Open letter to PM

< While coming back from office today, I was listening to the radio. There was this funny guy on one of the stations who had something to say to the PM and man! was he hilarious? 

I manage to remember a few of his jokes and added a couple of quips of mine to write an "Open" letter to the PM. I wish i could remember all he said.Just to be clear, the ideas and statements here are not all mine.
Hope you find it hilarious as well. And all in good humor, nothing personal>

Here it goes,

 
आदरणीय "मौन" मोहन सिंह जी,
मूक ऑफिस,
खामोश गली,
सौ साल पुरानी दिल्ली -01|

रात को आपके आर्डर पे, अरे नहीं नहीं ऐसा मज़ाक आपसे नहीं करते, किसी फौरेन एक्सेंट में आये आर्डर पे, पुलिस  वालों  का ऐसा आम आदमी यानि की  Mango man पे लाठीचार्ज करना "ये अच्छी बात नहीं है"|

कल जो डांडिया उन्होंने लोगों के साथ खेला है उससे उनकी आशाएं, पंडाल और पैर, सब तोड़ दिए गए |
और ये बात समझ नहीं आई की पुलिसवालों की रात को आने की क्या वजह थी, दिन में ऐसी कौनसी UV किरणों का उन्हें खतरा था या sun-tanning के डर से वे रात में आये | वैसे कौनसा बड़ा चाँद जैसा खिलते हैं वो | कोई भी fair एंड unhandsome क्रीम लगा के आ जाते जिसमे SPF above 40 होता तो भी काम बन जाता और हमारी, वहां present लोगों की, उनकी खुद की भी नींद खराब नहीं होती या आपकी पुलिस में batman हैं जो सिर्फ रात में ही निकलते हैं | 

कल उन्होंने जो tear gas के गोले mango people पर फेंके हैं उनसे वो mango से mosquito बन गए थे और mosquito की ही तरह आनन् फानन में तितर बितर हो गए | उस गैस की वजह से निकले आंसू दिन भर हमारी आँखों से निकलते रहे जब इन टीवी चैनल वालों ने बाबा के हाई जम्प का footage तेरह  हज़ार नौ सौ पांच बार दिखा दिखा कर हमें "मार डाला, अल्लाह, मार डाला" |

पर फिर भी आपके "लबों से लबों तक " एक भी शब्द नहीं फूटा और कपालभारती सिब्बल, दुशासन, धनुरासन और पता नहीं कितने आसनों ने कल से जो ज़हर टीवी पे डाला है उसका diarrhea सारे न्यूज़ चैनल वालों में फ़ैल गया है, जिसके चलते हर गली, गूचे और नुक्कड़ के प्रोफेस्सर इन टीवी चैनलों की शोभा डे बढाने ना जाने कहाँ कहाँ से आ रहे हैं और असली issue से तो divert कर-कर के कर-कर के  ये भी भुला दिया की असली issue क्या था | बाबा रामदेव इस बात से  especially नाराज़ हैं | पहले अन्ना हजारे जी ने भी ऐसा ही किया उनके साथ, उनकी limelight छीन ली, जिसके चलते ये पूरा ड्रामा शुरू हुआ | और अन्ना हजारे जी की बात आ ही गई है तो ये बताइए की  जब वे अपने supporters के साथ जंतर मंतर पे "हम्मा हम्मा " कर रहे थे तब भी आपका मौन व्रत नहीं टूटा, "मौन" मोहन सिंह जी | In fact, ये जो नया फैशन आया है fast रखने का इसके trend-setter तो आप ही हैं , जब सात साल पहले आपने एक मौन व्रत रखा था जो by god की कसम आज तक नहीं टूटा...क्या determination है..वाह |

हम सोचते ही रह गए की इस बार तो इस नीले आसमान के नीचे, किसी नीली पगड़ी के अन्दर के कुछ विचार हमें सुने को मिलेंगे या और कुछ नहीं तो कोई Italian, हिंदी में translated speech, पढ़ते हुए नज़र आएँगी पर इस बार तो ऐसा भी कुछ नहीं हुआ |

और हाँ, आशा है इन सब बातों का आप बुरा नहीं मानेंगे |
अंत में एक responsible भारतीय नागरिक होने के नाते एक suggestion देना चाहूँगा, की इस बार ओलिम्पिक्स  में भेजने के लिए  बाबा रामदेव के रूप में आपको एक नया उभरता सितारा मिल गया है ...इस पूरे घटना क्रम में एक positive बात तो  उभर के आई है की हाई जम्प में गोल्ड मेडल भारत से कोई नहीं छीन सकता इस बार| सुना है कल बाबा जी बेबी की तरह पंद्रह फीट नीचे कूद गए | :-o

अंत में यही बोलना चाहूँगा की "बोलने से नहीं होता,करने से होता है "| पर आपके केस में तो आप बोलते भी नहीं हैं.. :(

आपका आभारी,
आम आदमी,
The Mango man.
दिल्ली-06

A thought...

