Quiet calm and still I stood
Only a storm raged in the sea nearby
Then god knows what struck the sea—
It gathered its storm in a bundle
Thrust it into my hands
And laughing withdrew into the distance…
I was amazed yet I seized his miracle
For I knew —how rare an event this was
A million thoughts appeared
and flickered through my mind
But motionless I stood
For how could I carry this into my city?
Each lane of my city was narrow
Each roof of my city was low
Each wall of my city, a rumour
I thought, if I found you somewhere
Then carrying it on our breasts like the sea
Like two shores we could laugh together
And in the low-roofed
And narrow-laned city settle together…
But the whole afternoon was spent in your search
And I ended up swallowing down my fire
My own lone shore I wore out
And as the day began to fade—
I handed the sea-storm back to the sea
Now as night begins to fall
You have appeared
You are sad, quiet, calm, and still
I am sad, quiet, calm, and still
Only—a storm rages in the sea afar…
***
Translator’s Note
Amrita Pritam wrote two poems titled “Ik Mulakat”, both of which appeared in the collection Kagaz Aur Canvas (1973). This one seems to be written for the painter Imroz (1926- 2023), whom she met in 1959, and who would go on to become her lifelong partner of 45 years. As a divorcée with two children, she faced much social censure for being with a man seven years younger than herself—an obstacle that she struggled to reconcile herself with, even as Imroz appears to have been unfazed by it. She used the metaphors of ‘afternoon’ and ‘evening’ to express her anguish at their age difference and this seems to have become a recurring motif in their exchanges. In their letters to each other, published in the book Khaton Ka Safarnama, we find her ruing:
“तुम मुझे संध्या के समय क्यों मिले?
ज़िन्दगी का सफ़र ख़तम होने वाला है। तुम्हें अगर मिलना था, तो ज़िन्दगी की दोपहर को मिलते, उस दोपहर का सेंक तो देख लेते।”
(“Why did I find you in the evening of my life? The journey of this life is nearing its end. If you had to arrive, it should have been in the afternoon, when we could have still enjoyed its warmth”; Pritam and Imroz 18; my trans)
Imroz wrote back to her,
“अगर यह हसीन शाम है, तो मैं इस शाम को मन की मजबूती के साथ मर्दानगी के साथ और अपनी दोपहर के साथ गुज़ारूंगा जीऊंगा।
वक्त चाहे दूर खड़ा होकर देखता रहे और चाहे हमारे साथ होकर देखे, पर हम जीएंगे और वक्त से कहीं ज्यादा खूबसूरत जीएंगे।”
(“If this is a beautiful evening, then I would like to spend this evening [with you] and live it with all the firmness of my mind, with my virility, and my afternoon. Whether Time watches us as a distant witness, or a close companion, we shall live, and far more beautifully than Time itself. ; Pritam and Imroz 24; my trans).
The poem can also be read as the yearning of the female creative spirit to break free from the confines of the ‘low-roofed’, ‘narrow-laned’, and ‘rumour-walled’ city of phallocentric discourse—themes central to psychoanalytical and poststructuralist feminist thought. The poet imagines an alternative creative economy, where the female artistic self (I) and its male other (you) can share the gift (and responsibility) of creative tempest in fruitful companionship. Although the poem ends on a note of lament for lost time, in her own life, Amrita seems to have found such companionship with Imroz, who remained devoted to her not only till her death in 2005, but till his own in 2023.
Amrita Pritam (1919-2005) was born in Gujranwala in present-day Pakistan and died in Delhi, India. She was a poet, writer, editor, and translator, who wrote primarily in Punjabi and Hindi. Prominent publications include the novel ‘Pinjar’ (1950), the poetry collections ‘Kagaz Te Canvas’ (1970) and ‘Main Tainu Pher Milangi’ (2004), and her memoir, ‘Raseedi Ticket’ (1976). Among the many literary honours she received over her lifetime are the Padma Vibhushan (2004), Jnanpith Award (1981), Sahitya Akademi Fellowship for Lifetime Achievement (2005), Lifetime Achievement Award by World Punjabi Congress (2003), and the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (1987).
Original Poem Copyright © Aman Kwatra (1973). Translation Copyright © Rituparna Sengupta (2025). Used by permission.
Pritam, Amrita, and Imroz. Amrita Pritam Aur Imroz Ke Khaton Ka Safarnama. Edited by Uma Trilok, Penguin Random House, 2018.
Photo by Art Institute of Chicago on Unsplash