In Urdu, the most common word for water is paanii, which comes from Sanskrit. But alongside it lives another word—short, elegant, and surprisingly rich in meaning: aab. Borrowed from Persian, aab has shaped a wide range of Urdu expressions, metaphors ...continue reading

If I ask “ do you know the meaning of gul گُل , you might smile and say that anyone with even a little interest in Urdu knows that gul means flower. Many even call classical Urdu poetry “gul-o-bulbul ki shāyri” — poetry of flowers and nightingales ...continue reading

Friendship has always been one of the gentlest emotions expressed in Urdu. Our language does not merely offer words for friends — it gives us shades of affection, companionship, and intimacy. From dost to yaar and ham-dam, each word carries a world o ...continue reading

The Journey of a Word through Air, Desire, and Imaginatio ...continue reading

If I ask you, “What does bajāna mean?” — you might laugh and say, “Who doesn’t know that? It means to play — like bajāna sitar, bajāna tabla! ...continue reading

In Urdu, the word tamaasha (تماشہ) has a sparkle—it can mean a show, a spectacle, or even a scene that draws eyes and laughter ...continue reading

At first glance, the word harf (حرف) in Urdu seems simple. It means a single letter of the alphabet. Its plural, hurūf (حروف), comes up in phrases like hurūf-e-tahajjī (حروفِ تہجی) — the alphabet we all learned as children. In grammar, a harf (حرف) c ...continue reading

The Story of a Skyward Idio ...continue reading

Where language, love, and soul meet in Urdu’s words for the hear ...continue reading

The monsoon told through Sanskrit, Persian, and Urd ...continue reading