Kudrat ka khel

In khuli hawaon se poochho
Kya parde khol diye kudrat ne
Aasmaan saaf kyu itna, poochho
Kya dard-e-sazaa bhula diye kudrat ne

Kyu gaa rahe hai pannchhi
Kya insaan ghum kahi ho gaya?
Kyu patton pe dhool nahi tikti
Kya sansaar naya koi bas gaya?

Kyu raaste sunsaan, itne akele
Inpar sher bhi sawaar hone lage hai
Jahan kabhi lagte the mele
Un maidaano par paude ugne lage hai

Dharti maa se kya insaan
Itni berahmi se pesh aata tha?
Ki aaj is maa ki khushi ke peeche
Woh aansu kabhi dekh nahi pata tha

Kab tak, tum kab tak ae insaan, do jawaab;
Insaaniyat ke naam par parde laga paoge
Kudrat ka anokha khel toh dekho janaab
Aaj tumhaari "aazaadi" ki tum kya keemat chukaoge

Neend..

Rona tab aata hai, jab neend na sataye
Rona tab aata hai, jab neend na sataye
Bas aankhein bandh ho jaye,
Kaise? Koi toh bataye....

In ashko ko aadat lagi hai
Na Jaane kabse, tapke bas yuhi
Mere naino mein aag lagi hai
Na Jaane kabse, bhadke, bas yuhi

Yaadein nahi, woh na jaane kya sataye
Jab soch mein doob doobkar
Mann aawara lalchaye
Aur raat bhar bas ek hi baat jagaye
Ki bhaiya koi toh bataye, hume neend kyu nahi aaye?

Hindi

Woh sannatta, woh sadake,
Woh baarish ki boonde
Woh hawa jo halka se has de
Jab mann mein koi shola hai bhadke

Woh sisakti zindagi, lambi si raat
Woh sapno adhure, haathi ke daant
Har zarre ne jab tha haske pukara
Woki puraane din, jab main tha sabka dulara

Khoyi rahi kisi chadar mein,
Chhupa sa, daba sa, purana dard tha
Bas rakh diya mann ki almaari mein
Ruk gaye kisi din, bas, aur mausam sard tha...

Jee rahe hai, zinda hai, alag kya hai?
Saanse ruki nahi, ab tak, alag kya hai?
Ki phir ek subah ho is raat ki, intezaar hai
Kambakht dil bhi maane na, ki ye sab bekaar hai...

Promises

Promises, I tell you, should never be made
For life is but frail, it may quickly fade
Promises, to abide, promises to restore
Promises that promise like nothing before..

Death, be only the best kept promise
Till Death do us part,solemnly said.
How rarely meant. Like a heartfelt kiss
Till it all does end on Death's bed...

What words men use, to rend, to repair
What promises, to bend backwards, words so rare..
Words, these are but words,just wisps in the air
What value we give them, we think they be fair...

Till Death comes calling, riding his steed
Words all but forgotten, all bondage freed
Some promises get away, scot free, some stay behind
Some promises were a certainty, some kept us blind...

Malayalam poem

Malayalam poem

Kochu Kochu nimishangal

Thedi poya naalil nee

Vannathonnum kandilla

Mumpil ninna aalil nee

Kaatil Thedi, veetil Thedi

Odi nadannu, payye nadannu

Kootil Thedi, naatil Thedi

Kannum pooti, chaadi nadannu

Aa nilavil ethu shalabham

Kittumennu prarthanayode

Kaathirunnu vedanayode

Kai ozhinju poya nimisham

Poovil veena manj pole

Venalil kalanju poyi

Kaalam etra vannu poyi

Orayiram premam arinja pole..

Ennittum arinjille priye nee

Inikku neeyum,ninukku njanum

Daivam pande onnu ezhuthi

Nee thediya  aa swarga gaanam..

To my Daughter...

Scratches and kicks, and kisses and licks,


And love galore, in those adoring eyes


Some daily new words, that always suffice


To tell me you love me, My sweet little baby


"Papa!", that call, that one little word


That seals our bond, such emotions stirred


Your daily embrace, demanding naught from me


But some love, only love, 'tis not hard to see


Kid, I wish I can be, your superman,your ideal,


And I wish you but understand, the way I now feel;


When the years pass us by, of my weary bones in the breeze


Are all that remain, with wet eyes and memories....

Chains of the Mind

Some see evil on this earth

Some just pain and misery see

Some, the Devil's laughing girth

And some just want to be set free...

