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The lafz Zeenat means enhancing the of beauty (of something), decoration, beautification, adornment

Here is a beautiful ghazal written by Tariq Badayuni and set to a melodious tune by Jagjit Singh and Chitra Singh. The last couplet uses the lafz zeenat in a wonderful context.

ik na ik shammaa andhere mein jalaaye rakhiye
subah hone ko hai maahaul banaaye rakhiye

Atleast keep one candle still burning
‘Tis almost morning, keep the environment unchanged

jinke haathon se hamein zaKhm-e-nihaaN pahuNche hain
vo bhii kehte hain ki zaKhmon ko chhupaaye rakhiye

Those who have inflicted unseen (hidden) wounds and hurt to us
Even they say that wounds should be kept concealed

kaun jaane ki vo kis raah-guzar se guzare
har guzar-gaah ko phuulo.n se sajaaye rakhiye

Who knows which path they will travel through
Keep every path adorned with flowers

daaman-e-yaar ki zeenat na bane har aaNsoon
apanii palakon ke liye kuchh to bachaaye rakhiye

Every tear is not bestowed on the lap of the beloved
Save some tears to adorn your eyelashes too

Here is a link to the ghazal:

Zeenat Aman (born 19 November 1951) is also an Indian actress and former beauty pageant titleholder and model best known for her work in Hindi films during the 1970s and 80’s. She was born in Mumbai (erstwhile Bombay) in 1951 to a Muslim father, Amanullah Khan and Indian Hindu mother, Scinda. Her father was a script writer who was one of the writers for such movies as Mughal-e-Azam and Pakeezah.

She is known for the inimitable roles she played in movies like Dev Anand’s Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1971) wherein, aided by R. D. Burman’s song “Dum Maro Dum” helped her win over the heart’s of the audience, as Janice. Her westernised looks in the film Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973), as the girl carrying a guitar, singing “Churaliya hai tumne jo dil ko” (in Asha Bhonsle’s voice) won her more popularity and the hearts of millions of fans. In 1978, she starred in Raj Kapoor’s massively publicised Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978), however, the film was heavily criticized. The subject ironically dealt with the notion of the soul being more attractive than the body but Kapoor chose to showcase Aman’s sex-appeal. The actress was highly criticized for her exposure but somehow at later stage, the film had a great deal to do with Zeenat’s fame and the movie itself was distinguished as a work of art.

Zeenat Aman’s sultry persona was a contrast to many of the more conservative stars of the era.[2] At a time when heroines were obedient wives and lovers on the screens of Hindi Cinema, Zeenat was drawn to more unconventional roles—she was cast as the opportunist who deserts her jobless lover for a millionaire (Roti Kapda Aur Makaan), the ambitious girl who considers having an abortion in order to pursue a career (Ajnabee), the happy hooker (Manoranjan), the disenchanted hippie (Hare Rama Hare Krishna), the girl who falls in love with her mother’s one-time lover (Prem Shastra) and a woman married to a caustic cripple but involved in an extramarital relationship (Dhund). She managed to balance these roles with acting in more conventional films such as Chori Mera Kaam, Chhaila Babu, Dostana and Lawaaris, which is considered by many to be a landmark in Indian Cinema. Encyclopædia Britannica’s “Encyclopedia of Hindi Cinema” wrote, “Zeenat Aman had a definite impact on the characterization of the heroine in Hindi films. With films such as Hare Rama Hare Krishna and Yaadon Ki Baraat, she fashioned the image of the youthful and westernized woman in Hindi cinema.

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