Social Animal?

He wasn’t moving at all. I think he would have fallen from the bench on roadside. May be he was too drunk or maybe he was too weak or maybe he got a heart attack. I am not sure. He might just be murdered by someone for all I know.


Every passerby was staring at the person at least for two minutes before moving on. Someone was giving a surprised look as if saying “oh what happened old man?” another person was giving a disgusted look as if the old man was actually lying inside her leaving room creating a mess. Someone was curious, other showed pity and yet other was amused. Some people had concerned look on their faces, but still no one looked concerned enough to help the old man out.

Does it look like a scene straight out of Mumbai’s mercilessly fast life? Sorry it does not belong to my most abused, most heartless still most lovable city! It’s in a city situated on the opposite side of the globe, Bogotá (Colombia). And the same scene is often repeated in different parts of the world, in different cities and in different cultures. But the result is same, no one wants to take a step and help the fallen.

I saw a B-grade Hindi movie last week “Chitkabre”. The movie was forgettable but one dialogue stuck to my mind “human is called to be a social animal, but he neither could become social nor remained animal”. This is so apt in such scenes.

No it’s not important what I did. Though I tried to wake the old man up shaking his shoulder and then tried to ask people to help. But no one understood what I said in English. Funny isn’t it, that people in this world don’t know English. ENGLISH!!! In such a situation, for God sake even a deaf would have understood that I am asking them to help. But probably it’s not about language of tongue but of heart! And like all other things today it is also GLOBAL!!

दूर देशी

दूर देशी माझ्या डोक्याशी


दोन मऊ ऊश्या असतात

बिस्तरा वर जाड गादी

वर नरम रजयी पण असते

तरी घरच्या जमीनी चा

कठोरपण जास्त आराम देतो

कारण तिथे तुझे बोट माझ्या केसां वर असतात

कारण इथे तुझी कुशी नसते.

दूर देशी इथे माझ्या खिडकीतून

सुंदर हिरवा डोंगर दिसतो

वरून उतरणारे वादळ दिसतात

छान हळूवार पाऊस येतो

पण तरी मुंबईचा घामाचा पाऊस

जास्त हवा हवा सा वाटतो

कारण तीथे तुझ्या केसांची सावली असते

कारण इथे तुझ्या श्वासांचा वारा नसतो.

मला तो तुझा स्पर्श

मला  ते तुझे शब्द पाहिजे परत

इथे चेहरे सुंदर असतील बहुदा

पण डोळे तुझ्यासारखे बोलके नाहीत

Anna and Indian Corruption

Anna Hazare has made a wave against corruption in India not so long ago. But the whole rubble that was raised looks so distant now that it seems ages before when he was fasting (.. until death which did not happen.. thankfully!! otherwise we would have got another God / godly saint to bear with)


Now he is busy making one after other sensational remarks, latest being, against Gujarat and its CM Narendra Modi. As if it was an afterthought to clean up Anna's own image which was tarnished among so called intellectuals (read socialites) of our country after he praised Narendra Modi, again no so long ago. This about turn of his opinion about Narendra Modi in particular and Gujarat in general makes me think the sanctity of Anna's intentions. Here I may well be wrong (and I want to be proved wrong) but this shows another kind of corruption one can be involved with. The intellectual corruption. If I mould my opinions depending on which forum I am talking on or to align them to the thoughts of people who are organizing my talks, in my view is a form of corruption. When Anna is with Narendra Modi he praises him and when he is with the original Mallika of India (the Sarabhai I mean) he disowns Modi. Suddenly Gujarat, which he hailed as epitome of good governance two months back becomes one of the most corrupt state of India. Will Anna tell us which statement to believe?

Now talking of corruption in India, I think it is so hardwired in our behavior that it has almost become part of our genes. Yes, I am a firm believer that somehow socialism which prevailed over our governance principles for over 50 years post independence is responsible. The kind of limited resources and the quota system which resulted due to socialist style of governance are responsible for our behavior of accumulating too much before anybody else can do that.

Now this corruption with socialistic pattern will not go away with socialitic (of, by and for socialites) revolution which we saw couple of months back. While I am not interested in defending Mr Modi, Anna!, working with socialites and modifying your statements to suit them will not change the society which allegedly you are interested in. The cancer of corruption needs more than a skin deep treatment. We need another Gandhi and I am convinced it is not you, Anna.

