In my fist is my destiny!
I have my destiny under my own control
What do your innocent eyes see?
Our eyes see hope of joyful times
We dream beautiful dreams of times to come
My little boy, what do you hold in your fist?
Will you accept a diamond given to you in alms?
What will you do with the tears life gives you?
We won’t accept even a diamond given to us in alms
Our tears we shall cherish
It’s fun to lead a life overcoming hardships
My little boy, what do you hold in your fist?
Do not hide it from me, children, please do tell me
What kind of world are we going to have in the future?
In the future, everbody will be king
Neither will the masses go hungry,
Nor will grief prevail
The times will change, that’s what the stars foretell
My little boy, what do you hold in your fist?
In my fist is my destiny
I have my destiny under my own control
Oh, and Merry Christmas, everyone!
Dances on the Footpath 
And Merry Christmas to you too! (I love this song, by the way – even though I haven’t got around to seeing Boot Polish yet!)
Thank you, Dustedoff. I love this song too, and I love this film!
Coincidence: my sister was singing this yesterday! When I mentioned I’d seen it on a blog the other day, she said she’d been reminded of it because some commercial (on radio, I think) included a couple of lines from the start of the song.
That is an odd coincidence, considering that the reason I finally saw this movie during the past couple of days had nothing to do with my seeing or hearing any of it anywhere. The reason I finally saw this movie is that I found the Yash Raj DVD of it – which I had previously seen in one of the bigger Indian DVD stores for $12 – sitting in some little store’s $4.99 bin.
Of course, since I live in the U.S. and always have, the thought of someone just spontaneously singing this song seems utterly strange to me. :)
I wonder which lines were quoted in the commercial. The song and movie both have some Raj Kapoor-style socialist themes to them, but I suppose one could easily use some of these lines to promote some capitalist-entrepreneurial kind of pursuit too. (And the hyper-emphasis on work ethic can have problematic results too if it’s not used in conjunction with the idea of building a better society together…but I think the film itself does show some awareness of that…)
Oh, we sing a lot of songs – or bits of them – spontaneously. Partly, of course, it’s because as a family we’re mad about music. Hindi, 50’s and 60’s English, choir music – the works. Even Christmas carols in Latin!
As far as this song is concerned, the spontaneous singing was restricted to the first couple of lines, and my sister sang that mainly because it’s a catchy tune rather than because of the words. I’ve no idea what the commercial is about, but I think it probably focuses on the “My little boy, what do you hold in your fist?” line – cookies clutched in a fist? Candies? Ad agencies in India are notorious for picking up a single line from a well-known song and making it fit something totally different. Will ask my sister the next time I meet her.
love it too, i reviewed the film soemtime ago on my blog and i think i embedded this same song
http://bollywooddeewana.blogspot.com/2009/08/boot-polish-1954.html
I enjoyed looking at thst review… You seem to have particular ease with picking out the right screen caps, and you have so many of them! (Unfortunately, screen caps slow me down a lot when I want to use them in a review… Putting nice pics in the sidebar is a different matter, but I can’t help taking forever trying to pick caps to go with whatever it is I’m saying about the plot.) Incidentally, I don’t think there’s anybody who wasn’t put off a little by the last few minutes of the film. But the film as a whole is still a very moving, rewarding experience.
I agree, i myself find it tedious most times but when i’m watching i note the particular scene i find striking and then scrren cap later, i find it easier that way
Way to go Richard. I appreciate the translation and linked it in here:
http://bollywoodfoodclub.wordpress.com/2010/01/30/boot-polish-1957-orphan-power/#comment-5029
Hi Richard, thanks for linking me to this – as you know, I love Raj Kapoor’s films. Even ones that he didn’t direct (though this was supposed to be remade by him – he certainly added the songs to the film after it was shot). I liked this film very much indeed, including the ending. :)