sassi punnu

Sassi –Punnuh

Sassi Punnuh is a love story from Sindhi and Balochi folklore. The story was from the poem Shaj Jo Risalo written by Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai.

Mir Punnuhu Khan is the son of Mir Aali who was the ruler of Balochistan/ Cutch Makran. They belonged to the famous baloch tribes, Hoth.

 

In Bhambhor, there lived a washerman named Mahmood who sent most of his time washing the clothes by side of Sindhu river. Mahmood and his wife were sad because they were childless. One day Mahmood was washing the clothes and his wife was helping him. They both saw a wooden trunk floating in the river. Mahmood brought the wooden case to the banks of the river and opened it. Inside the wooden box, there was a beautiful girl child. Mahmood and his wife were overjoyed that God has fulfilled their wish. Mahmood named the girl baby as sassi as she was very beautiful like the moon.  The bottom of the wooden box had many gold coins. Sassi grew up to be beautiful lass.

 One day Sassi was playing with her friends in the garden. A young man named Dara was hiding behind the trees and watching the girls without their knowledge. He was a perverted man and always peeping at girls. The girls caught him peeping, bound him and wanted to punish him. They asked Sassi to punish him but Sassi wanted to let him go as she did’t want to humiliate him but Dara was spiteful and unreasonable and wanted to take revenge on Sassi as he thought she was too vain about her beauty.

The kingdom of Bambhor was ruled by an old king he had no children. Dara met the old king and told him that there is a beautiful maiden and she is worthy to become your wife. Dara’s evil plan was set into action. The King’s men reached Sassi house to escort her to Palace.  Mahmood and his wife were really scared and went along with her to the court of King of Bambhor. Everyone in the court was astonished that how they missed a rare beauty in their city. The king saw that Sassi pendant looked kind of familiar to him. The king’s eye were filled with tears and he recognize the pendant was what his wife had worn the first born child.  Raja told Sassi that she was their daughter and on her birth astrologer’s predicted that she was a curse for the royal family prestige so they had put her in a wooden box with gold coins to raise the baby and threw the box into River Sindh.

The king wanted Sassi to live like a princess as she had suffered a lot in her for the past eighteen years.  The king offered Mahmood and his wife whatever riches he wants but he has to leave Sassi at the Palace. Sassi intervened and told the King that she only has the right to choose where she should live. Sassi chooses to stay as the launderer’s daughter than to become a princess. The people who raised me are greater than the people who gave birth to me. I cannot pay them back with money but only love and affection.

Once a group of traders came to Bambhora from Cutch Makran for selling their wares, Babio was the leader of the traders. He was friend of Punnuh the prince of Cutch Makran. Babio saw Sassi in the market and was impressed with her beauty and he enquired about her parents before setting off to Cutch Makran. He meets Prince of Cutch Makran and tells him about Sassi who is an epitome of Indian beauty and she would make a good match for Punnuh. Babio convinced Punnuh to go with him to Bhambhora dressed like a perfume seller to have a glance at the face of Sassi who looked as beautiful as a full moon in the night sky.

The handsome trader, Prince Punnuh and his perfume shop in Bhambhora was talk of the town. In three days half of the shop’s goods were sold and Punnuh was disappointed that he had not seen Sassi but his friend consoled him that he would surely catch a glimpse of her soon. Sassi’s friend told her about the new perfume shop and its handsome owner who applied perfume on woman’s wrist calling her rani. Sassi’s friends urge her to come with them to the perfume shop and the entourage set out to the market.

Sassi and her friends entered the Perfume shop and as Punnuh laid her eyes on Sassi he falls in love with him. Punnuh couldn’t take his eyes off Sassi and Sassi also fell for Punnuh. Time stood still for both of them as they gazed at each other. Babio nudged Punnuh to break his trance and he went to prepare a stick of perfume for Sassi . Punnuh said that,” Rani, I have got our well known champa flower perfume it is made for you.”

