Ruchika

It may be her story.
But it’s not only her fight.
For no household can deny the existence of a mother, daughter or wife.

It was 19 years ago that he committed the crime.
And if not sent to the gallows,
Would encourage others to fallow line.

How then with so many Rathore’s on the loose,
Could anybody be in peace.
When almost every day their loved ones have to walk on the streets.

If we take it to be our duty to protect those dearest to our eyes.
We must necessarily unite and fight for their right to life.
For if this phenomena goes unchecked,
It will put in peril those dearest to our eyes.

picto-real

It’s funny that I am 23,
And being single is not my cup of tea.
But as fate would have it,
I am yet to meet that special being.

People say that I only speak.
Without putting up an act I shall never meet.
But then that’s me.
That’s how I have always been.

For I don’t want to deceive.
Because if I do what use would the relationship be.
She would never really know ME.
Or know how I feel.

I therefore refuse to kneel.
Will be patient to keep it real.
Hope the day is near.

why so indifferent ???

With power comes responsibility, but what happens when there is a failure to realize who the power really rest’s in. This thought came to the forefront when I was going through various news channels on the 26/11/09, that’s one year after the terror strikes the rocked Mumbai.
There was considerable debate on how inappropriate the behaviour of some members of parliament was. Initially I joined the chorus, but then a question came to my mind. Who put these people there? Was I/we in any manner responsible? Did I do any research on the candidates who fought from my constituency or was I content after seeing which party they belonged to before I voted for them. Did I give a patient hearing to people serious about change who came knocking on my doors with manifestos? True giving time to hear everyone out takes a lot of asking, but then since we have the power to choose, we also have the responsibility to look after our own interests. Don’t we?
Second thing which made the realization more apparent was that after sometime of watching the news I realized that the focus was on the The Taj and The Oberio, and the C.S.T had been pushed to a corner. Now the news anchor may have reason to visit these places on a regular basis, but i don’t think the common man does. This I think was not in good taste, and if unintentional someone ought to be thinking more. But what is my reaction to this. I continue to watch the news, so as to ensure that anybody keeping a tab on the MRT’s does not have reason to believe that they ought not to have treated the matter in such a lop sided manner. If only I was not so indifferent.

Citrus pipe

Neither will I seek.
Nor will I hide.
I will only smile.

Neither will I speak.
Nor will I hide.
But I will stand by.

Neither will you know.
Nor will you try.
To find out why.

introspect

I just can’t speak to those,
Who can’t speak the proper English you know.
But he still is able to convey his thought?
Right. But that’s not all;
One surely must know what grammar is all about.

Ya. But what do you think language is all about.
Wasn’t it made so that we could convey our thoughts?
And that’s what it really is all about.
Then why insist on the proper flow.
It would still convey the same thought you know.

Vice

In the midst of what’s called life.
I met this vice.
It was called life.

For the first time I saw myself recline.
Just be me and enjoy.
No need to hide behind, I was for a few minutes alive.

My breath had a new life.
And my limbs were not tight.
I suddenly felt I could fly.

It was as if time stood by.
Laughing quietly as I stood alive.
Wondering where I had been all this while,
All I could do was smile.

Oh boy, this vice.
I thank you so much for this life.

She

Yes I see that she is pretty,
And yes she does have a wonderful smile.
But have you ever wondered what lies beneath those eyes.

Yes I can see,
That she’s got sex appeal.
But have you ever wondered that she is just like you under.

No I am not mad
Why what did you think?
That she is not a human inside.

huu .. i am really that bad ???

In so many words they have expressed.
That drive I can’t well.
On enquiring what they meant.
All they would say is that I should cut ahead.

Reverence for the law they teach me to forsake.
60 is only a digit they claim.
You must do whatever it takes,
No rules are meant to be obeyed.

Sometimes I try to explain.
Why I choose to drive safe.
So much wrong could happen if I missed a brake.
With all these people it’s definitely not safe.

Shocked they are to hear what I say.
And tell me to be a man for Pete’s sake.
But I still won’t obey.

why the dual standards ??

I have been thinking that whenever I ask somebody for a favour for whom I am not in a position to do anything in return, does my act amount to begging. And if it does amount to begging, is my act in doing so any different from what we see poor kids doing on street lights.

My understanding of the on this is that whenever we instead of depending on our own right to demand something try to appeal to the other person’s E.Q in order to get what we want it amount to begging. For in essence we are trying to get something that does not belong to us, something that we want but if not for the other person’s soft stance, we will not be able to get. And if that be so I see no difference in substance between the act of a student begging his teacher for an extra mark so that he may pass, and those on the street asking people to for money which may entitle them to get a meal. Both in the above example are seeking something that they have no right to, but relying only on the E.Q of the giver. Why then is one looked down upon?

