Waris Shah and His Heer: The Tragic Love Story That Defines Devotion. Who does not know the story of Heer Ranjha in this world? ਹੀਰ ਵਾਰਿਸ ਸ਼ਾਹ (ਭਾਗ-3) (ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਕਵਿਤਾ)
languages: Waris Shah Heer is available in Urdu [Shahmukhi} Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, Arabic, and Afghani, Farsi, etc. All the languages of Asia are highly enriched with the story in some form or another. You may find many films in all these languages, concerned with the same Heer-Ranjha epic
Hey Film Writers! PLEASE COME AND SEE: THE STORY WAS NARRATED LONG BEFORE THE CAMERA INVENTION, HOW IT EXACTLY MATCHES OUR MODERN FILM SCRIPT FORMAT.
The story is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and their cultures. Everyone believes, it is the real story of a beautiful girl and a handsome young boy. Both belonged to their rich land lord families.
The narrative story is easily available in Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu in Punjab. The researchers indicate that the same story had been written earlier by another poet Damodar and Syed Waris Shah narrated it later on.
WHAT IS THE MAGIC IN THE STORY?
The magic in the story that the reader empathizes with Heer and Ranjha throughout? I read Heer Waris in my class six. Two of the elder boys of my village will recite the epic amongst the elderly men where everyone will enjoy under the peepal tree in the full noon. Women and girls were not allowed to be present there. The men will throw a quote of the epic even when they are at work in the day and night. I was so mad and fan of the folk tone. I used to sing for hours along the bank of river BEAS river in my fields. The voice will go miles around in the silence of night. I still wonder why the narrative is liked by all.
LET US EXAMINE AND COMPARE THE SCRIPT PATTERN
WHY EVERYONE LIKES IT?
Why I want to read again? Why is it so interesting? What is there in it -which makes interesting? Why every reader wants to read the entire story in one go?
Certainly, now I understand; it is not my sweet voice, but it is the legendary script, its vivid images description, strong characterisation, the SET UP of the script, the inciting Incident, the Hero’s goal, his journey, the obstacles in his journey, the climax and the concluding resolution. The resolution is not the happy ending but as a tragic end.
ABOUT 250 YEARS AGO
ABOUT 250 YEARS AGO Waris Shah wrote his famous qissa “Heer Ranjha” around 1766, approximately 250 years ago. His mentor got annoyed for writing romantic instead of religious. But Waris continued his passion.
We can proudly claim that our incesters in India; formulated the story script format 250 years ago and Bollywood and Hollywood follow the same format in the modern age of moving images.
VIVID DESCRIPTION
Long before the modern cinema, storytelling lived in the voices of our ancestors. Folk tales and bedtime stories were passed down through generations, but everyone narrated them in their own words. We find the great images narrated in poetry as good as visual moving film scenes.
WHAT MAKES HEER – A LEGENDARY SCRIPT?
Cinema was born in the early 20th century, after the invention of the motion picture camera by the Lumière Brothers. In the silent film era, there were no formal scripts—just sequences of visual shots arranged to tell a story.
THE NARRATIVE MEDIUM
What sets Heer Waris apart was that Waris Shah transformed an oral folk tale into poetic narration — a structured, lyrical script in verse. The poetry form made the story unforgettable. The couplets are sung, remembered, and quoted as proverbs in daily life. Through this, the story of Heer and Ranjha became everyone’s story, shared across generations, long before the invention of the cinema screen.
That is what makes Heer Waris a legendary script — a fantastic Narrative without cinematic but visually vivid description not less than a film.
Waris Shah could successfully use the poetry as a medium of narration. The present day cinema is adding poetry in the form of musical melodies or songs within the moving images. The music,songs and poetry makes more interesting storytelling. Syed Waris Shah used the same genre to serve the narrative feast to masses. A comparison between the modern cinema script with the poetical script reveals Waris Shah is the real legend in storytelling.
6. THE CHARACTERS
The Protagonist: DHEEDO(20s), Handsome boy, plays music on bamboo flute known as Wanjhalee , He is a worthless, useless boy in family profession of agriculture work. Day and night plays flute,flute and flute nothing else.
The Antagonist: Kaido, the Parents of Heer[ Antagonistic forces] and the in-laws of Heer.
Mentor– Jogi Bal Naath
Stakes/Love interest– HEER(20s), extra ordinary beautiful girl.
Side Kick– Sahiti
7. THE SET UP: The poetical script has characters – the protagonist-Ranjha and his love interest, the heroine-Heer. Waris describes thoroghly their normal world. The parents of both these characters are big land lords of their villages. Ranjha has been a loafer but Heer is like a princess.
