Punjabi Folklore! What you think about it? I think it is great!!!
Folklore is the backbone of any culture and in case of Punjabi culture if you take out the religion and its folklore nothing is left. Punjab, not the Punjab of today, the Pakistani Punjab or Indian Punjab but the Punjab that lies as a flat plate on the face of this round planet surrounded by mountains on the north and west to the deserts of Haryana and Rajsthan on the east and south, that shares a common thread of its folklore regardless of the religion of its people.
What you think about its folk songs, boliyaN, tappey, Mahia,dholla, gidha, bhangRa, kikkli? The songs sung when a Punjabi is born, when he falls in love when he marries when he dies are the songs that carry very strong emotions and deep feelings of not only the people who sing it but each and every Punjabi who ever lived and died on and around the land of five rivers.
You can find the mention of stuff related to every facet of Punjabi life from haar-shingaar of a Punjabi mutiaar to the names of the birds who inhibit Punjab as their home.
Haar-Shingaar: Kaantey,WaliaN, chownk,jugani, chand, munderi, tikka,kaintha,nattiyaN,nath,machhli,teeli, taweet,baaju-band,pari-band,jhanjraN,panjebaN, chhalla etc.
Birds:Koyal, chakore, moor,koonjh,totey,bagaley,ghugiyaN,kaaN…
You find the mention of Punjabi towns of one time or the other, Multan,Lahore,Kashmeer, Pashore,Kasur,Naarowal,Jehlam, JagraoN, Doaba, RahoN, Patiala, Pathankot etc…
Ever since I started reading Punjabi as a hobby(which was when I left my high School), no other piece of Punjabi literarute have influenced me more than the Punjabi Folklore. I also know that stuff that I read is mostly documented in East Punjab although most of it is also common with West Punjab. My belief is that Punjabi folklore’s best strength is its oral traditions which have weakened a bit in the east Punjab in last many decades but have been strong enough in West Punjab even today.
I have seen glympes of Punjabi folklore on Gup Shup forums once in a while from NaikLarki, NYAhmadi,Sadaf, Ramis,Mahnoor and many others which I really like and probably the strongest reason for me to stick around to the Gup Shup.
Punjabi lok-geet’s take you on a step by step journey of Punjab and we regard them as the travel-log of Punjabi life.
Let us use this thread to share the pieces of Punjabi Lok-geet, boliyaN,tappey etc that we like the most and also discuus how they represent the Punjabi life today and past.
I will start with some favourite BoliyaN.
Boliyan: Gidha and BhangRa is the dance of Punjab and BoliyaN are an integral part of this dance. BhangRa is usually the dance done by males and Gidha is done by females although with the modern advances in music and our ingnorance about the classic nature of these dances the the line between the two is getting very gray and most people(at least in the Westren countries) are starting to call BhangRa. Boli (plural is BiliyaN) is a poetic couplet or a verse that is sung while doing Gidha or BhangRa. For example the following:
A young girl complains about her husband being anpaRh or not well educated. The irony is that she thinks middle pass is well-educated.. 
baahRi barsiN khattan giya si khatt ke lyanda feeta,
tere ghar nahi wassna, tooN Middle pass na keeta…
In old days, married women used to do ‘parda’ from elder male in-laws which was called ‘ghund’ or ‘Kuhnd’. Here is a smart Punjaban with a plan to get rid of it.
kori kori koondi vich mirchaN ragaRaN,
sahurey(father-in-law) di ukh vich paa daini aan,
Kuhnd kadney da alakh mukkaa daini aan…
some more;
gorey rung ne sadda nahi rehna,
bhar bhar vandd muthiyaN.
gora rung na kisey nooN Rabb daivey,
sara pind vairr pai giya.
gora rung na gawaa laNyee kuRiye,
laalach ladooaN de.**
gorey rung nooN koi na puchhda,
mull paindey aklaN de.
na daiviN mayeiN GujraNwaley,
GujraNwaley de mundey kaaley,
mein rajj ke sohni hoi aan ni…
ni mein rajj ke sohni hi aan ni…ni mein rajj ke…ni mein rajj ke…
**lai jaa chhalliyaN, bhunna laiN daaney,
mitra door diya…
**
photo khichni gwandaney teri ni,
kandh uttey rakh camera.
mundey mar gai kamaiyaN kardey,
Lachhi, tere band na banney
Rabba lag na kisey nooN javey,
guRh naaloN ishaq mitha.
These were some selective boliyaN. There are many many more boliyaN and Punjabi lok-geets for many different occasions. Please post any such piece that you like most. Thanks
There are situations described in some of these Punjabi lok-geets that are very unique in many cases but are very coomon in others. There is a Punjabi lok-geet believed to be composed by some unknown Muslim mother whose only son went to fight for Britain in world war one and she describes her and her daughter-in-laws pain in this song and pleads the Firangi Hakkumat to stop the war and return their peace home. This is so touching that probably could make the motto song for world peace instead of that stupid ghuggi(dove) by Picaso. :)or is it kabooter.
CM
PS: here is a special one for NaikLarki------->Naiki khatt lainge, mithiaN zubaanaN waley.