Tuesday, April 25, 2006

The Mirage


If you have ever experienced one-sided love, then may be you will agree with this one...

If my one wish would be granted now
I would ask for your love
Indulging in such a frenzied dream
Has always been so tough!
My life revolves around the image
Of you holding my hand
And smiling into my eyes
Amidst a scenery grand
How I lived for the moment when
I would be asked, ‘ Do you?’
And felt a wild, maddening shiver
That went all through
My body as I gave my best smile to the mirror-
And blushed, closed my eyes, trying-
Not to imagine the terror,
Of being foolish that might
Make you change your mind
Thus, breaking the carefully spun spell
Leaving a frustrated me to find
Solace in drops of tears
As the obvious truth sank in me
‘That my heart loved him with
So much vigour, but never did he.’

Monday, April 17, 2006

The Best Valentine

The best valentine
You can ever get,
Whose love is for ever
And who will never forget
How you changed her life
By your mere presence,
Who will shower you with love
And also teach its essence,
Who will be there with you
Whether you frown or smile
Who will always support you
And travel that extra mile,
Are you wondering where to
Find her, at the end?
Do not look further
I am that friend!





For some one like me, who is yet to fall in love, 14th February has remained just another day...This year, I thought that I should acknowledge the enormous support and love I have received from my friends...It's they whom I call my best valentines!!!


Writers Block, the NUJS monthly Newsletter was kind enough to carry this verse in their February issue.

Monday, April 10, 2006

The colours of rangoli


This was the rangoli that was made infront of the idol of Saraswati on 2nd February 2006. Though lots of people were involved in giving it the final shape, I would love to call it one of my creations as I created the basic layout in wee hours of the day of Saraswati Puja. And when we ran out of colours, I decided to fill it up with shreds of marigold(!) and completed the look by drawing the swastika.

Saturday, April 08, 2006

To Goa With Love

Goa has left an indelible mark in my mind...not just by its exotic beauty with which it beckons every tourist, as I experienced and saw what others fail to...


As I half-lay on my couch on a lazy afternoon
Browsing through the captured moments of Goa, memories
Of my trip to the exotic land came alive before my eyes
Those sunny days, white sands and the blue-green sea
And the never-ending stretches with lovely names
Mira Mar, Dona Paula, Anjuna, Calangute and Bagha
Each with her own distinct and lovely look
All ready to entice me
I spent days and nights
Being seduced by them
And watched through the looking glass
Those bare, white torsos lying in the sun
In an attempt to turn brown
Shops selling memorabilia priced ten times higher
Merrily doing business among tourists
I looked beyond to discover more wonder
Those small huts lining the beach whose
Men go out into the sea everyday
Where naked children play around
Without having their share of basics
But can enjoy endlessly what I can only after
Two days of journey from the other part of the country
Am I jealous of them?
The answer evades me as I close the album
My lazy afternoons dedicated to Goa with love.

Shantiniketan Revisited

The Abode of Peace – you beckon us
Every now and then
When life becomes mundane
We want to leave behind all fuss
And visit you again
"Guys, we are late! It’s already 2 and the train, to the best of my knowledge, is at 2:50 pm!” I said in utter exasperation as the boys showed no sign of setting off. Instead, they scorned at me saying that it will hardly take time to reach Sealdah. But during our taxi ride to the station, when we got stuck in the traffic for endless number of times, even they suspected that we would not be able to catch the train.
Date: 2nd November, 2005 Place: NUJS Context: Shantiniketan trip by 17 students of 2nd year (2004-09 Batch)

It took a lot of planning throughout the Monsoon semester of the year and phone calls to each other during the vacation to ultimately embark on our journey to Shantiniketan. Of course, the boys were rights and we reached Sealdah just in time to catch the train, but not without some nail-biting moments on the way. Once we were seated comfortably in the local train, all of us engaged ourselves for the next 3 hours. Though most of us chatted continuously throughout the journey, yours truly took card lessons from Semanti and Kinjal for the first time, played Call Bridge with them and also won the first game! The fact that I kept on losing for the rest of the games is a different story altogether as against seasoned players like Abira and Malabika, hardly anybody can hope otherwise. As we neared Shantiniketan, we could not help but notice the eerie darkness outside and wonder how it would be like at Abhiroop’s place where we are putting up.

