Word Meaning
कलाल
kalāl
Meaning
A tavern-keeper, vintner, or wine-seller; also a potter.
Detailed Meaning
In Urdu poetry, 'kalal' primarily denotes a vintner or tavern-keeper dispensing liquor from large earthenware vats (khum). In this verse, Ghalib employs a brilliant pun (īhām) where 'kalal' simultaneously means a wine-seller and a potter who molds clay jars on the spinning wheel (charkh). The poet laments that fate did not make him a vintner, else he would have generously distributed vats of wine solely for God's sake.
Etymology
From Sanskrit 'kalyapāla' (liquor-vendor) and 'kulāla' (potter).
Usage
In the ghazal tradition, 'kalal' denotes the wine-merchant, frequently evoking imagery of taverns, wine-vats, and double entendres with the potter.
Examples
The tavern-goers pleaded with the vintner for more wine.
The wheel turned as the potter shaped the jar.