Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Rains

You poured down upon 
The thirsty Earth
Relinquishing the heaven above
To meet an old friend

Since times immemorial
That the land and the sky 
Have attempted to meet 
At a far off horizon

You have looked down
On the Earthly existence
With an envious soul and 
A plight to dissolve in its magnitude

A wayfarer with a strange 
Jauntiness about you
Looking down from the 
Dark clouds heaping upon themselves

You poured down upon 
The thirsty Earth
With a buoyance of sprite
Spreading delight
And mirth

The Earth smiled back
Knew you would arrive 
To wash away the acridity
Into a world sublime

Rain Rain (Don't) go away, Little Johny wants to play!


Three days of unrelenting rainfall! Monsoons it is! The day started as gloomy as expected. It took me a lot of motivation to shake off my laziness and get going for the hospital. I was literally waiting on an "island" for a bus. It was water everywhere. Lanes, bylanes, streets, houses, basements, shops. Gutters and ponds overflowing. Luckily i did reach on time and was pleasantly surprised to find all the patients posted for the OT to have arrived well before the scheduled hours!
And then came my turn to get back home. As it seemed, it had rained all day long. the water levels had increased. People had all kinds of emotions written all over their faces- frustration, reluctance, malaise, gloom. Indeed there was a minority who had a song at their lips and a hop in their gait! I stood near the Metro station and was taken back to my school days! How we would love when on rare occasions our school would declare a rainy day. Otherwise we would wade through waters, stamping and splashing, getting drenched from head to toe, pushing and pulling, full of giggles and laughter and life!
It is a different story now. A little walt from the station i came across this group of urchins playing in a pool of water. Paper boats all around them, free from all the restrictions, sailing in the little cold breeze that blew. The kids, oblivious to the troubles around, enjoying every splash. It did not matter if the rains didn't stop or the dark gray clouds overhead never melted or disappeared. It did not matter if buses never ran or offices or schools never shut. They knew in their innocent little hearts, it was playtime and there was no one to stop them. 
Now im back at home, all dried up. A hot cup of tea in my hand and the rains outside. Is this inner peace or am i in a waking dream?

Sunday, August 18, 2013

A Walk to Remember

Its a sad story that inspite of being a Bengali, I haven't had much of an exposure to my own literature. Right from my childhood days when I had Hindi as my second language, I have been reading a lot, English literature mostly. My passion for literature, both classics and contemporary, continues till date.
Resultantly, it has been really pleasant and a wonderful experience watching Bengali theatre in the last one year. Thanks to my better half for that.
It was a clouded overcast day and the entire afternoon spent in a stuporous state. Then came an impromptu plan to watch theatre at the Academy of Fine Arts. Me and Ankita set course for a political sattire Tasher Desh, inspired from the work of Rabindranath Tagore with the same name. The play was a good experience overall. Being a layman I cannot much comment on the technical aspect of the play but on the whole we both enjoyed it a lot.
And then came the rains. Pouring onto the humid hot city, bringing relief. Roadside cuppa and a smoke later we were on our way back. Walking under the same umbrella. Getting wet. Hands clasped together. Wading through small puddles of water. Looking at each other while we walked down the empty roads. An otherwise ordinary day with yet another extraordinary ending.
Finally back to my seat while the roadside stalls are getting closed. Hot air from the teapots making their way up. Now the stoves are cold. The shops almost shut. People comfortably home ready for the busy week ahead. And I, smiling with a good feeling inside. Of a complete day coming to a happy ending. Have a pleasant night!

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Ode To The Moonlight


A beautiful silken web,
The silvery light has spun,
Do not wake me from this-
Dream, into the world I shun.

Do not push me into the shadows
Beyond the glints of night,
Ah, for eternal darkness,
If so beautiful is the night.

The cordon of ships far ahead,
In harmony and free of vice,
Guarding the endless seas-calm,
And in tranquility that I entice.

The mellifluent breeze that sings,
A swan song of epicurean delight,
Be it the end of my time,

If so beautiful is the night.

Serendipity


Amidst the trees, Of
Guilded youth; Across the fence-
I sat on a lounger,
Solemn and in eloquent silence.

I watched Nature’s grandeur
Of trees and coots and doves,
And then I thought-
Every man kills the things he loves.

All this while I was,
Existent but benighted,
I realized in serendipity, the world-
Is full of men, Perfidious and blighted.

The world’s mire, besmirched
Worldly affairs but a coquette,
Some strut down the rocky roads,
Others sidle to malignant fate.

The good Samaritan is lost,
Of Roman virtues there’s a dearth,
To expurgate the sins and follies,
Where is the man of sterling worth?
What is it worth, living in a world,
Of treachery and sinful deceit;
Where we cast pearls before swine
And run after elusive feats.

Clouds heap upon clouds, Above me-
The grey and the overcast sky,
I shall melt in the dark, and,
Sublime from this world so sly.



A Blog, finally!

There have been so many times that random thoughts, whispering voices, new ideas have crowded my mind and I have more often than not wondered what should i do with them. It has been on my mind since eternity to start posting my thoughts in the form of both prose and poetry. Procrastination was all i ended up with!
Today I am finally taking a step forward in this new world of blogging, hoping it to be a pleasant journey... Ahoy!