Monday, January 21, 2013

People Think I Am ...

People think, I am an oasis in the middle of a dessert
Desert - Yes, Oasis - may not be

People think, I am a celebrity
Celebrity - Yes, Fan following - not quite there

People think, my wife is an icing on the cake
Ice - Yes, Cake - Just not there

People think, I am happily settled
Settled - Yes, Happy - Not yet

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Story Untold


Gujjar Singh. All your accomplices are either dead or captured. You are left with no choice, but to surrender.. Or else be prepared to be shot down. In the vast stretches of desert, the loud-speaker was making the voice to resonate across the atmosphere. The echo followed…Prepared to be shot down by Police …

Dadda, remember the promise that we made to ourselves, when we joined Durjan Singh gang.

What promise ??

We will never allow ourselves to be shot dead by police. If at all, it came to that, we will kill ourselves instead of being killed by Police.

Yes, I remember that promise made in front of Goddess Kali, before we set out for our first robbery.

The day has come, when we fulfill that promise.

What are you talking about ??

How many bullets, we are left with, Dadda ??

None.

How can we be left with no bullet so soon into the battle.

Remember, Dukhiya, our informer. He switched allegiance and is now a Police informer. He siphoned off most of our weapons, while we were sleeping.

Dukhiya….You cheat. Gujjar Singh screamed. I saved you from the clutches of police and you did this to your brothers.

No point blaming Dukhiya. It was our fault, we should have done a recce of this village, before deciding to spend a night here.

If we don’t have any bullet left, we have no choice but to surrender.

Surrender…I thought that day would never come. But looks like, we don’t have any choice, we will have to surrender.

No, it is not WE, it is YOU, who will surrender, Dadda.

Only me, how about you ??

I have saved a bullet for this very day.

What ?? Dadda almost screamed in disbelief.

See this, Gujjar Singh searched through a secret pocket tied to his undergarments’ pocket and the bullet was there.

Sorry Dadda, I have to leave you.

Why cannot you also surrender ??

Even if I do, I will not be spared by Police. Remember, the 50 Thousand bounty on my head ??

If that is the case, why do you want me to live ?? I am worthless.

No you are not.

Why ??

If you die, how will people know what made Gujju, the dumb-headed gold-medallist, into Gujjar Singh, the dreaded gangster. There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.

The naked Goddess Kali was still sticking her tongue out, perhaps in awe of Gujjar’s great sacrifice. It was a story worth being told.

Monday, January 14, 2013

Guilty Conscience of an Auto Rickshaw

Mantri Fame, As I confirm the place's name
My mind starts playing a game; to game or not to game
Clock is ticking, time more or less the same, it's just a game
As I start belching thick black flame, I wonder, why no shame !!

PS: My first _real_ shot at poetry, written as part of a warm-up exercise during one Write Club Meetups

Saturday, January 12, 2013

Black Magic


Where have you been ??
Sorry, I got late.
But where did you go ??
somewhere close by.
Where ??
I had gone to watch the magic show by PC Sarkar, the great magician from Bengal.
What ?? You didn’t even tell me.
You would have said no anyway, what was the point in asking ??
This is ridiculous. How can you go to a magic show without even asking me ??
I had some real fun.
What fun, Mona ?? What is wrong with you ?? You should know, he is no magician, he is a conman. You get it, a conman.
No Raj. The Bengali magic is for real.
I don’t buy.
You will…someday.
That will be the day, Mona. Not in my lifetime at least.
Forget it. You must be feeling hungry, so am I.
                                                    -----


Kala Jadoo...Kala Jadoo... Aaiye Aaiye..Appke Shehar Mein Pahli Baar…Bangal ka Asli Kala Jaado...Aaiye Aaiye…The announcement was to be followed by a sweet sound of dumroo..Darrr…Darr…Aaiye Aaiye....

As I looked around, tried locating the source of this voice, I noticed a decent gathering, making its way to a corner. It was for a magic show. Black Magic…From Bengal…Not Any More. I will expose him in front of everyone. Let me grab those "front-row" seats. How will I catch him, if I don’t stand close enough ??