वर्षा

अब तो याद ही बाकी है,

माटी की सौन्धी महक की.

कीचड़ से सने हाथों औ

घुटनों तक पानी से भरे खेतों की.

रामदीन की बैलों को हांक
गया की काम करते हुए गुनगुनाहट
कभी कभी अब भी देती है अपनी आहट.
याद आता है अब भी गाँव.
यादें तेज हो जाती है गर मशीन मे
काम करते हुए हाथों मे पड़ते हैं घाव.
                                     

Summer

कहा है वह ग्रीष्म की तपन

कोयल का कूकना वह अमराई का बचपन
आमों पर लगी ललचाई आखें
वनो मे विचरते पैर और ख़ाक छानती बाहें
कहाँ है वह बच्चो का फुदकना
उनका कोलाहल और खिलखिला कर हँसना
वह लंबे चौड़े मिट्टी से सने मैदान
जहा बच्चो को मिलता पहला तत्वज्ञान

ग्रीष्म अब ऐयर कंडीशन मे क़ैद हैं
कोयल अब सोने के पिंजरे मे कूकती हैं
अमराई अब मॉल मे बदल गयी हैं
मैदान अब रास्ते और मकान हो गये हैं
बच्चे अब किताबों मे डूब गये हैं
शायद अब खेल के मोह से निकल गये हैं.

मौत

लड़ता रहा जूझता रहा जिंदगी भर

यूँ के कभी ख़त्म नही होगा ये सफ़र
हर सुबह एक नया इंतजार और
हर शाम दिन के साथ ख़त्म होती आस
फिर सुबह ले आती एक नया इंतजार
यही बन गये मेरे जिंदगी के तार
अचानक लगा की एक दिन आ रही है वो
आगोश मे लेने को बेक़रार
फिर याद आया डूबते दिल को
इंतजार करते करते वो जीना ही भूल गया
सब कुछ पाने की चाह मे
कुछ भी जैसे पाना ना हुआ

इस तरह हो गयी एक और आम मौत
बिना रोशनी किए बुझ गयी एक और जोत.

What now (Kasa...ab)

"..and he was sitting calm while his death setence was anounced by the judge..". Why should not he be calm and composed, for he knows that he will still have two appeals granted before he can be executed. He has been assured by his lawyer that he has a lifeline which will not fade before atleast 20 years, for the last appeal will be sent to some white cloth clad clowns who will take forever to decide on it. . There are many in the queue before him awaiting (?) for the clowns to sit down and decide on their appeals.

There is one in the queue who has had a minor tiff with Indian Police and Army while he was visiting the Indian Parliament. What if it was with few of his friends who had an fire arm for their pleasure with them. The Judiciary delivered too harsh a judgment in giving death.

Another one is boy (sorry an old man now) whose only crime was that he could not control his libido. Now you can not give death setence to one for small liberties taken in one's hotblooded youth.

Death sentences can not be delivered as the clowns don't understand the logic of giving death sentences for petty crimes like attacking (oops.. visiting) parliament, raping (i mean.. expressing love to a girl a bit more physically) or practicing gun shots (diwali hangover.. you see) in a railway station. See the human right activists are also nodding in the agreement.

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शहर

बेतहाशा रफ़्तार से दौड़ती सड़कें
फिर भी कही नही पहुचती हुई
घड़ी की सुइयों से चिपके लोग
उसी जगह बार बार चक्कर लगाते से.
पागलपन की हद तक पागल लोग
बेवजह बेबात ठहाके लगाते से.
हर कही बेशुमार आदमियों की भीड़

हर कही बाते, मुलाक़ातें, हसते रोते लोग

मै भी खो जाता हू उसी भीड मे हर सुबह

और हर शाम यहा इसी शहर मे.

मै उस समय मै नही रहता

बस हो जात हू अपने आप मे एक भीड्

बाते करता हु दिन भर किसी न किसी से

लगता है फिर भी यूँ की कुछ कहा ही नही

बिना आवाज़ के हर मौके पर
बोलता रह जाता हू पर रह जाता है कुछ बाकी.
कोई भी नही मिलता यहाँ आदमी सा
हर किसी की पहचान खो चुकी सी
शायद खुद की खुद से
बस यही शहर की दास्तां है की
यहाँ दिन का बीतना, एक और
काम निपट जाना होता है.

