PARDAH SYSTEM, the custom in certain societies of secluding women from men, is of ancient origin. Pardah is a Persian word meaning veil, curtain or screen. Pardah system involves the covering of the bodies or at least faces by grownup women from the gaze of males other than the closest kin, and their confinement to separate apartments in the interior of their homes variously called haram, zenana, antahpur or avarodha. In its most rigid form the pardah system prevails in some of the Muslim societies, but the custom of the seclusion of women from men existed long before the advent of Islam.
SIHARFISARDAR HARI SINGH NALVA, subtitled "Hari Singh Naive di Mahima ," by Qadar Yar, is a poem in Punjabi, Gurmukhi script, celebrating the valour of Hari Singh Nalva, a general in the army of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The poem is also popularly known as Var Sardar Hari Singh Nalva. Qadar Yar was born around 1805 in Machhike village in Sheikhupura district and seems to have lived all his life in his village. He did not take interest in household work and devoted himself entirely to the Muse. The text of the Siharfi is included in Qadar Yar published in 1969 by the Languages Department, Punjab, Patiala.