Punnuh applied the Perfume and Sassi took a whiff of it and asked,” Does roses grow on your Champa tree?”

Punnuh realized that he had given her the wrong perfume and tries to turn about the situation saying that he made a wrong guess and roses definitely suit her best. Sassi wanted to make fun of his mistake and asks penalty for his mistake. Punnuh is ready to accept any penalty and Sassi asks him to apply perfume on her friends too. Punnuh readily does her bidding. He gives her perfume to take home when sassi wants to pay Punnuh he says that he will take money if she likes the perfume. Sassi went to pay for the perfume next day but Punnuh gives her another new perfume and asks her to try it and if she likes she can pay. The next day Sassi visited to pay for the perfumes but again Punnuh sends her with more perfumes. Then fourth day Sassi goes and returns all vials he had given her and says she won’t accept if he doesn’t take money for the perfumes. Punnuh says he has taken the fare of the perfume on the first day. Saasi is puzzled and Punnuh has mischevious smile and teases her that holding her hands in exchange for the perfumes was a big profit for me. Sassi likes his humour and jests’ holding a hand for once is an easy task but to hold it forever is a different matter altogether. Sassi and punnuh agree to meet in the garden tomorrow. As a farewell he draws a heart using the perfume stick on her hands. Sassi and her friends arrive at the garden and leave Punnuh and Sassi to have private time. Sassi tells Punnuh that her father only wants her to marry a launderer. Punnuh lies to Sassi that he was born launderer and would like to wash the colours of his heart in her beauty. Sassi is worried that her father would not accept him. Punnuh asks Sassi not to worry for her father will meet a handsome launderer tomorrow.

Sassi informs her parents that she wants to marry Punnuh and her parents are shocked that he is trader of perfumer but Sassi assures them that he is by birth a launderer but had taken to selling perfume to make fortune. Mahmood wants to test Punnuh   whether he can really wash a cloth or not. 

Punnuh reaches Sassi’s home wearing the clothes of a launderer and meets Mahmood. Punnuh is assigned the task of washing the customer’s cloth and if none of the customers complain and are happy with punnuh’s washing. Mahmood will accept him as his son in law. Sassi gives the dirty clothes and takes him to the washing ghats. Punnuh washes the clothes but the clothes tear up due to his excessive strength. Sassi is scared that the customers will be unhappy and in turn her dad would reject Punnuh. Punnuh assures her not to worry and this all happened as he was only seeing her and not the clothes. Sassi irons and fold the clothes and Punnuh slips a gold coin into each dress. Mahmood delivers them to all the customers. When customers opened their dress each got a gold coin so they did not complain that their clothes were spoiled. Mahmood was happy since he had not received even one complaint.

Mahmood agrees to their marriage and both the lovers are excited. Mahmood and his entire community were happy that their daughter Sassi had begotten such a handsome and lovable guy punnuh as her better half. Mahmood and his wife discover that Punnuh is a prince and not a launderer but thy decide to forgive him as he loves and cares for Sassi and is learning laundering for her sake. They both settled in their new home in the washermen’s colony and Punnuh washed the clothes and Sassi ironed and folded them. They were living peacefully in their own world.

