Remembering Sahir Ludhianvi on his 96th birth anniversary

They say that the 'sweetest songs are those that sing of saddest thoughts' and perhaps it was these early life experiences which gave the young boy the power to tap into the depths of pain that could move his readers. Abdul Hai may have died on 25th October 1980, but the sahir or the magic of his poetry is immortal. There's an eternal flame named Sahir Ludhianvi burning in the hearts of poetry lovers all over the world. Abdul Hai was just 13 when his rich landowner father remarried and his mother divorced him and left her husband's house. The young boy was pitchforked into a battle for custody and legitimacy. His father Fazal Din took his mother to court, alleging that Sahir was illegitimate. The Lahore High Court gave the custody of the boy to the mother after establishing his legitimacy. This led to a strong bond between the mother and son and took on the tones of a fixation, which harmed his later relationships too. Apart from the mental trauma Sahir endured at such a young age, after having spent his childhood in luxury, he was now consigned a life of penury.