8. THEME STATED
The opening lines hook the Genre [Poetical] and the Theme ISHAK (romance-love) hooks the reader.
“Awal hamd khuda da wird kijey, Ishak kiita su jag da mool miyaaan”.
Then Waris explains the social status and prestige of Hero’s family.
Hero’s Father [ ਰਾਂਝੇ ਦਾ ਪਿਓ ]
The Main Character Mauju Chaudhary is the rich land lord with a big family. He has 8 sons and two daughters. The Hero is youngest known as “DHEEDO”. The father loves most his little son. The son does not do any work at all.
How precisely Waris creates the normal world of the Hero in only a few lines.
9. THE TRIGGER
Hero’s father Mauju Chaudhary dies and his brothers divide the land to compel Dheedo [ Ranjha] to do his own farming. The hero struggles hard but all in vain. He is useless in agriculture profession of his ancestors.
10. THE INCITING INCIDENT
One day the hero [ ranjha] cannot stand the quarrels with his elder brother’s wives and quits his home.
He will go any where and do anything but shall ultimately marry Heer who is the daughter of a big land lord of a village known as JHANG.
13. PLOT POINT -1 BIG DECISION [ modren script]
THE HERO MOVES ON HIS JOURNEY
Although the protagonist is worthless, useless in all respects in daily life but he himself is very confident of his personality. His natural facial look, his fair color, his height, physical fitness, flute are his strengths. He is a man of unique attraction which makes him a perfectly suitable and fit character for a love affair.
14 . RANJHA [DHEEDO] MEETS HEER
The Hero occupies the Heroine’s bed in her boat when she is absent there.
The other people there go and inform the Heroine that a young boy sleeps there.
15. LOVE STORY BEGINS
They fall in love after a short conflict. The affair has fun and games during which they make promise to live together life long. The affair lasts for 12 long years.
16. PINCH POINT-1 ( HEER FORCED TO MARRY SOME OTHER MAN)
The affair between Heer and Ranjha is well known to the parents. But the parents of Heer feel highly stressed under their social honour. They force Heer to marry off.
MID POINT- THIS IS MODREN CONCEPT IN THE SCREENPLAY OF FILM SCRIPTS
The mid point in the earstwhile narratives was never a requirement as the stories were in the form of books. The books were read in breaks on day to day sittings and never in a continuos one sitting.
(a)- The cinema show is three hours. The mid-point serves as a break to ease the comfort of the audience in the hall.
(b)- The Mid Point is the commercial break to create an eagerness amongst the audience-what is going to happen next in the story? The people are connected and remain engaged to see the next part of cinema.
(c)- So writers please don’t search any Mid Point there in the Waris Shah book. But yes! You may Imagine : Heer is married off . The readers of the narratve or modren cinema audience are eager to know here-What is next with Ranjha ? -The Hero.
17. RANJHA MAKES A PLAN TO REACH HEER AT HER IN-LAWS
Sahiti helps them to meet and talk to each other. They share their grief with each other. Then they decide to run away.
20. PINCH POINT 2: IN-LAWS OF HEER CHASE AND CATCH THEM
Heer’s in-laws chase and catch them on the way. They present them in the court of the king.
21. THE KING RETURNS HEER TO HER IN-LAWS [ HERO LOSES EVERYTHING]
King gives his judgement in favour of the in-laws and allow them to take away their bride.
Ranjha offers a prayer to the gods as well as to the king.
22. THE KING REVISES HIS DECISION [ CLIMAX]
The king revises his previous judgement that Heer certainly belongs to Ranjha. Then Heer and Ranjha arrive at natives of Heer in Jhang.
23. HEER TO MARRY RANJHA[ RESOLUTION]
The parents of Heer tell Ranjha to return to his village Takhat Hazara and come with his family and relatives in a marriage baraat. He goes happily.
24. HEER KILLED BY PARENTS[ RESOLUTION]
Soon after when Ranjha goes back to his brothers in Takhat-Hazaara , the parents of Heer poison her food and she dies.
They also send a messenger to Ranjha to inform him about the death of Heer.
25. RANJHA ALSO SUICIDES[ TRAGIC END]
Agrieved Ranjha -the Hero reaches at Jhang, finds Heer -nowhere. He also suicides.
Both, they lie buried near each other.
Apparently, the script of (Heer-Ranjha ) written by Waris Shah is one of the legendary scripts giving birth to the modern screenplay structures. The Waris Shah narrative plot has all the components: the Protagonist, the theme, the set up, inciting incident, plot point as the beinning of the journey, reaction mode or rising action, action mode, all is lost, falling action, climax and resolution.
Dear Script Writers and readers, do you agree that modern script do follow the same format?
