Songs for the Sleepless

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It probably won’t surprise many people if I mention that these days we aren’t getting much sleep in my house. Our newborn, Puran, tends to wake up hungry every 2-3 hours at night. The feeding part is usually relatively straightforward; it’s getting the little guy to burp and then sleep again that takes some time and persistence. The best tactic involves picking him up and pacing for fifteen minutes.

One of my colleagues in the English Department suggested reciting poetry while walking; the sound of iambic pentameter is said to be soporific. But sadly, I’m not that kind of English lit. person — with my new-skool education, I never actually managed to memorize anything. Instead — and it’s not a bad substitute, really — we tend to sing to him, basically whatever pop songs come into mind (the Beatles are especially good: “I’m so tired/ I haven’t slept a wink…”; “Cry, baby cry/ Make your mother sigh…”).

One trick to make the late night hours roll along more quickly is a little game we came up with: take a classic Hindi/Urdu romantic song about sleeplessness, and tweak it slightly to fit the current context. For instance:

O ho ho ho, khoya khoya chaand, khula aasmaan
Aankhon mein saari raat jaayegi
Tumko bhi kaise neend aayegi (full lyrics)
Hidden, hidden moon; open skies
In your eyes, I’ll be awake all night
And how can you sleep either?

And the travestied version might be: 

O ho ho ho, khoya khoya chaand, khula aasmaan
Dikaar mein saari raat jaayegi
Humko bhi kaise neend aayegi

“Dikaar” means “burp.” You can see the old song at Youtube ; it’s Dev Anand in a film called Kala Bazaar.Another one:

Raat ko neend aati nahin
Hey aahaha ha hayhayhay hay hmmhmmhmm hmm
Tabiyat chein paati nahin
Hmm aahaha ha hayhayhay hay hmmhmmhmm hmm
Mera dil ka chein tune le liya  (full lyrics)
In the night, sleep doesn’t come
Hey aahaha, etc.
Peace and calm doesn’t come
Hey aahaha, etc.
You took my peace of mind

Again, enjoy the Youtube video of the song, from Judaai. And again, our early morning travesty:

Raat ko neend aati nahin
Hey aahaha ha hayhayhay hay hmmhmmhmm hmm
Tabiyat chein paati nahin
Hey aahaha ha hayhayhay hay hmmhmmhmm hmm
Mera peit ka chaan tune le liya


More “Neend” songs at Youtube: Mere neend jaani lagi hai, Neend na mujko Aaye

It seems to me the trope of sleeplessness in Hindi film songs comes from Urdu and Persian poetry, where lovers take great pride in their romantic insomnia (see Amir Khusrau; also see here, and scroll down to the anonymously-authored “What can I say”?/”Dunya kare sawaal”). It’s definitely a little irreverent to play with the tradition in this way, but really, why not? As they say (and again, I’m travestying it), whatever gets you through the night…

Do people have favorite “sleeplessness” songs or poems (in any language)? And can you think of fun travesties of the same songs?

87 thoughts on “Songs for the Sleepless”

  1. I found a song up on YouTube. The video is a remake with an actor named Sanjay Malhotra but the song is an old song apparently from a Dev Anand film. I don’t know the song name. Here’s the link:

    m.ram – you’ve destroyed my morning P-). i’ve seen that video like three times – and it cracks me up every tme. he so reminds me of ricky gervais’ music video from the office. (Jai Singh – youze know what i’ma talkin’ aboot).

  2. Here’s an awesome one, with the right melody and softness to be a lullaby. Shammi Kapoor’s Brahmchari 1968, Shailendra’s lyrics:

    Mein gaau tum so jaao, mein gaau tum so jaao, Sukh sapno me kho jaao, mein gaau tum so jaao…

  3. Amardeep — here’s a strategy: why not play a few minutes from “Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna“? The audio equivalent of Bollywood Fugly — after subjecting him to that, you can probably get away with playing or saying anything you want, as long as it ends the noise.

    I’m all about managing and manipulating expectations, even with infants.

  4. Amardeep,

    This is not a song-based strategy, but my nephew falls asleep if you hold him while sitting and bouncing on one of those giant exercise balls. I’m not sure why it works, but I hope it helps. Good luck with little Puran!

  6. This is totally off subject, but does anyone know of a mrdungum/tabla player in nyc willing to get together to play some music with me? I am a guitar player myself.. sorry to go off subject, but I figured this would be a good placce to find one, what with all the conscious fellow desis on this blog 🙂

    if so let me know.