At the center of all this, I saw a young boy in his teens, who was proclaiming himself to be the practitioner of Black Jadoo. Hmm Not Bad..But poor boy, your story is soon going to over. You will regret doing a magic-show in my town.

The show started with few routine tricks, as you would expect out of a run-of-the-mill Magic-Show. The handkerchief turning into a bird. Goldplated coins raining from vaccum….Must be sleight of hands, I quipped. While people around me clapped, I was not impressed. My mind was fixated on his hands and gestures. Suddenly, the magician announced “The show is almost over. I am now going to try my last magic. I promise, it will blow your minds. Are you all ready ??” Yes, we are, The chorus followed his voice and everybody started clapping in anticipation of what would come.

The magician hand-picked a person from the crowd and claimed that he would turn him blind by applying black-magic and then revert him back to normalcy, again with help of Black Magic. Everyone was awe-struck. He is going to make somebody blind and then restore his vision. Must be the dreaded Bengali Kala Jadoo !!

He started chanting abracadabra with a magical wand in his hand, looking into the person’s eyes all this while. The effect was instant. The man became blind in a flash. The magician proudly announced the person has become. He is blind. You all can test it yourself.

Let me test him. I told to myself.
How many ?? I raised my hands, with my little finger hidden underneath my thumb.
I can’t see anything. He complained.
Must be lying …I kept my thoughts to myself.

By now, everyone else, except me, was convinced that he was blind.

Now I will revert his eye-sight, the magician announced. The audience had their heart in their mouth. Can he do that ??

Oh Yes, He can !! The same chore followed. And his vision was restored, or at least proclaimed to be so by the great magician. A round of applause followed.

Folks, now it is your turn ?? Any one want to experience Black Magic first-hand. His tone was surprisingly strong for a performer inviting his audience on stage, as if he was throwing a challenge to them.

To my utter surprise, nobody volunteered. I thought, there would be a flood of people willing to experience Black Magic first-hand. No one. This was my chance to prove that he is a cheat. A golden opportunity indeed. I promptly raised my hand.

So you want to give the Black Magic a try. The magician took a good hard look at me and tried confirming my intentions.
Yes.

Are you sure, you want to give it a try.
Yes. 

Are you really sure ??
Yes, I am. I was getting annoyed at his questionnaire.

I hope, you are aware of the consequences ??
What consequences ??
See, there is always an element of risk involved.
What risk ??
There is a remote chance that the magic will fail. 
Fail, What do you mean ??
You may become blind for the rest of your life.
I am fine. I firmly stood my ground. 

Some people did get scared. I could hear them whisper “There is no guarantee that the Black Magic will succeed ?? What if the magic fails ?? His eye-sight will be gone, really ?? But, I was not unfazed by his failure. After all, I was praying for his failure, wasn’t I ??

Ok, fine. As You Wish. But let me repeat, there is a remote chance of you loosing your eyesight permanently. The magician made a last ditch attempt to convince me, not to try Black Magic.

You have to constantly look into my eyes, while I chant my mantras, get it.
Yes, go ahead.

With a resigned look, the boy started chanting all those mantras. I was standing very close to him, his fist occasionally touching my belly, as he waved his magical wand. There was no impact whatsoever as a result of his innocuous chanting, at least I didn’t feel anything. But, a close look at his torn clothes and miserable condition started making me drowsy. A glance at his empty stomach, squeezed almost to the back, was making me loose my eye-sight. As I looked deep into his wet eyes, I was blinded by the light coming out of them. I was becoming blind. Yes, I was becoming blind.

Mona, you were right. The Bengali Black Magic is for real, it works..It works.

Sunday, January 06, 2013

When You ..


When you crossed my path, it changed my path
When you looked at me, it changed by looks
When you shook my hand, it shook my mind
When you spoke to me, it changed by voice

When you were absent, I felt absent
When you were present, I still felt absent
When you waved good-bye, I felt the waves changed
When you finally went, I felt the world changed