Our classmate and host, Abhiroop was there at the station to receive us with his trademark broad smile. The auto ride to his place really scared us as it took us through vast meadows covered in ebony blackness with a few houses here and there. Nevertheless, our lodging for the next two days turned out to be a majestic three-storied bungalow, which received our whole-hearted admiration in the form of Oohs!, Aahs! And Wows! in chorus.
After we, girls have captured the top two floors, thereby restricting the boys in one bedroom and the living room in the ground floor, it was time for relaxation and chalking out sightseeing plans for the next day. The evening saw us in a fierce battle of Dumb Charade and Chinese Whisper. We had a gala time punishing the ones in the latter game, where Sayak and Rohit were made to dance to the tunes of Kajra Re amidst our loud cheers. Food was got through home delivery and the dinner brought an end to the first day at Shantiniketan.

As planned, we set out for a morning stroll in the nearby reserve forest (of course, it was devoid of any wild animals!) at 7 am, leaving behind sleepyheads like Abira, Ankit and Sarbajeet. It was a truly enjoyable walk in the chill of the early morning and greenery of the forest where we blindly followed our guide Abhiroop. The later part of the morning saw us all dressed for a long day outing. Just outside the closed gates of the Viswabharati Museum, it dawned on us that it was a holiday on the occasion of Bhai-Phonta and so we had to be content with only a visit inside the University.
We had decided to have lunch outside and Abhiroop had promised a good restaurant, only 20 minutes of walking distance away. But we reached it only after walking for almost 45 minutes in scorching sun! But that was not the end of my woes. I was served my mixed chowmein when the rest were licking off their plates, literally and figuratively! I would have starved to death if not for generous share of food from Kinjal and Abhiroop.

Post-lunch, there was a fierce debate about plans for the rest of the evening. We all set off for the banks of the river Kopai by autoricksaw, who totally robbed us by extracting exorbitant fare. After lots of photo sessions there, some of us headed back home, Sayak and Abhiroop went to get return tickets, while the more enthusiasts like Annie, Sanjana,Ripzong, Aparajita and Shezin decided to go on a shopping spree. They loaded their bags with small memorabilia from the roadside shops and other items like jholas.
Back home, we all settled down to a cozy and enjoyable evening of a game of cards. Ayan refused to bluff at all, while Abira and Ankit kept on bluffing only!

Post-dinner we decided to spend our last night at Shantiniketan in the most memorable way – by indulging in a ‘ghost story session’. Starting with the clichéd quote “This is a true account”, everyone added to the session his/her version of the most varied ghost stories ever heard anywhere together. When we had finally called it a day at 1:30 am and went off to our respective rooms, some of the girls (and I am sure some guys too) were very scared. Tell me who would not be, after such an adda where personal (!) experiences and stories of scary movies like The Blair Witch Project interspersed with frightening instances from NUJS itself were discussed!

The next morning saw us in a frenzied packing mood as we had the train at 1 pm. With wonderful memories at tow, we set off, to arrive and once again, enter our everyday routine at NUJS. It has been a unique trip in ways more than one. Be it for Semanti giving a treat of gulab jamuns to all of us, on the occasion of her birthday which incidentally fell on 2nd November, or Aniruddh’s passes at Ankit, or playing ‘memory game’ during the train journey, or Srinivas offering to take most of the snaps in my camera so that I could feature in them, the whole trip is etched in our minds. I wanted to revisit it by penning an account of it and hope that the rest of the group will relive the moments when they read it.