By Umair Najmi
kisi gali mein kirae pe ghar liya us ne
phir us gali mein gharon ke kirae badhne lage

She rented a house in some lane — after that, rents all over that lane began to rise.

Romanहिन्दीUmair Najmi
किसी गली में किराए पे घर लिया उस ने
फिर उस गली में घरों के किराए बढ़ने लगे

The verse in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.

♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation

The beloved rents a house in an ordinary lane, and at once the rents of the whole lane begin to rise — her mere presence inflates the worth of everything around her. It is an elegantly economic way to praise beauty, measuring her value not in metaphor but in market price.

For You, Today

The right presence raises the worth of everything near it — choose carefully whose lane you live in.

A witty contemporary couplet that pays the oldest compliment in a freshly modern currency.
Themes:BeautyLove & Loss
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More from Umair Najmi
Love & Loss
bichhad gaye to ye dil umr bhar lagega nahin
The Self
nikal laya hun ek pinjre se ik parinda
Love & Loss
kitab-e-ishq mein har aah ek aayat hai
All couplets by Umair Najmi

The heart of this site stays with Iqbal: explore his couplets → Or browse the whole Other Voices shelf →