Satrangi Re - Dil Se

Dil Se... is my absolute favourite movie - read more on why I love it, here. As is well known, the movie Dil Se... depicts the seven shades of love, namely - attraction, infatuation, love, reverence, worship, obsession, and death. And the one song that brilliantly conveys it - as the title indicates - is Satrangi Re. So how do we see the seven shades of love? The lyrics and the picturization of the song is what goes hand-in-hand to do it. So presenting to you, the seven shades...

...but wait, I'm confused as to how I'll put the lyrics, its translation and the images so that you'll get what it's all about! Nevertheless, follow me!

Credits - 

Movie: Dil Se...

Song: Satrangi Re

Lyrics: Gulzar

Music: A R Rehman

Singers: Sonu Nigam, Kavitha Krishnamoorthy

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu satrangi re 
You, it's you -  you are the seven-coloured one
Tu hi tu, tu hi tu mann-rangi re
You, it's you - you are the one with a colourful spirit

Notice how they both are in black - even as the song begins on a 'colourful' note

***Attraction***

Dil ka saaya hamsaaya, satrangi re... mann-rangi re
The shadow on my heart is your many colours

Koi noor hai tu, kyon door hai tu?

You are the light; but why are you so distant?

Jab paas hai tu, ehsaas hai tu... satrangi re 

When you are near, you are feeling itself (or he's continuing the comparison with light; and says when you are near, I can feel you - like I can feel the light)

Koi khwaab hai ya parchaai hai, satrangi re, satrangi re
Are you a dream, or a shadow? 

Is baar bata muh-zor hawa thehregi kahaan?

Tell me, where will this forceful wind come to a halt?

Ishq par zor nahin hai yeh woh aatish Ghalib 

Jo lagaye na lage, aur bujhaaye na bane

Ghalib was an Urdu poet. This is a shair, or verse, from one of his ghazals; a form of poetry in which the poet often finds a way to include his own name in the verse. The verse is brilliant because ghalib means 'overcoming', 'triumphant', 'dominant' or 'victorious'. And so the verse could literally reads:
"No one has control over love; it is a ghalib (triumphant) fire/firework;

It can neither be kindled on a whim, nor extinguished when you desire."

 Notice how he's in black (in the dark) and she's in white (the light) and he's yearning to cross over - to traverse from darkness to light, perhaps?

Aankhon ne kuch aise chua 

Her eyes, they touched me so...

Halka halka uns hua 

...Gently, and gently I was infatuated 

Dil ko ye mehsoos hua 

My heart felt it

***Infatuation***

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu  - jeene ki saari khushboo

You, it's you - you are the fragrance of living/life

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu aarzu aarzu 

You, it's you - you are my longing 

Teri jism ki aanch ko choote hi 

As soon as I touch the flame that is your body

Meri saans sulagne lagati hai 

My breath is ignited

Note the burning tree in the backdrop; a perfect prop to depict his fire

Mujhe ishq dilaase deta hai 

Love consoles/calms/comforts me

Mere dard bilakhne lagte hai 

 But my pain sobs noisily

 This is just to say that I love this 'twirling' technique! I've seen this in Alaipayuthey/Saathiya too - Mani Ratnam Trademark?
***Love***

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu  - jeene ki saari khushboo

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu aarzu aarzu 

Chooti hai mujhe sargoshi se 

You touch me like a whisper

Aankhon mein ghuli khaamoshi se 

My eyes, with silence dissolved in them...

Can't you see it too? The reverence in his eyes!
***Reverence***

Main farsh pe sajde karta hoon 

On the floor, I offer my prayers to you
Kuch hosh mein kuch behoshi se 

Some consciously, and some unconsciously

***Worship***

This bit is for the choreography - I am not sure, but to me, this appears like the 'two-bodies-one-soul' depiction. And this idea was (is?) pretty different.

 My interpretation - she's like the water; leaving him thirsty for more

Teri raahon mein uljha-uljha hoon

I am entangled in your ways

Teri baahon mein uljha-uljha 

I'm entangled in your embrace

The prop is (very aptly) the Rope. He's entangled by her.

Suljhaane de hosh mujhe 

Let me disentangle my senses

Teri chaah mein uljha hoon 

For, I'm so ensnared by your desires!

Mera jeena junoon, mera marna junoon

My life is submitted to your obsession; and so it'll be until death

Ab iske siwa nahi koi sukoon

Save this, there is no peace

A maddening frenzy and trance - the anticlimax

***Obsession***

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu satrangi re 

Tu hi tu, tu hi tu mann-rangi re 

Ishq par zor nahin hai yeh woh aatish Ghalib 

Jo lagaye na lage, aur bujhaaye na bane

Mujhe maut ki god mein sone de

Let me sleep in the lap of death!

Teri rooh mein jism dubone de 

Let me dip my body in your soul

Satrangi re... mann-rangi re 

And note the end: both of them are in white (i.e. have found light; compare it to the initial scene). Death gave them salvation, perhaps?
***Death***

If you didn't still realise, the seven colours do appear in the song (almost- and in the reverse VIBGYOR order, at that!) 

For me the magnificence of the lyrics, the visuals, the choreography combined is an overwhelming revelation. Of course, I don't know if I'm reading too much between the lines, but I find this a perfect harmony - what was intended to convey has been beautifully interpreted and presented. The credits have to be given where it's due - Gulzar, Mani Ratnam, A R Rehman, Sonu Nigam - take a bow!

P.S. I do realise that it's a tad too long, and different in structure from my other posts. But I bet you agree that this song deserves this elaboration!