  7. You could further on the Beatles route and sing ‘I’m just watching the wheels go round and round’ and ‘Beautiful, Beautiful Boy’!

  10. Hairy_D,

    he so reminds me of ricky gervais’ music video from the office. (Jai Singh – youze know what i’ma talkin’ aboot).

    Dammit, you’re right 😉

    Nobody here has mentioned “Neela Aasman So Gaya” from Silsila, sung by Amitabh Bachchan himself.

    Check out the subtitles too 🙂

  11. Ok, here’s another idea. Still not a sleepless song, but could be endless fun nonetheless. You could take Bob Dylan’s “Hard Rain” (which starts as “oh where have you been my blue-eyed son” ) and change it to something like this:

    Oh why won’t you sleep, my brown-eyed son? Oh why won’t you sleep, my darling young one? I’ve stumbled out of bed at this early hour, With this little rest, I fall asleep in the shower, I’ve stepped on the heads of seven stuffed animals, I’ve clicked the remote through a dozen infomercials, I’ve walked ten-thousands miles back and forth through the hallway, And its a hard, and its a hard, its a hard, and its a hard, And its a hard time getting you to sleep.

    Not so sure about my ending, I’m sure you could come up with something better, but it’s a fun game. 😉

  12. i’m totally putting my baby to sleep with “wave of mutilation”, by the pixies (who else would you expect from me?). i fall asleep to 10,000 maniacs and cocteau twins every night, why should my progeny function any differently?

    aaaaaand….i just realized that one of these comments is not like the other ones…i am a disgrace to all desis, i know. i recognize none of the above-offered (filmi?) tunes. 🙂

  13. i recognize none of the above-offered tunes.

    vaaht (#59)

    If you dont know me by now… (random air humping at 1:40) … you will never never know me (pan to image of buddha statue)

    i am having a rather fun monday 🙂

  15. Anna,

    don’t think you’re alone, i whenever i hear these lyrics, its like ‘something something, something, a word i know!, something something, something’

    i just keep at it bc i know there’s good stuff there from listening to the parents filmi tapes in the car as a kid (like all the other desis i know…it was always the tapes) otherwise, its not worth the trouble.

    i also feel like a sell-out to desidom but i just keep at it. lullaby songs in hindi though? that will be beyond my abilities even with the proper lead up! oh the pain of being a south asian diasporadic

  17. i just keep at it bc i know there’s good stuff there from listening to the parents filmi tapes in the car as a kid (like all the other desis i know…it was always the tapes)

    😉 For some reason, more than the songs, I remember the radio commercials.

    For all the bay area brownz, does anyone else remember those commercials for bharat bazaar on the radio on saturdays? I can still sing the end part to perfection (bharat bazaar, india imports! sho-PING, sho-PING, sho-PING!)

    p.s. A N N A–i’m totally a 10,000 maniacs fan. Do you remember “shakespear’s sister” 🙂

  18. The good Rev. Al Green never failed me. Plus every boy needs early lessons in shmoove. “I’m oonly sleeping” from Revolver.

    Intersting Trivia. Asha Bhosle’s kids hated it when she tried to sing them to sleep. “Aai, please don’t sing”, the ingrates would say.

  19. So gaya yeh jahan so gaya aasmaan so gayi hai saari manzilein…hai saari manzilein so gaya hai rasta -Tehzaab

  21. i just keep at it bc i know there’s good stuff there from listening to the parents filmi tapes in the car as a kid (like all the other desis i know…it was always the tapes) otherwise, its not worth the trouble.

    i hear you– it’s just that my parents didn’t have filmi tapes in the car. i know my father owned two random “best of”s for lata and moh’d rafi, but he was ten times more likely to choose beethoven…or npr. hence my own dependence on “all things considered”, since THAT is what i would fall asleep to (in the car).

  22. I remember those nights singing Malaika a Swahili song and “nanhi kali sone chali” with our “nana para” for hours on end!!! We desperately administered mylicon and assembled a cradle swing to place him in after we swaddled him tightly first, of course! :-).

