क्या भूलूँ क्या याद करू

Today is a sad day. Just realised that the last famine under the British was in 1943-44. Also realised that 60 years after independence, we have people dying of starvation. Yes, no food. As simple as that.

(Image Courtesy: Hindustan Times)

When you start your day with the image of an obviously etiolated grandmother feeding an infant black tea, because she has nothing else to offer, you want to run out of that office, home, whatever, and help. But dont know how to help. dont know who is working there, other than HT. I dont know what to do.

That one image will haunt for a long long time.. and in some strange way, feel like i have failed that child... like all of us have failed these children..

...

जाने दो मुझे जाने दो...

जाने दो, मुझे जाने दो,
रंजिशें या गिले, वफ़ा के सिले, जो गए, जाने दो...

थोड़ी खलिश होगी, थोड़ा सा ग़म होगा,
तनहाई तो होगी, एहसास कम होगा...
गहरी ख़राशों की, गहरी निशानियाँ है,
चेहरे के नीचे कितनी सारी कहानियां है,
माजी के सिलसिले, जा चुके, जाने दो...

उम्मीद-ओ शौक़ सारे, लौटा रही हूँ मैं,
रुसवाई थोड़ी सी, ले जा रही हूँ मैं...
बासी दिलासों की शब् तो गुज़ार आयी,
आँखों से गर्द सारी, रो कर उतार आयी,
आँखों के बुलबुले, बह गए,
जाने दो...
Roman Transliteration:
Jaane do, mujhe jaane do,
Ranjishein ya gile, wafa ke sile, jo gaye, jaane do...

Thodi khalish hogi, thoda sa gham hoga..
Tanhai to hogi, ehsaas kam hoga..
Gehri kharaashon ki, gehri nishaaniyaan hain,
chehre ke neeche kitni saari kahaanyaan hain..
Maazi ke silsile, jaa chuke, jaane do..

ummeed-o-shauq saare, lauta rahi hoon main..
Rusvai thodi si, le jaa rahi hoon main..
Baasi dilaason ki shab to guzaar aaye,
aankhon se gard saari, ro kar utaar aaye
aankhon ke bulbule, beh gaye, jaane do..


Rough Translation:
(This translation is literal, one can neva translate all the layers of this ghazal)

Just, let me go..
The grivances and the complaints,
The return for our loves,
Its all gone now... let it be..
and let me go..

There will be a little emptiness,
and a little sorrow..
A little loneliness,
but a little less sensitivity..
Deep gashes have caused deep scars..
Oh! How many stories reside under the skin!
But all those stories of the past,
are now gone..
let me go, too...

All my hopes,
and all my fondnesses,
I leave here
All i m taking with me
is a little ignominy...
The whispered condolences, are stale now,
And that evening (of shared condolences) is far behind us..
The grime of my eyes
was washed away by tears.
The bubbles (of sorrow) in my eyes,
have burst..
let them be..

Just, let me go....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOU3vBEMYy4

Album: Dil Padosi Hai - Gulzar, RD, Asha.

tum baithe ho...

Last week, on youtube, one discovered the simple pleasure of good poetry in Jagjeet Singh's voice.. soothing, and just the kind of thing that makes one smile in the middle of the workday...

There are 2 that were fresh, but this one is beautiful: (my fave lines are in bold)
तुम बैठे हो, लेकिन जाते देख रहा हूँ,
मैं तनहाई के दिन आते देख रहा हूँ...

आने वाले लम्हे से दिल सहमा है,
तुमको भी डरते घबराते देख रहा हूँ।

कब यादों का ज़ख्म भरे, कब दाग मिटे,
कितने दिन लगते हैं भुलाते देख रहा हूँ॥ :-)

उसकी आँखों में भी काजल फैला है,
मैं भी मुढ के जाते जाते देख रहा हूँ॥
- जावेद अख्तर

Rough Translation:
You are here, but I can already see you going..
And the days of loneliness are on their way..

I am scared of the days that are to come..
and so are you..

When will the hurt of memories heal,
How long will the scars last,
Am waiting to see how long it takes..

