VMPL
New Delhi [India], August 28: Urdu poetry is often described as the language of the heart–a deeply expressive medium through which love, longing, and loss are delicately explored. It blends elegance and intensity, articulating the deepest human emotions in compact, musical forms. In A Lover’s Sigh by Ajit Singh Dutta, these emotions come to life through carefully translated ghazals and poems from legendary Urdu poets such as Ghalib, Faiz, and Sahir Ludhianvi. Each verse in the collection resonates with emotional complexity, demonstrating how Urdu poetry transcends language to reach the universal human soul. The experience is enhanced by Dutta’s Introduction which offers the reader an understanding of the historical context and the structural confines that define this poetic artform.
Love in Urdu poetry is rarely simple–it’s multi-layered, nuanced, and often unfulfilled. The beloved is portrayed not just as a person, but as a symbol of unattainable beauty or divine perfection. This theme is central to many poems in A Lover’s Sigh, where Ajit Singh Dutta presents readers with English versions of iconic love verses that capture both infatuation and reverence. The pain of separation is not seen as a weakness, but a testament to the intensity of love. Ajit Singh Dutta’s translations respect the original poets’ voices while offering clarity to modern readers unfamiliar with the cultural context of the ghazal. Hyperlinks in the book’s e-version and QR codes in the paperback edition take the reader to recorded and archived performances, recitals, and movie clips of many of the poems featured.
Longing–intezaar–is perhaps the most enduring theme in Urdu verse. It is the anticipation of reunion, the hope for a message, a glance, or a word from the beloved. In A Lover’s Sigh, Ajit Singh Dutta captures this ache through poignant selections that reflect a state of emotional suspension. Whether it’s Ghalib’s wistful musings or Faiz’s revolutionary sorrow, longing is always at the center. This longing is often more powerful than fulfillment, as it sharpens emotion, keeping the heart engaged in perpetual search. Ajit Singh Dutta’s interpretive translations let readers feel that yearning, not just read about it.
Loss is not the end in Urdu poetry–it is often the beginning of deeper insight. The death of a dream, the betrayal of trust, or the fading of youth are all common motifs. These moments of heartbreak are treated with philosophical grace, becoming the soil in which resilience and wisdom grow. In A Lover’s Sigh, Ajit Singh Dutta does not shy away from this darkness. His translations show how pain is transformed into beauty, with every word crafted to preserve the lyrical melancholy that defines the ghazal. The emotional landscape of the book is rich and fertile, seeded with sorrow but blooming with expression.
While love and loss are timeless, the context of emotion in Urdu poetry has also evolved. In the 20th century, poets like Sahir Ludhianvi began to link personal despair with societal injustice, creating a new form of protest poetry. A Lover’s Sigh by Ajit Singh Dutta honors this progression by including poems that speak not only of romantic or spiritual longing, but also of collective grief. This blend of the personal and political gives the book a broader emotional range, connecting individual heartache with communal struggle, and showing how poetry can be both intimate and transformative.
The reason Urdu poetry continues to resonate is because it speaks the language of feeling with unmatched elegance. Its ability to articulate the ineffable–the unspoken pangs of the heart–is what makes it timeless. A Lover’s Sigh by Ajit Singh Dutta serves as a bridge for modern readers to experience this legacy. Through his loving translations and cultural insights, Ajit Singh Dutta offers access to a poetic world where every emotion is honored, every wound is sung, and every sigh holds meaning. This emotional landscape is not confined to history–it lives on in every heart that dares to feel deeply.
About Author
Ajit Singh Dutta (March 1944-November 2022) was born and raised in Jamshedpur, India, a place he referred to as “paradise” throughout his life. At the conclusion of his university studies in India, he moved to England to pursue his professional credentials, becoming a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. He lived and worked on four continents, ultimately settling in the U.S. where he received an MBA from the George Washington University and owned a successful financial management consulting company. Ajit received an MFA degree in 2016 from the University of California, Riverside. Throughout his life, he pursued his passion of writing, poetry and photography. Ajit is a published poet and author in English with “A Father’s Poems” (2000) and “My Father’s Ring: The Story of a Lost Romance” (2023), along with other works having been anthologized. Ajit passed away in 2022. His book of translated Urdu ghazals “A Lover’s Sigh: The Passion of Urdu Poetry” was originally published in 2021 and has been reformatted posthumously in 2025 by his wife, Bonnie Galat.
Contact Information
This revised edition was published posthumously. Please contact Bonnie L. Galat to request a review copy or schedule an interview to learn more about his book.
Availability
Ajit Singh’s Dutta’s “A Lover’s Sigh: The Passion of Urdu Poetry” is available on Amazon.
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HINDI, MARATHI, GUJARATI, TAMIL, TELUGU, BENGALI, KANNADA, ORIYA, PUNJABI, URDU, MALAYALAM
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