    Here are the words I love: hava dheere aana nind bhare pankh liye jhoola jhoola jaana nanhi kali sone chali (or in your case, nana para sona chala) hava dhire aana nind bhare pankh liye jhoola jhoola jaana nanhi kali sone chali

    [below is the rest, but I never got that far – I just kept repeating the first stanza – how much can you really ask for with all that sleep deprivation!?!]

    chaand kiran si gudiya naajon ki hai pali – 2 aaj agar chaandaniya aana meri gali gun gun gun git koi haule haule gaana nind bhare pankh liye jhoola jhoola jaana

    resham ki dor agar pairon ko ulajhaaye – 2 ghungharu ka daana koi shor macha jae daane mere jaage to phir nindiya tu bahalaana nind bhare pankh liye jhoola jhoola jaana nanhi kali sone chali hava dhire aana

    The Kenyan side of me likes the Sawhili song Malaika: Malaika, nakupenda Malaika.
    Malaika, nakupenda Malaika. Nami nifanyeje, kijana mwenzio, Nashindwa na mali sina, we, Ningekuoa Malaika. Nashindwa na mali sina, we, Ningekuoa Malaika.

    Pesa zasumbua roho yangu
    Pesa zasumbua roho yangu Nami nifanyeje, kijana mwenzio, Nashindwa na mali sina, we, Ningekuoa Malaika. Nashindwa na mali sina, we, Ningekuoa Malaika.

    Kidege, hukuwaza kidege. Kidege, hukuwaza kidege. Nami nifanyeje, kijana mwenzio, Nashindwa na mali sina, we, Ningekuoa kidege (or Malaika). Nashindwa na mali sina, we, Ningekuoa kidege (or Malaika).

  23. i hear you– it’s just that my parents didn’t have filmi tapes in the car. i know my father owned two random “best of”s for lata and moh’d rafi, but he was ten times more likely to choose beethoven…or npr. hence my own dependence on “all things considered”, since THAT is what i would fall asleep to (in the car).

    you’re actually very lucky! what i wouldn’t have done for parents who listened to NPR. seriously, it would have opened up worlds i never imagined existed. although lata and rafi were good too in their way

  24. p.s. A N N A–i’m totally a 10,000 maniacs fan. Do you remember “shakespear’s sister” 🙂

    SDM– siobhan fahey is STILL gorgeous…i saw her on VH1 classic last week. i do remember them, i do. 🙂

  26. I remember the radio commercials

    India Fabric IMports .. India Fabric IMports! Kya hai vaha … yaha milengi saaria ji saaria …

    I wish I remembered all the words – every weekend we used to hear this commercial dozens of times =)

  27. Hey Amardeep: Mubarak to you. I hear you about sleepless nights, burping and the search for the right song. On November 2, my wife and I had a boy.

    I have been inundating my son with lots of different genres but have been trying to keep it mellow..(ie: no NY Dolls, Tool, Clash, DnB, Breaks, Goan Trance..etc..yet)

    Indian Classical seems to be his favorite, particularly:

    Rahul Sharma “Music of the Himalayas” (Rahul Sharma on Santoor with Bhavani Shankar and others – great live recording – has a very Thumri vibe..no long alaaps) Rakesh Chaurasia and Talvin Singh “Vira” (Chaurasia on Bansuri and Singh on Tabla) almost anything by Pandit VM Bhatt, or Ali Akbar Khan sahib. some of the tracks from Anoushka Shankar’s new album are nice and mellow.

    I found a few odd gems along the way – Sevara Nazarkhan (Uzbek Vocalist) has a beautiful track called “Alla (Bahtimga Lullaby)” off her album “Yol Bolsin” (Real World/EMI). There is a Marcel Khalife composition called “Nami” (Go to Sleep) sung by an Egyptian singer, Aida Ayoubi which is nice.

    Also been playing some mellow tracks by Azam Ali (“Abode” from her new album Elysium of the Brave on Six Degrees Records), Susheela Raman (“Sakhimaro”, “Nagumomo”, off of the “Love Trap” and “Salt Rain” albums respectively) Madeline Peyroux (“La Javanaise” (an old Gainsbourg track) is really nice. off her new album)

    Malaika..wow..great choice. Brings back some great memories of my childhood.

    I have also found myself playing some rather interesting ambient/IDM tracks (Ishq, Manuel, Telefon Tel Aviv) Some of the Sigur Ros tracks seem enjoyable to him too.

    one of my clients dropped off his Electric Tanpura (Raagini). Lulls him and the rest of us to sleep.

    Email me if you want me to send you any music. (ali at invasiongroup dot com). I would be happy to share.

    congratulations once again..

