In the decade of the 1940s, especially in the years leading to independence, Shamsher Bahadur Singh (1911-1993), who as a young man dithered between Urdu, English and Hindi as a medium of expression before finally deciding on Hindi, wrote several poems centred on the freedom movement, the Bengal famine, and the communal riots. One of the poems that came out of that turmoil was ‘Baat bolegi’ (The Facts Will Speak), written in 1945. The year was important to him. ‘In 1945,’ he wrote, ‘my job in Naya Sahitya took me to Bombay. There I lived in a commune with other comrades of the Communist Party, and the ideals which until then had a vague existence within me, took on a living shape. My poetry gained a lot from that experience.’ Too independent-minded to be part of any ism – political or literary – for very long, he later parted ways with his comrades, but the poems had been written and, 80 years later, they still make news. They could have been written last week, or this. Translated from the Hindi original (further below) by Arvind Krishna Mehrotra.§The facts will speak. Not us.They’ll out the secrets. The face of truth, the eyes that lie. How dare they look truth in the face. The face of truth is the face of the hour.For fearless people, that face is peace. Poverty—a demon; the times—terrible; the situation—worse; the mind—beggarly;home—a labour camp. One question, one voice:What is the colour of truth? One people— one sorrow:and many the banners fluttering in the wind.Poverty—a demon; the situation—cruel; the mind—beggarly; home—a labour camp. One people—one destiny:the sound of unity.Else, it’s the end of independence. §बात बोलेगी,हम नहीं।भेद खोलेगीबात ही।सत्य का मुखझूठ की आँखेंक्या-देखें!सत्य का रूख़समय का रूख़ हैःअभय जनता कोसत्य ही सुख हैसत्य ही सुख।दैन्य दानव; कालभीषण; क्रूरस्थिति; कंगालबुद्धि; घर मजूर।सत्य काक्या रंग है?-पूछोएक संग।एक-जनता कादुःख : एक।हवा में उड़ती पताकाएँअनेक।दैन्य दानव। क्रूर स्थिति।कंगाल बुद्धि : मजूर घर भर।एक जनता का – अमर वर :एकता का स्वर।-अन्यथा स्वातंत्र्य-इति।Shamsher Bahadur Singh was an eminent Hindi poet.Arvind Krishna Mehrotra is a poet, anthologist, literary critic and translator.