Khuda ke bande samhal jaa: Kapil Sibal pens lyrics keeping Modi in mind

New Delhi: Veteran lawyer, seasoned politician, parliamentarian and former Union minister – after all this Kapil Sibal has added a new descriptor to his name: lyricist. The hard-nosed lawyer is into writing lyrics in Hindi. Romantic duets, qawwalis, political satire-based songs and item numbers penned by Sibal will soon be part of Hindi films and some albums. Ahead of the announcement of the upcoming Hindi film Zainab- A Celebration of Humanity, and the release of its music album, in which all the songs have been written by Sibal, he speaks more about his passion and less about politics in a tête-à-tête with Firstpost. [caption id=“attachment_2236344” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Former Union Minister Kapil Sibal speaking exclusively to Firstpost ahead of his film music launch. Naresh Sharma/Firstpost[/caption] “Iss jahan mein mera kuch bhi nahi hai; Jo mera hai, who mera nahi hai (In this world nothing is mine and whatever seems to be mine, is also not mine)." Sibal plays this melodious song with a philosophical undertone, written by him and sung by Adnan Sami for a yet-to-be-released unnamed film. He says, “I write songs and poetry out of passion and not to make money. My legal profession takes care of that. I have been writing poetry in English, but later I realised the readership of English poetry is much less and it’s Hindi that connects with a larger audience and touches millions of hearts in India. So, now I’ve got into writing poetry and lyrics for Hindi films and music albums.” This astute politician already has two published anthologies of English poetry and is now planning the third. Also in pipeline are an anthology of Hindi poems and a semi-autobiographical book based on his rich political experience. “But these are future plans. Right now, I’m enjoying penning songs, especially during the morning hour, after having my bath. Time is a big constraint for me.” The forthcoming album, however, is not Sibal’s first. His first album Raunaq composed by AR Rahman has seven songs sung by Lata Mangeshkar, AR Rahman, Shreya Ghoshal, Mohit Chauhan, etc; it was released in September 2014. Besides, he has already penned a semi-classical love duet for Hindi film Bandook. What was his criterion for agreeing to write lyrics for the songs, including a Qawwali for Zainab? “The producer-director of the film met me and narrated the storyline. It’s a love story loosely based on the backdrop of Muzaffarnagar riots. I liked the theme and agreed. In another forthcoming film, Pritam has composed music for the songs I’ve written. I’ve even written item songs,” laughs Sibal. His love for the world of entertainment, however, is not recent. “I also used to act and direct plays, when I was young,” he shares. Childhood and children seem to be close to his heart as he plays the ‘best song’ written by him, which has been sung by Hariharan: “Wo khoya hua bachpan mujhe wapas lauta de  (Give me back my lost childhood).” It was his love for children and education that had led him to steer the historic Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, popularly called the Right to Education (RTE) Act, through Parliament to become a reality. Implemented during his tenure as Union HRD minister in 2010, the Act faced criticism for contributing to the decline in education standards and seriousness amongst students, despite its noble intent. He avoids talking politics these days. But on prodding, his disapproval of the functioning of the HRD ministry comes clear. He sounded critical the way the ministry under the Modi government has been functioning. “Lesser we talk about them, better it is. They came with an agenda to saffronize the education system and that’s what they are doing. Better not to talk about the HRD minister.” Maintaining a stoic silence on politics, Congress and Rahul Gandhi, Sibal hums a number penned by him and sung by Adnan Sami: “Yeh daud hai aisi jise koi jeete ya hare; Yeh daud hai aisi jahan jeete na koi, na koi haare (It’s such a race (politics), where either one wins or loses; It’s such a race where no one wins and no one loses)" “I’m not out of politics. But, I’ve promised not to comment on politics for a year, till May end. But, after that I’ll be back,” asserts Sibal. But, he wants to give a message to PM Narendra Modi, through one of his songs. “I wrote this one keeping Narendra Modi in mind.” “Khuda ke bande samhal jaa, waqt hai samhal jaa; Mat kar ek dooje ka hamlaa, kuch hi dino ka jumlaa..Insaan ban kar dikha de. (Beware! You representative of God, Don’t unleash attack on one another, life is a matter of few days…Be humane and show it)." Before signing-off, Sibal introduces his little granddaughter Gauri, who is his constant companion, and adds, “She’s the biggest fan of my songs and critic as well.”