  28. I don’t have kids myself yet, but I always thought Tagore’s kobita “Phoole Phoole, Dhoole Dhoole” was beautiful, especially in its musical version (can’t remember who sings it offhand, sorry.) I believe they used an updated version of the song in the movie Parineeta, song titled “Soona Man Ka Angan”.

  29. Abu Maysam, congrats to you, and good luck.

    Ek Aurat, thanks for introducing me to Malaika. A lovely song! I didn’t expect to see Swahili; cool.

    And everyone, thanks for your suggestions. Many of these songs (esp. the lullabies) don’t appear to be available online, so I think I’m going to query in-laws and relatives who might know how to sing them. This is going to be one of those comment threads I’ll come back to again and again…

  30. Here’s a non-hindi song. Go to http://www.lindseybuckingham.com/. There is a music player at the top of the page. Press the skip ahead button until you come to a song called called Cast Away Dreams. Just listen to the song. It’s just sublime. That could be soothing for little Puran.

  31. Not a classic Hindu/Urdu romantic song, but what the hey.

    The Original:

    Your Cheating Heart – Hank Williams [Link to a YouTube video with Hank Williams Jr singing it.]

    Your cheatin’ heart will make you weep You’ll cry and cry and try to sleep But slee-eep won’t come the whole night through Your cheatin’ heart will tell on you

    When tears come down like fallin’ rain You’ll toss around and call my name You’ll wa-alk the floor the way I do Your cheatin’ heart will tell on you

    Your chea-eatin’ heart will pine some day And crave the love you threw away The ti-ime will come when you’ll be blue Your cheatin’ heart will tell on you

    When tears come down like fallin’ rain You’ll toss around and call my name You’ll wa-alk the floor the way I do Your cheatin’ heart will tell on you

    The travesty:

    That Beeping Burp – Zz

    That beeping burp won’t let you sleep. You yell and scream and bawl and weep, No slee-eep for me the whole night through, Till that beepin’ burp gets out of you.

    I fake a snore, but she prods my tum, “I fed the lad, now get off your bum, You wa-alk the floor, he’s your son too. That beepin’ burp? It’s your turn, you.”

    Puran, my son, your daddy’s blue, He loves you aa-nd your “ga ga goo.” But puttar, please, daddy needs to sleep, That beepin’ burp will make me weep.

    One day you’ll have a baby too-oo. He’ll do the same (I hope) to you You’ll wa-alk the floor the way I do That beepin’ burp will get you too.

  32. Here is a youtube link to a great Telugu movie lullaby from “Gitanjali”. I think this is one of the few Maniratnam hits without a Hindi version. Sorry I can’t offer a translation, my Telugu skills don’t extend that far. “Lali” means lullaby. I’ve always loved this song. “O papa lali”

    The bizarre hospital scenes are explained by the fact that both the main characters are dying of terminal illnesses.

    My mom used to sing me these “lullabies” when I was little and it wasn’t until years later that I realized they were love songs from Malayalam movies and didn’t have anything to do with falling asleep.

  33. Don’t remember as far back as babyhood, but in early childhood, my father’s heartbeat was my favorite sound. Nothing quite as relaxing!

  34. Hi — does anyone have the lyrics/translation for Azam Ali’s “Abode” ?? It is sooo beautiful…

  35. jaane kyaa baat hai, jaane kyaa baat hain neend naheen aatee, badee lanbee raat hain

    dhak dhak abhee se jiyaa dol rahaa hain ghooghant abhee se meraa khol rahaa hain door abhee to piyaa kee mulaakaat hain

    jab jab dekhoo main ye chaand sitaare ayesaa lagataa hai, muze laaj ke maare jaise koee dolee, jaise baaraat hain

  36. my name is amanda tran and my # is 372-4299 im not kidding call me leave a joke.or ask me out or something.

  37. this is for those who love chandamama song chandamama door ke pue pakaye bhoor ke aap khaye thali me munne ko de pyali me

    pyali gayi toot munna gaya rooth layaenge hum pyaliyan baja baja ke taliyan munne ko manayenge ham dood malayi khayenge chandamama……….

    udan khatole bhaith ke munna chanda ke ghar jayega taron ke sang ankh micholi khel ke dil behalayega khel kud jab mere munne ka ji bhar jayega thumak thumak mera munna vaapas ghar ko ayega chandamama……..