One day, Babio visits Punnuh to see how he is faring and he is returning to Makran. Punnuh tells him to convey the message that Prince Punnuh is dead and reborn as a launderer. He is more happier here than being the Prince and his borthers should not look for him .  Babio conveys this message to the Queen mother of Makran. She sends out lots of message to Punnuh to return home but her appeals are in vain. Punnuh’s brothers Umar and Tumar are desperate that their brother have forgotten about them and not even responding back to their messages so they want to go in person to look for him. Umar and Tumar meet their mother and convinces her to let them go to bring Punnuh back home. Umar and Tumar  send out a message to Punnuh that they want to meet him at the outskirts of Bambhor. They  set out with an entourage to Bambhor and in few days reach the outskirts and set up a caravan in a nearby garden. After taking expensive gifts for their brother and sister in law they board the camel to meet Punnuh at his residence. Punnuh is happy to see his brothers and hugs them and welcomes them to his home. Sassi also enthusiastically welcomes her brother’s in law to her home. Sassi and Punnuh arranged lot of merry making activities throughout the night. The feast, dance and music went on for four days.  On fifth day, Umar and tumar invited Sassi and Punnuh to their caravan for feast. Punnuh and Sassi dint find out the bad intention and joined their festivities. Punnuh and Sassi’s wine were drugged heavily and both of them fell into deep slumber. Umar and Tumar had meticulously planned to kidnap Punnuh as he would not leave Sassi and come. At midnight, Umar and Tumar and their servants took the asleep Punnuh and set out to Cutch Makran. When Sassi woke up it was Mid-day.She wondered why she had slept so long and where was her husband. She started searching for him  and she saw that her brother in laws  were not in sight  and caravans and camels all had disappeared. She was afraid if she could see her husband again.

Sassi reached her parent’s place weeping and told her parents what had happened in the night. Her father reassured her that a man who gave up his Kingdom and title and took up a lowly profession would definitely come back to her. Sassi was afraid that her sinister brother in law would not let her husband ever from Makhran. Sassi wanted to go meet him. Meanwhile at Cutch Makhran, Punnuh was not well and he was in delirium he was chanting Sassi’s name. His brothers consoled him that if he got well they would take him to see Sassi. Sassi was looked after by her Mother and friends. Sassi starved herself as she was not able to bear the agony of separation from her beloved.

One night, She escaped from her home and went out in search of  Punnuh like a mad woman calling out her lover’s name. Sassi found herself in middle of desert and she fell down and hit her head and blood was oozing out. She was determined to reach out for her Punnuh and tried following the camel’s steps in the sand. She was thirsty and her throat was parched and she fell down near a shrub.  She saw a water hole near the shrub and drank it. She prayed to God with resolve that he gave her water when she needed it and I ask you to give my Punnuh back to me. Sassi walked and walked across the desert and she seemed to come near a village. Even though she was thirsty and hungry the love for Punnuh kept her going. She met a village man and asked him the way for Makran. The villager took pity on her condition and told her that Makkran is at long distance and how she will get there in her condition. Sassi was burning with fever and told the villager her story. The villager took pity on her and told her that he will be her messenger and go to Makran. The villager said that he will come back after two days and till that time you can use my house to take rest. Sassi held her life in her hands with the hope that she will see her Punnuh. When Punnuh came to Sassi she opened her eyes and looked at him with love and then she died in the arms of her beloved. Punnuh was heart-broken and lost his interest to live in the world. When Sassi body was lowered into the grave he jumped into it and decided to be buried with his beloved. There was loud bang and clamoring noise and suddenly the earth heaped around the grave fell into the pit and filled the lovers  body so that even death could not separate them.

 In another version Sassi runs out in the desert calling her Punnuh’s name on the way like a mad woman. Meanwhile Punnuh regained his senses and ran towards Sassi’s home. Sassi and Punnuh meet halfway in the desert. They are both on the verge of fainting from exhaustion and on seeing each other’s face they run forward and hug and fall down. Sassi is heavily injured due to her head banging on the stone.  Punnuh is no better than Sassi. They both are aware of their death but are happy to have met at the end. Even if they both are to die they are happy atleast they can look at one another.  There is loud noise and Earth shakes and covers the bodies as both the lovers are united in death. The earth swallows Sassi and Punnuh. Now in the place of them stand two mountains indicating they are together for eternity and even death failed in separating star crossed lovers.

Sassi Punnu’s alleged grave is located near Lasbela, 45 miles away in the Pub range to the west of Karachi. Haji Muhammad, an affluent resident of the area, constructed a simple mausoleum in 1980, which is visited by those from near and far. Ruins of Punnu’s fort are likewise located in Turbat.