कल

कभी ये पूछा 
कभी वो सोचा 

कभी आँसू  मिले 
कभी मुस्काए 

जीवन की 
आपाधापी  में 
आज जैसे 
और भी कल होंगे 

जो कल फिर 
पिछले कहलाए  !

Memory with Tea

The crunch of life

I used to buy for two rupees

has been long lost with

the familiar poodiwalaah* 

the glittering signages

of multinational chains

selling international cuisines

have gobbled up

the old woman who sold

boiled eggs with rock salt

on winter eves

the benches thankfully

are still here

but vacant

the plague of social networking

has killed the time

that permitted

sitting there doing nothing

gossip,chat,observe

and soak the sun

the state library

and the church

mostly visited by 

only tourists now

have air fresheners

killing the

fragrance of nostalgia

in each of these

I have lost

the ideal of something

SHIMLA was

I delete

all the new pictures

and munch on memory

with a hot cup of tea.

* the man who sold paper cones filled with a homemade spicy mixture of nuts.

कविता !!

जब शब्द न मिले तब  भी 

जब विचार भटकते रहें 

और चुप्पी की दीवारों से 

टकराकर लौट  आते हैं ,

तर्क सिर्फ ले जाते हैं 

क से ख तक 

तब कल्पना तूलिका  के 

एक ही झटके  से 

चित्रित करती है 

मूक संवादों के 

कई दौर 

और जन्म लेती है 

रंग-बिरंगे मोतियों से 

बनी एक अजीब सी 

कविता !!

SHAKTI

the statues they worship

and the legends they revere

are not gratuitous

in the fabled shakti

they hide the gruesome barter

of real women

paying the price

for the devi

to be worshiped.

the crimson is rich

from the blood

of unborn daughters

and of the

millions who 

bleed every day

or die unceremoniously

for the noble cause

of irrigating the 

harsh soil

of patriarchy !

यूँ ही

निरूतर निश्वास
करते जीवन के आभास

उत्तर -प्रत्युत्तर
में उलझे एहसास

निरुत्तर निश्वास

SOME DIFFICULT QUESTIONS

During this last one month images and voices related to the Delhi Rape,the subsequent protests and debates have flooded our lives.My daughter had a few difficult questions for me,here I try some answers.

Why does this girl hide her face?
This was a shocker,it came after she saw graphics similar to the ones mentioned in this article,which represent the woman survivor of a sexual crime as SHAMED.

But as any logic would point out shouldn't the wrongdoer be shamed instead of the victim of the wrongdoing?The worn out logic of social stigma against the survivor needs to break.

I told her she is not hiding her face,she is not ashamed,she is hurt.If we support her she will surely show us her face and smile some day.

Why did bad men kill her?

She is too young to understand what bestiality they subjected her to before attempting to kill her finally,but that doesn't lessen the impact of this query from a four year old.What kind of images of men is she forming in her mind,I wonder?

She still doesn't understand death due to violence fully yet knows killing is a bad word and a bad deed.

I told her sometimes we all are tempted to do bad,hurt others.But if you are being hurt by some one ever,speak up and if ever you are tempted to hurt some one remember its BAD and STOP.

Can I go in a bus when I am a big girl?

Wish I could say no to this.But then wouldn't I be participating in the extended conspiracy of locking-up our girls from public spaces due to fear of sexual or other exploitation?

I tell her you can but you have to be vigilant and brave,hoping that by the time she is old enough to take a bus alone things would have changed for the better for her and all us women.

PAPA

He does not let
the decadence
cloud his eyes

his hands shake more
his blazers droop

I can feel
his labored breathing
as I hold him
his limp hands on the sides

my little one
is chattering about her dad
with gleam in her eyes

my dad
pats my shoulder
and we both know

in life and beyond
this bond shall go on !