Her eyes are smudged with all the crying,
And i turn back, again and again, for one(more) last look..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZPwpeuvOK0

To Rocket Singh

This post will only make sense if you have seen the film Rocket Singh. In the movie, at one point, Rocket Singh is jailed. his grandfather bails him out and brings him home. Ranbir turns towards his grandfather and says "Agar aap ne jhooth bolna sikhaya hota to aaj ye din nahi dekhna padta." (i would not have had to see this day if only you'd taught me to lie.)
(* ref to context: Rocket Singh got into trouble in office because he could not offer the mandatory bribes required to secure orders, and reported a customer asking for bribe. * )

That was a Whoa! moment for me. Why do we insist on truth over everything else, and me means EVERYTHING else. We could kill, but we could not lie. Having grown up like that, one sooo identified with that dialogue, and yes, i have been thinking of this all these months. It was an internal conflict that refused to end.

Then it hit. When Ranbir is trying to start his own business, he asks his first vendor - a man he has known for barely 5 minutes, to give him his first order on credit. The guy hesitates, then says "जा ले जा। वैसे भी मैंने किसी सरदार को कभी चोरी करते नहीं देखा। " (Take it. Anyway i have never seen a Sikh steal.)

Answer to Rocket Singh: बेटा, अगर दादाजी ने झूठ बोलना सिखाया होता, तो वो दिन भी देखने को नहीं मिलता।
(Son, if your family had taught you to lie, you would not have been able to see that day either.)

Faith in truth restored. Ishaan, watch out.

kis ka sher hai pata nahi..

Kirdaar se banaiye maiyar-e-zindagi,
Mahaul se hayaat ka sauda na kijiye..

Translation of sorts:
Let your character be the creator of your standards,
Don't pawn your life to your circumstances..

Note to self: Remember this...
Note to Mampi: Thank you for the sher...

The Five Women Tag

Think of 5 women who are, or have been important to you. Write about them. Wish them Happy Womens Day. Chances are, they have no idea they mean so much to you! Imagine making it to the Top 5. And here is the best part - you may be pleasantly surprised at the list too!! Go ahead... do it.... please!!

Happy Women's Day

Every year, on this day (and on many others), i think of the poem "Every Woman Should Have" (google and you can read it). I love this poem. Its inspirational almost, and very soothing.

But this year, i bumped into another list , which is hilarious and... well, novel.. so here then is the list, copy pasted from here.

1. Hard-boil an egg (Earlier this year, my sister asked me how, but I’ll cut her some slack; she was only 25.)
2. Diplomatically tell Mom to butt out
3. Ace a job interview
4. Ask a man out
5. Send a thoughtful thank-you note
6. Listen to a friend in need
7. Ask for help
8. Effectively end an unhealthy relationship (romantic or platonic in nature)
9. Beautifully wrap a gift
10. Say “no” gracefully
11. Whip up a great dinner with the five items in her fridge
12. Forget pleasing him, by 30 a woman should be able to tell her man exactly how to please her
13. Sew a button
14. Mix a kick-ass cocktail
15. Take off her bra without removing her shirt
16. Apply lip gloss in the dark
17. Balance her checkbook
18. Create a budget
19. Find the best deal
20. Negotiate a salary and/or pay raise
21. Read a map
22. Hail a cab
23. Say something in French just for the hell of it
24. Apologize when she’s wrong
25. Dress for her body type
26. Change a flat (or know whom to call to come change it)
27. Spot a fake (handbag, diamond, potential friend …)
28. Feign interest
29. Know what to tip on a $25 dinner bill
30. Hold a baby (Hey, someone you know is bound to have one sooner or later.)

What's your score? (How many of these skills can u say Aye to?) Mine is 20. :-(

Havent u learnt yet
that that rules of the game
are absolutely cast in stone?

If you break the rules
The rulers
will break you.
It is not acceptable
to break the carefully constructed
house of cards
standing so proud
and tall
without a foundation
but the books say
the foundation is a million years deep
and everyone
living in the house
believes it too.

The truth is,
its not the foundation.
Its the roots
that the cards grew
over the years.
This house was built
without a foundation.
On a clean slate.

And that,
was the last clean slate
that the world has seen.

Citizenship

some days,
i love all the disguises loneliness wears..
like an illegal immigrant,
it always gets in...

like a legal citizen,
it rarely leaves...