Oh, but yonder lies that lea of green

Just past that river, boiling broth

Of all our fears, a fetid screen

To cross which must move them beyond sloth...

Come summer's rain, nor spring's burst

Of life, nor the rains can slake that thirst

Nor winter's white, nor the colors of fall

Can free some minds from being thrall...

What tyranny is this, the flesh demands,

To be touched by God's hand, his true commands

But the mind desists, the mind refrains

It loves too much it's binding chains...

Quote

“Everywhere I go I find a poet has been there before me.”
― Sigmund Freud

“Words and magic were in the beginning one and the same thing, and even today words retain much of their magical power.”
― Sigmund Freud

the injustice of rains

Flashes of silver, crackling doom, as the sky rends
Some thunder, some rain, some trouble portends
And puddles they grow, from one end to another
Till it stretches far as the horizon, this bloody wet weather

Umbrellas and raincoats, are useless as ever
Filling up every little crack, those evil drops of rain
Courageous men venture, they think that they're clever
But the damn rain will get them, all their efforts in vain

As people huddle and curse and rant and rave
And work comes to a standstill, 'cept for a few brave
There are parched throats that see elsewhere, in a dry arid terrain
This injustice, some die of thirst, some die of rain...

In secret, you kept your wishes so
Eyes that dreamt, in colored hues
Of limitless skies, and water's blues
And green those pastures you wished to go

And yet you never told me, why?
Of your need to break free, to fly
From home, those shackles, iron gray
You wished so much to break one day

What foolishness, my mind believed
To have thought you happy, in my bind
But freedom, sparkling in your eyes, relieved
That fear that clouded o'er my mind

As I set you free, your song doth rebound
Across these hills and dales, divine
And a teardrop slowly falls to the ground
That blessed sight beholden, these eyes of mine...

patch of green

Welcome to my patch of green
Where I am the garden queen
So many Butterflies and flower beds
And a hundred yellows, blues and reds

Swings and see-saws and slides around
And sandboxes, and a lot of sound
And all my friends who have come today
Are calling me to come and play

The merry-go-round, goes round and round
Bobbing horses and a jungle gym net
And mummy watching me from across the ground
Oh please I don't wanna go home yet

But the fireflies have come, the birds have gone
And sunset is upon us, as the night is born
It is time to say bye bye, time to get clean
Time to say goodnight to my little patch of green

Distance..

What does distance give a man,
But heartbreak, sorrow more than he can
Understand, or evaluate, or even feel 
Until he makes the devil's deal

And sells his soul, for just a chance
At togetherness, at another dance
Under moonlit sky, not just romance
But true love, and a single glance

 When miles and meters rack up high
And a broken heart begins to cry
Tears of blood, and a rending wail
That curses Fate's pen, that rusty nail...

But when at last, the twain do meet
Like jigsaw puzzles, that fit in neat
No words are needed, just a simple kiss
 And all's as before, like nothing amiss...

Some Dreams

Some dreams become memories,
Some lay waiting, quiet, in bed
Some are vague, and their vagaries
Are things, best left unsaid...

Some are vivid, colourful, drawn
Upon the day we spent, in struggle
Some are purely plain, yet born
Of some deep unsettling trouble

Some dreams are funny, some divine
Some, they dare us to cross that line
Between the truth, reality, and farce
Some just make us wish for the stars

And yet what dream remains, but vapour
Upon our misty, dreamy eyes at dawn
But for him who puts it down on paper
And for him, who lets it take shape, be born...

There are days, and then there are days
That I regret living, and a hundred ways
That could have made it better still
And yet I let sorrow have its fill

When I could have said words, that didn't hurt
Or been the better person that day
When I could have let ego, slither away
But instead I smeared my goodness with dirt

But there's so much pain, inside
And a growing typhoon of rage, so livid
And for how long will my emotions hide?
For what, just a few little words insipid?

My acid tears, within me burn, ever widening hole
Eating away, rotting what little is left of my soul
Some day, quietly, the volcano burst, will cool
Leaving me, a broken eggshell, like a fool...

Sometimes

Some times I think that while I'm here
I'll write a lovely song for you
But then I find that I don't need to
'Cos you can hear my heartbeat, singing, near
Sometimes I think that when I'm far
And I can see a lonely star
I know you're thinking of me too,
'Cos I know you love me, like I love you
Sometimes I wish that I could feel now
The touch of your hands, the kiss of your lips
Your gentle smile, the sway of your hips
The look in your eyes, one lifted eyebrow...
Sometimes, when we're together, yet still apart
It burns my soul, it breaks my heart
Then I know, I'll sing a song, like once before
To know I will love you, forever and more...