Is that all to the Life

There is a jubilation everywhere,

My father is on seventh heaven
doesn't know how to express
his happiness even to those who don't care.

For his is this, so private,
a joy he never felt before
in his life of these 25 years
that a life spent in a manner so sedate.

It was I who was born,
a bundle of tender flesh so joyous,
an epitome of my parents dreams,
of their life which I will now adorn.

I was full of possibilities,
for I could be an astronaut
or a cricketer to play for country
anything but not to get best for my innate abilities.

Thus I grew my childhood over
tried to give my best
over the years to my studies
or to anything and everything I did or care.

I was initiated unknowingly,
to the race called life
race to survive and excel
and I ran sometimes admirably sometimes laughably.


I entered the same path
which was beaten many time
by many and will be beaten
by many more to come on that path.

I got my partner so loving
she took over my life
my worries and happiness
she was my lighthouse always guiding

I excel in my profession
bring in children in my life
the life goes on and on
and I keep my running shoes always on

Then one day all of a sudden
children are grown and
gone on their own paths
Me and my wife alone left now home ridden

I now know this is the end
for past seventy year I ran
for money, status and belief
to keep my folks happy and contend

For I know for me the history will not repeat
I remember the days past
the memories so happy
but and I feel sad and accept the unknown's defeat

Is this I wanted to do all my life
for life was so short,
I am left thinking all the time
is there anything after or is that all to the life?

Winter

देखी कल रास्ते मे पड़ी
ठिठुरती वृद्धा की आँखे,
याचना करती कातर
दयनीय आस भरी
गर्म लिहाफ़ो मे लिपटे
काठ के पुतलो को देखती
उनके साथ ऊनी कपड़ो मे लिपटे
कुत्ते के पिल्ल्ले
या फिर बिल्ली के बच्चे
व्यंग से भरी कभी सोचती आँखे
कितनी बदल गयी है ये दुनिया
काश वे ना होती मानव की आँखे
अगले कुछ पलों मे वे
नही थी देखने मे समर्थ
पर कुछ प्रश्न जगा रही थी आंखे

Dream Unlimiting

I was sweating badly.. In that dark and humid jungle I was suffocating. I thought I was going to die here without air or water. There was no end to this misery. Still, there I was running with full force, for the life.
I couldn't stop, for there were my folks waiting for me to bring something for them to eat. You know "I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep" stuff. I am tired to the hell, still sweating buckets out, my lungs are stretched to the maximum. Suddenly things shuddered with some cool drops; I am awake and realize I was in the comforts of my bedroom. My wife, standing besides the bed, looking at me with strange eyes, had sprinkled some water drops on me to wake me up.

"What happened to you?" she demands. And I am lost in the confusing jungle of my thoughts, trying to fathom the meaning of the dream. Most dreams do not have meanings but I somehow know there was a meaning to this dream. My wife gives me another puzzled and a bit stern look this time. I am sure she was getting late to get ready for her college.

I finish drinking my cup of tea and start the day's routine. Routine!! did I just say ROUTINE! Yes that's that. The whole meaning of the dream flashes in front of me. Oh God! Thanks. What a dream.

The jungle in the dream actually was the bored cabins of my office where I go through the drudgery of days ROUTINE work. I am still trying to run faster and faster in the corporate world because I have promised my folks some comforts, some money and some name for my own ego. The dream had a meaning, but then so had the shuddering cold water sprinkled on me. Yes, the water was actually a reminder that I should shake all the boredom off me and be enthusiastic about the new day. The new day, this brings all the new things to learn. I know I had lost that enthusiasm to learn, to see the wonders each day brings. I was suffocating under the boredom of my own making. And was instead cursing everything else for boredom, my job, my city, my car and sometimes even my wife and myself!

Now I know I need to sprinkle few drops of cold water to bring about the light in the darkness, some cool breeze in the suffocating space and same enthusiasm in my life all over again. For that I need to come out of my comfort zone and revive that thirteen-year-old’s enthusiasm for life back. May be slow down a bit in the process, doesn’t matter.

Being an adult with a thirteen year old’s enthusiasm is just great..