Me

I should have fought my temptation.
I should not have called.
Iced my heart is not towards thee,
Yet i can’t afford to be soft.

You have palaces to live in.
But i still have mine to build.
Time is something i can’t splurge on,
Things which are not to real.

Its emptiness that i need to fight.
For that is what kills me from within.
And in those dissolute and lonely moments.
I yearn to be with you again.

But to this i have no answer
For the vacancy is here to be.
I must learn to deal with it,
To keep the devil at sea.

India

This my land which is so diverse.
With so many faces that live on its earth.
Which so many claim is full of butter and ghee.
I sometimes wonder if they can at all see.

I form part of the privileged lot.
Who have lots to eat and spend on frocks.
So it becomes really easy to believe,
When somebody claims there is plenty to eat.

But as soon as I move out of the house,
I see kids with their skeleton tearing out.
Running about with no slippers on,
I wonder how it feels when their feet touch the ground.

Forget about butter or ghee,
I wonder if they even had enough dal to eat.
In despair they move from car to car,
Sticking their faces to the window’s that are ajar.

How could anyone after seeing these kids.
Have any belief in what he is told to believe.
That there is enough butter and ghee for all to eat.

to thee

What I have not seen
I shall soon see.

Whatever is in store for me.
Would one day come to be.

That day i would need
People to stand with me.
To smile or shoulder me as the need of the hour be.

Those days I will look to thee.
For you I know will be there for me.
Dear friend, thank you for the confidence you bestow in me.

------

------
A name you are not for me.
For I believe with you i can speak.

Yet in agony must I be.
To search for someone like thee.
Is it not feasible for you to be with me?

I understand your position is weak.
I too am tied to a covenant I seek.
We are not really meant to be.
But you are the only one to whom I can speak.

Why ???

What’s there in me to hide.
That forces me to be shy.

What’s in me I wonder,
That I am not like the other members.

I wonder if I will survive,
And find more like me as time passes by.

War

Have you ever thought what the purpose of a war is? To phrase it differently whom does a war benefit? Does it in any real way benefit the solder fighting on the ground, who is so convinced that he is fighting for a greater cause which is a reflection of the aspirations of its people that he is ready to die for it?

My opinion on the above is that a war is only a cliché which is groomed by those few who proclaim themselves to be the leaders of a nation. They induce the rest to believe that the cause they are fighting for is their own, that it is necessary therefore that they must join in, for not doing so would be unpatriotic. The only real and material benefit of this war is however that the so called leaders get a few more acres of land to rule over, in exchange for say a couple of thousand lives. Such is the rhetoric that is made up through speeches and supported by a large section of the press (getting a good sum of money from weapon dealers) that we are again induced to believe that the portion of land that we have got is worth every life lost, maybe even more, we are made to believe that it is we that have gained that land as if an addition to the property we are in our individual capacity holding.

How deceitful all the above is. For in reality the soldier who has died or those who have lived to see the after war would soon realize that there is nothing for them in that victory. There household still looks the same, their financial condition has not improved, and that magical piece of land for which all that fighting was done has bared no fruits for them. On the other hand in order to support the war extra financial burden was placed on the households through various taxes; money for development was deployed for purchasing arms and ammunitions. What good is such a war for that soldier? Or in fact the people whose aspirations he thinks he is representing.

There is no gain in war, except for those at the highest echelons of fascist politics and the producers of arms and ammunitions. If only all were to understand this, not be very motivated to fight for it. Then perhaps the money spent on those wars could be constructively utilized for feeding the millions starving to death in many parts of the world. We would have no massacres, no mothers and children having to abandon their homes in the middle of the night. If only all of us were to see through, if only for our own good. But then they say common sense is not so common.

At the age of five

At the age of five, i stand beneath a tree, able to move my hands and walk at will, as i breathe in the moist cool air, i feel as if i am free.

Across the road i see my dad, and i wonder if he could ever say that. He works hard and toils all night, only to have someone else move in by our side.

I wonder why he never complains, that someone else has taken over the house he made, and we still have to make do with a tent thats leaks when it rains.

I wish i could instill in my dad, that he was the same as the other dads. It made no difference if he had no car, but he was still like them all.

Why cant he just stand up and claim, one of the houses for me and mummy to stay. How hard could it really be, after all he is the one who builds them u see.