mai sunati hu ek baat mai sunati hu ek baat
bolo bura hua ke bhala hua
mai sunati hu ek baat
bolo bura hua ke bhala hua

ho mujhe nind aayi na sari raat
bolo bura hua ke bhala hua
didi didi ye to bahut bura hua
bura nahi bhala hua sari raat gujari jaag ke
ek chor ko dekha bhagte sari raat gujari jaag ke
ek chor ko dekha bhagte
maine uth ke usko pakad liya
use hathkadi me jakad liya
bandhe rassi se uske hath
bolo bura hua ke bhala hua
ye to bhala hua ye to bhala hua
bhala nahi hat pagle ye to bura hua

na wo chor tha na wo mor tha
na wo chor tha na wo mor tha
wo bechara to koi or tha
padi muft me itni mar use
thane le gaya chokidar use hua julm ye uske sath
bolo bolo bura hua ke bhala hua
didi ye to bhala hua
nahi nahi ye to bahut bura hua
nahi nahi bura nahi bhala hua

use jana tha kahin rail se
takra gayi jo ke mail se
use jana tha kahin rail se
takra gayi jo ke mail se
sare sahar me shor sa mach gaya
sabhi mar gaye wo bach gaya
bas hui khatam ye baat
na bhala hua na bura hua
na bhala hua na bura hua

I tell a tale, I tell a tale,
Say, was it ill or good that prevailed?
I tell a tale, a whispered plea,
Say, was it ill or good, tell me?

No slumber found me through the night,
Say, was it ill or good, with all my might?
Sister, sister, this was surely wrong,
Not wrong, but right, all night long.
Awake I kept, alert and keen,
A thief I saw, a fleeting scene.
I rose and caught him in the chase,
And bound him fast, in time and space.
With ropes I tied his struggling hand,
Say, was it ill or good across the land?
This was good, this was fair,
Not fair, you fool, this was despair!

He was no thief, no fleeting bird,
No thief, no bird, not what was heard.
A different soul, a mournful plight,
He suffered blows throughout the night.
The watchman came, the law did call,
And injustice reigned, encompassing all.
A cruel, harsh fate, a heavy scar,
Say, was it ill or good from afar?
Sister, this was good, I do declare,
No, no, this was wrong, beyond compare!
No, no, this was wrong, beyond compare!

He had to travel, a train he sought,
But met a train, a battle fought.
He had to travel, a train he sought,
But met a train, a battle fought.
The city shook, a mournful sound,
All others perished, he was found.
The tale is done, the story's end,
No good, no ill, the fates transcend.
No good, no ill, the fates transcend.