A moon that won't set,
A sun that won't rise.
A dream with open eyes met,
A sad demise.

A perpetual love.
A perpetual pain.
A perpetual question in my heart
that remains.
 
A blurred photo,
A lasting memory.
A forgotten song,
A lasting symphony.

A crumbling rose,
A lasting fragrancy.
A torn card,
A lasting poetry.

A past that won't leave,
A present that is left to grieve,
A future that has already left,
A time that is bereft.

A flame inside my heart,

A destiny within my hand.

A light between my fingers,

A wrath within my eyes.

But...

A hope that can't be choked,
A love that won't lie,
A dream that won't give up,
A spirit  that won't die.

Life...As I will make it!

I am Chhavi Negi. I am 25 and like any other 25 year-old, I think the world is my oyster and like any other 25-year old, I think my best days are going by and I am not able to do anything. It is a weird feeling being 25. You just hit the quarter century and if you "plan" on to live a 100 years then one-fourth of your life is over before you even realized it.

 You start thinking "What do I want?" "What have I done till now!" "How do I get what I want"? And then starts the series of turbulent thoughts, the planning of what course to take now, the analysis of the options available, the TO-DO lists etcetra etcetra. But did you ever think that till school you didn't have much of a life, per se. It is mostly teachers, parents, tutors, principals, elder brother sisters to look forward to, who tell you what you should think and do. Till 18 you see the life from some one else's point of view.

You have to study cause your brother is in IIT and you are expected to carry on the family tradition!
You cannot have a night out at a friend's place if he is a guy cause, umm.... actually i haven't been able to understand this till date, why?
You cannot kiss a guy. What if you get preggers? :-o
You cannot talk about sex, cause hello! it is a hush hush subject as your parents think it is a taboo.

 And only when you come out of that shell, do you get to see the world through your eyes, form your own opinions, frame your own choices. And that's when my friend, the real life has begun for you, the life as you will choose it, the life as you will mould it.
You know you never wanted to get into IIT but into photography classes. And that's what you gonna do now.
You can stay at a guy's place cause you know he is a friend and it is okay to stay at a friend's place, boy or girl.
You have gained enough knowledge that kissing doesn't cause pregnancy.
And it is okay to talk about sex cause in a few years you are going to get married or get laid(in a crude way of saying it).

So technically speaking you have lived what, just seven years of your life!!! Out of which three to four went into college, when you were getting, ummm...what shall I say, trained for the life ahead. You have the whole life in front of you. And if you are "waiting" for your life to begin then you are the biggest fool on earth.

I am not here to find myself. How can I find a thing which is not even created yet? I am here to create myself.
And in the process of creating myself I don't wanna put some deadline in front of me that by 25 I should have a proper job. By 30 I should be married. By 33 I should have two kids. Gosh! It is my life for chrissake not some time bomb that I am sitting on. I can go to a college at the age of 28 if I want. Simply cause I want to.

"Simply paying the bills and living isn't sufficient"

I feel that my better days are coming ahead. I know I will be a Superstar in my own life. Life as I will make it! :)

And as the popstar Pink would say it:

"Made a wrong turn, once or twice. 

Dug my way out, blood and fire. 
Bad decisions, that's alright. 
Welcome to my silly life."

Requiem For A Relation...

I said this,
You said that.
I wanted a dog,
You wanted a cat.

I loved it on table,
You liked it on wall.
There could have been a zillion reasons,
That I didn't call.

I stared at the phone,
It stared back at me.
And when it rang,
I wish it was you, not Jesse.

You were two steps ahead,
I was two steps behind.
You were playing your guitar
And I was looking past the blinds.

The silence between us was pregnant.
I loved you but I didn't tell.
Why was it that always wrong words we'd blurt,
To break that magical spell.

I sit by my window thinking what it could have been,
If only our eyes met each other at the same time.
And the time flew away like a bee.
Now the lyrics of our song don't rhyme.

You didn't hear the unsaid words,
I didn't say the things that were necessary .
The only symphony that can now be heard,
Is the Requiem for a relation that was meant to be.

(For those who don't know, Requiem means any grand musical composition, performed in honor of a dead person)

A girl's first

You were hiding behind those glass walls,
Shying away from the crowd.
But my eyes caught you,
You were made for me, my heart understood.

Colors came into my world,
Red, yellow, green and blue.
You were a part of me no matter where I was,
I couldn't imagine anything so perfect could be true.

