Portfolio · 2011
Urdu Proverbs (re-strike)
Two decades later, Zarina returned to the images born from her collaboration with Rani and brought each proverb into the space beneath its image.
Date2011
CollaborationProverbs selected by Kishwar “Rani” Chishti; images by Zarina
RelationshipRe-strike of the ten 1991 woodblocks
Text placementEach Urdu proverb appears beneath its image
The original collaboration began with proverbs Rani and Zarina had loved and remembered since childhood and youth. Rani gathered the sayings; Zarina made the images. Their exchange was part of a much longer creative conversation between the sisters, carried through words, letters, memory, and form.
In this re-strike, moving the Urdu from a separate leaf to the space beneath each image changes the rhythm of reading. Word and form now arrive together: the proverb remains fully present as language, while the image opens a parallel field of association.
The 2011 return does not merely repeat the earlier portfolio. It brings a shared inheritance forward, allowing remembered speech to be encountered anew through the material presence of ink and paper.
Language carried forward
Ten Urdu proverbs
Urdu remains the heart of each work. The English lines offer the sense of each saying without replacing its sound, script, or cultural memory.
- 01
نو سو چوہے کھا کے بلی حج کو چلی
After eating nine hundred mice, the cat went on pilgrimage. - 02
رسی جل گئی، بل نہیں گیا
The rope burned, but it kept its twist. - 03
حلوائی کی دکان پر دادا جی کی فاتحہ
Commemorating grandfather at the sweet-maker’s expense. - 04
گھر کی ہانڈی چوراہے میں پھوٹی
The family cooking pot broke in the village square. - 05
سانپ نکل گیا، لکیر پیٹتے رہے
The snake escaped while they continued beating its trail. - 06
دور کے ڈھول سہانے
Distant drums sound sweet. - 07
رات گئی، بات گئی
The night passed; the matter passed with it. - 08
آنکھ اوجھل، پہاڑ اوجھل
Out of sight, even a mountain disappears. - 09
ساون کے اندھے کو ہرا ہی ہرا سوجھے
One blinded during the monsoon sees green everywhere. - 10
ہتھیلی پر سرسوں جمانا
To expect mustard to sprout in the palm of one’s hand.