The land of five waters gave the world its first cities, its saints and its songs. Broken by every empire that crossed it, it is still ours to remember, and to make whole again.

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PUNJAB WIKIਪੰਜਾਬپنجابCulture
Punjab WikiCultureFamous songs and poems
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Song or poem

Lathe di chadar

ਲੱਠੇ ਦੀ ਚਾਦਰ

A mahiya duet about a sheet of white cotton: a lover's invitation to sit down and talk.

Surinder Kaur sings Latthe di chadar · Watch on YouTube

'Lathe di chadar utte saleti rang mahiya, aavo samne kolon dee rus ke na lang mahiya': a grey sheet over white cotton, come and sit in front of me, don't walk past me in a sulk. Sung as a back-and-forth between a woman and her mahiya, her beloved, it is one of the most popular Punjabi folk songs.

Surinder Kaur's recording made it famous across both Punjabs, and it is still sung at every wedding and party.

More famous songs and poems

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Deh Shiva Bar Mohe Ihai
Deh Shiva Bar Mohe IhaiGuru Gobind Singh, late 1600s

Guru Gobind Singh's prayer for courage, the anthem of the Khalsa and of the Sikh Regiment.

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Ajj Aakhaan Waris Shah Nu
Ajj Aakhaan Waris Shah NuAmrita Pritam, 1947

Amrita Pritam's lament for the Partition, calling on Waris Shah to rise from his grave and see Punjab now.

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Ik Kudi Jida Naam Mohabbat
Ik Kudi Jida Naam MohabbatShiv Kumar Batalvi, 1960s

Batalvi's poem of a girl called Love, who is lost and never found again.

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Bulla Ki Jaana
Bulla Ki JaanaBulleh Shah, 1700s; Rabbi Shergill, 2004

Bulleh Shah's kafi of who I am not, turned into a rock song that became India's anthem of 2005.

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Lambi Judaai
Lambi JudaaiReshma, 1983

Reshma's song of a long separation, sung in a Hindi film and adopted by both Punjabs.

▶ Watch
Dama Dam Mast Qalandar
Dama Dam Mast QalandarFolk-Sufi, 1700s onward

The dhamaal of the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, sung by every great Sufi voice of the Punjab.

▶ Watch
Sab Ton Khatarnak
Sab Ton KhatarnakPash, 1980s

Pash's poem that the most dangerous thing is the death of our dreams.

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Pagri Sambhal Jatta
Pagri Sambhal JattaBanke Dayal, 1907

'Guard your turban, farmer': the protest song of 1907 that became the slogan of every Punjabi farmers' movement since.

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British bhangra
British bhangraFrom the late 1970s

The bhangra of Southall and Birmingham, which mixed the dhol with synthesisers and reggae and went round the world.

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Alif Allah, Jugni (Coke Studio)
Alif Allah, Jugni (Coke Studio)2010

Arif Lohar and Meesha Shafi's version of the old Jugni that made Coke Studio Pakistan famous across the world.

▶ WatchMadhaniyanFolk

The farewell song of the bride to her mother and father, one of the saddest songs in Punjabi.

▶ WatchKala DoriyaFolk

The teasing wedding song of the black thread, sung by women at the mehndi and in giddha.

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