The path that I had to tread,
Was full of obstacle and stone,
You would protect me from being hurt.
Taking all my pain on your own.

Whenever there was a thorn in my way,
You wouldn't even let it touch me.
On my way you yourself were laid,
Not a tear in my eyes did you bring
.
You changed me from a little girl to a woman.
Charged me with grace,charisma and poise
Be it windy, hot or rain
The only constant in my life was your presence.

But now few years down the line
I feel that you have changed.
You no more save me from the snares
In fact you are causing me the pain.

We have shared so many memories together.
Good and old, which are now forgotten.
I don't know what to do now
Guess I , too, will have to "move on".

A girl can never forget her first.
It is always tough for her.
Till I find another one.
I will always love you, my slippers!

मेरा यार...

आज सूरज की किरणों ने पूछा, बोलो मुझसे क्या चाहते हो?

मैंने बोला बस आज कहीं तुम छुप जाओ,

मेरे यार को घर तो आने दो |

आज फूलों की बगिया ने पूछा, बोलो मुझसे क्या चाहते हो?

मैंने बोला बस आज तुम मुरझा जाओ,

मेरे यार की खुशबू आने दो |

आज सागर की लहरों ने पूछा, बोलो मुझसे क्या चाहते हो?

मैंने बोला बस आज लहरों को समेट  लो,

मेरे यार के निशाँ छूट जाने दो |

आज रंग बिरंगी तितलियों  ने पूछा ,  बोलो मुझसे क्या चाहते हो?

मैंने बोला बस आज तुम बेरंग हो जाओ,

मेरे यार के रंग घुल जाने दो |

आज चाँद की चांदनी ने पूछा. बोलो मुझसे क्या चाहते हो?

मैंने बोला बस आज तुम कहीं न जाओ,

मेरे यार का दीदार हो जाने दो |

आज पूछा उस खुदा की खुदाई ने, बोलो मुझसे क्या चाहते हो?

मैंने बोला बस आज की रात रुक जाओ,

मेरे यार की तस्वीर दिल में समाने दो |

And then i moved on...

India was partitioning. I was six years old then. People were thoughtlessly boarding and deboarding the trains without a single clue of where they were heading to. It looked as if they were a herd or cattle driven by an invisible intimidating force. We were going to Mumbai from Lahore. Suddenly a group of people carrying swords in their hands came and started using it recklessly on the maddening crowd. I lost my father then. My father was a nice man. He used to say to me, "Beta, always follow the path of truth and principles." Everybody told me to forget the incident and get over it.
And I moved on...

Few years later, my brother was fighting the Indo-Pak war, combating the intruders. One day I received a letter that said that my brother had become a martyr fighting the war. He received Param Vir Chakra posthumously. Consolation letters started to flow in from everywhere. Life doesn't end here they said to me.
So still I moved on...

Today i stand in midst of rubble, blood and corpses. Few hours ago, I received a telephone call. I was playing with my three year old grandsons. They are twins, beautiful kids. My nephew was on the other end. He told me that there have been blasts in Mumbai local train and if everything was okay. Everything was not okay. My son was travelling in one of the trains.
And now the blood-stained body of my son lies in my arms, lifeless. Blood trickles down from the forehead to  the ear and finally onto my fingers. I wiped it with my shirt sleeve. He is looking so disturbed, as if wanting to ask "What just happened?"

People are running, crying, shouting at the top of their lungs. My ears are filled with deafening shrieks yet it seems everything is mute. My legs want to get up but it seems there is a lot of load that they won't be able to carry. My eyes want to cry but they are dry. Somebody is trying to say something to me but it can't reach me. Looks like as if they are still asking me to move on.
But now I will STOP...I will not MOVE ON!

Ever since I was a child I was encouraged to not let anything stop me. I lost a father in partition, a brother in war, a son in terrorist attack. Was it my fault or theirs that the partition happened or the war happened or the attack happened? Somebody on the top decides that the country will be divided or we will fight a war and we just comply. Year after year wounds were inflicted on me in the form of these things but I stood still but now my limbs are giving way. They can't take the burden anymore and even if they can I won't let them. Time has come when I stop and start asking questions that why are we bearing the consequences of partitions till now? Why is it that it is we who face the partitions, wars, famines, attacks and they sit at their homes all cozy and at peace? When we moved on after the last terrorist attack, we were appreciated that we did not let the so-called "Mumbai-spirit" die, but what was done after that?

My moving on has become the excuse for leaving behind the past. I moved on but the government is still there where it was at the time of independence. IGNORANT. Of us, the aam janta. For me each memory is still fresh and will always be. What I went through, I will not let my grandchildren go through the same. I won't move on any more but will stop and snap back.

"I Rise"