Pinjare Ke Panchi Re Tera Dard Na Jane Koi English Translation

Pinjare ke panchi re tera dard na jane koi, approximates to English as, dear caged bird, nobody understands your sorrow... It is a song from the 1957 film Naag Mani, and the best version I have ever heard was sung by Kavi Pradeep. The lyrics of the song compares by juxtaposition a caged bird, with the human soul trapped within the body; Just as the soul cannot express its sorrow, neither can a caged bird, and consequently they keep this sorrow hidden within them. The song describes a condition where both are destined to a cruel life, and how both are unable to express their sorrow to a world that is essentially heartless (patthar) anyway.

Nobody is ever truly happy and in many ways we are all trapped in this miserable existence, and we all cry deep inside without showing anyone. Even if you could express it, the world is heartless anyway and nobody is yours. In this world very few will listen to your sorrow and give you a hand up, majority of the people will likely bring you down.

It is of course extremely cruel and bad karma to hold birds and animals captive in cages, not to mention a health risk of plagues and diseases. Unfortunately the world is patthar (heartless), and in many parts in the Far East they still trap birds and hold them in cages.

Chupke, chupke, rone vale, is generalised to refer to those that cry silently. In Sanskrit there is a similar term moonga prani, which refers to living things with a soul that cry silently because they cannot speak. This term also covers cats, dogs, elephants, donkeys, and all animals that often cry inside, due to human cruelty which occurs far too often around the world.

Meaning, Context, and Approximations

Vidhi, the god of destiny, as in bhagiya devta

Kahini, story

Bhitar, within (usually within the heart). Repitition of the word expresses deeply within.

Dard, sorrow, as in dukh(Gujarati)

Khamosh, quiet, silent

Katha, in this context, the complete life story that god writes for every living thing.

Kalam, pen

Chhale, sores, wounds

Pagalee, a jovial term to call someone silly when they do not understand. Although it could mean mad, that term is too strong in this context.

Desh, country, however, it sounds better if we expand it apply to the whole world, because after all, the whole world is heartless (patthar), so why stop at a country...

Patthar, stone, however in this context he means the people of the world are stone-hearted or heartless.

Panchi, bird, which represents the soul.

Pinjare, cage, which represents the material body

Chupke, silently

Chhupake, keeping hidden

English Translation

Pinjare ke panchi re, tera dard na jane koi.

Dear caged bird, nobody understands your sorrow.

Bahar se tu khamosh rahe tu, bhitar bhitar roy re.

From outside you remain quiet, (but) deep within you cry so much.

Kahe na sake tu, apni kahani,

You are unable to say your (life) story,

teri bhi panchi, kya zindgani re.

even you too bird, what kind of life you have?

Here, it appears to be making a rhetorical question that even the bird is not spared and suffers great sorrow.

Vidhi ne teri katha likhi,

The god of destiny wrote your life story,

aansuoo mein kalam duboi.

by dipping the pen in tears.

The bigger meaning here is that even god cried when he had to write this story, because he did so using his tears as ink...

Chupke, chupke, rone vale,

Silently, silently, those who cry,

Those who cry silently,

rakhna chhupake, dil ke chhale re,

keeping hidden, the wounds of their heart,

yea patthar ka desh hain, pagale, koi na tera hoy...

this world is heartless, silly, nobody is yours...