Gurpal in the lead roles. It aired on Zee Punjabi and is based on the folktale of Heer and Ranjha.[19]
In music
Bally Jagpal British musician has a song named "Ranjha" dedicated to their story. The British musician Panjabi MC references the tale of Heer and Ranjha in his 2003 song Jogi.[20] It has been sung by various Pakistani singers, including the classical/traditional artist Ghulam Ali.
The tale is mentioned in popular Bollywood songs such as "Ranjha" by Rupesh Kumar Ram from the movie Queen ,"Ranjha Ranjha" by Rekha Bhardwaj and Javed Ali from the movie Raavan and "Dariya" from the movie Baar Baar Dekho.[citation needed]
The names of Heer and Ranjha have been referred in the song lyrics of "One Love: The Taj Anthem" by A.R. Rahman.[citation needed]
Also the movie Tamasha (2015) has some mentioning of their love story and also a song in that same movie starting with Heer's name.
Alam Lohar is renowned for reciting Heer in various styles and one of the first international folk singers to bring this story in a song format.[citation needed]
The song Khaireyan De Naal from Shafqat Amanat Ali's debut solo album, Tabeer (2008), tells the tale of Heer Ranjha.[21]
Also, the 2018 Hindi film Race 3 has a song named "Heeriye" which refers to Heer and Ranjha.
In 2020, popular Indian YouTuber Bhuvan Bam wrote and sang "Heer Ranjha". The song depicts the brutal customs of society in the Indian subcontinent and has garnered more than 10 million views.
In Raf Saperra's 2023 single "Ranjha", he sings from the perspective of Heer longing Ranjha's return after she is married off and he becomes a jogi.
Gallery
Marriage procession of Heer by a Lahori artist
Heer Ranjha and Qaido. Gujjar Singh Saudagar Kutubfrosh. Amritsar. ca.1875
Heer Ranjha - Two Women, Jodhpur school, watercolor, Tokyo National Museum.
^Akhund, Abdul Hamid (1993). Bhitai, the Message of the Master: An Anthology of Commentaries on the Poetry of Shah Abdul Latif. Shah Abdul Latif Bhitshah Cultural Centre Committee. p. 91. ISBN9789698100117. Numerous variants of Hir Ranjha exist not only in Panjabi, but also in Sindhi, Persian, and Balochi...
^Ikram, Sheikh Mohamad (1955). The cultural heritage of Pakistan. [Karachi; New York]: Oxford University Press. p. 151. There are five major folk romances [in Punjabi literature], Heer Ranjha, Sassi Punnu, Sohni Mahinwal, Mirza Sahiban, Puran Bhagat. Of these Heer Ranjha is the most popular romance...
^Re-Thinking Punjab: The Construction of Siraiki Identity. Lahore : Research and Publication Centre: Hussain Ahmed Khan. 2004. p. 130. ISBN978-9-69862-309-8.
^Transition and Transformation in Varis Shah's Hir. Snell, Rupert (eds.). The Indian Narrative: Perspectives and Patterns. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag.: Shackle, Christopher. 1992. p. 253. ISBN978-3-44703-241-4.
^Ikram, Sheikh Mohamad (1955). The cultural heritage of Pakistan. [Karachi; New York]: Oxford University Press. pp. 151–152.
^Moretti, Franco (2006). The Novel: History, geography, and culture. Princeton University Press. p. 603. ISBN978-0-691-04947-2. Retrieved 20 April 2022. Qissa in Arabic merely means "story," but in the Indian subcontinent it came to mean specifically a "verse-narrative telling the tragic story of two young people who love each other beyond discretion." Well-known examples of this genre are Laila-Majnu, Heer-Ranjha, Sassi-Punno, Soni-Mahiwal, and Yusuf-Zulekha (written roughly between the sixteenth and the eighteenth centuries)
Swynnerton, Charles (1903). "The Love Story of Hîr and Rânjha". Romantic Tales From Punjab. Westminster: Archibald Constable & Co. Ltd. pp. 1–69.
Gill, Harjeet Singh (2003). Heer Ranjha and other legends of the Punjab. New Delhi: Harman Publishing House. pp. 1–36. ISBN81-86622-60-8.
Further reading
Mir, Farina (2006). "Genre and Devotion in Punjabi Popular Narratives: Rethinking Cultural and Religious Syncretism". Comparative Studies in Society and History. 48 (3): 727–58. doi:10.1017/S0010417506000284.