Chingaari un sholo ki...

Hamesha basanti ke saath hi aisa Kyu hota hai,
Kahi pe viru rota hai, kahi jai sota hai
kabhi Gabbar hasta hai, wahi thakur fasta hai
Wahi ramgarh hai, wahi dhanno hai, wahi Rasta hai

Jaha jaane jaaye, maano thode saste hai
Kaalia aur saambha, tab marte hai jab haste hai
Inaam ka khel, do haatho ka Mel
Holi ka rang, ek puraani rail....

Radha ki hasi,fir woh khoon ka kehar
Woh harmonium ki dhun, ek anokhi lehar
Chacha ka andhera, mausi ka basera
Woh tanki pe chadna, us Raat ka sawera....

Woh jailor ke mooch, woh scooter ka gaana
Woh sikka, jise har baar sach hai batana
Woh Sholay, woh angaarey, kya cheez thi janaab
Na kabhi bana tha, na banega, iska koi jawaab....

Rains

Sometimes, these days when I walk by
And when I look into the cloudy sky
There's electricity there, sizzling blue
"Shocking!", I say, its funny but true

These clouds, they gather round and wait
For a man who curses out at all the wetness
And drown him so, with drops of rain
Intruding, seeping, a perfect mess...

It gets into the shoes, and papers too
And bags and purses and mobile phones, new
And causes all around, mayhem, stress
When it ruins a perfectly good new dress

But it offers its moments, romantic, but few
And its stories, under an umbrella, of people two
And moments lost tracing a droplet, of rain
While sipping tea with biscuits, near a window pane...

Conversation with a friend...

me:
good night then to you my friend
the stars and the sky call out the hour
And the moon wails in luminescent yellow
Iridiscent bubbles, magnetic in its power

friend:
How then can I doze and dream
upon this mattress of grass, out here
When worries scar my brow, and in fear
My eyes well up, under the moonlit beam

me:
No matter it is, to worry into the night
For naught has come of anguish, give up
All that is dark, All that you dread
And wait for the morning’s gleaming light

friend:
Ah, This waiting, ’tis what kills, till morning has dawned
The hours, they do not tick away quick enough,
I hide under a blanket, yet, I get the chills
For I find darkness beneath, anddarkness beyond…

me:
Words, They do no good for the broken heart,
Nor are they balm for the burning soul
For what the heart wants, it wants
And nothing else can make it whole...

Promises for Tomorrow....

Promises, made tonight,my love
Of a sunny tomorrow, for you
That may or may not come to pass
And yet, your conviction stays true

But I worry and fret, and fritter away
My joy and happiness I have today
When all I must do is bask in your love
Leave my worries behind, live in the now....

For there might not be a joyous morrow
There might be for us, nothing but sorrow
But dream today we can, of brighter days
Tomorrow, is a  much better day, always...


With faith,I live my every moment now a part
Of His design, in God's eternal mercy, to borrow
With a song on my lips, a little hope in my heart
That the best day of my life is tomorrow....

The last Task....

Eyes scrunched in concentration, he peered at the luminescent screen with a fervent prayer on his lips.
It was a classic day at work, beginning early at 8 AM, and it was still going on, sixteen hours later. He knew he wouldn't regret staying this late in office, he had no-one to go back home to.
The green line on his screen moved at an impossibly slow pace, forcing him to calm his hyperventilating lungs with soothing words. All the smoke within them from the thousands of cigarettes he had smoked seemed to be wrung out. A small red light blinked on and off nearby, screaming for attention but getting none in return. The phone line was open, there were twelve people on the other end of the phone, a million miles away and a few hundred longitudes eastwards, waiting with equally bated breath.
The cone of light from the single bulb above his head shone on a balding pate, equally harsh and soothing. Sunlight was barely encountered by people such as him, and he had the rare distinction of having seen a sunset a few months back. It had been a Saturday, but then no one cared for such particulars. The rarity of the event itself spoke volumes of his daily work-life balancing abilities.
The sleek new printer in the corner of the room belched out papers at irregular intervals, breaking the monotony with their quiet screeching. It sprung awake now with a fresh bunch of papers, scaring him. Still, he didn't dare to move his eyes from the screen for fear of breaking that spell, for fear that he may never get another chance at redemption if he screwed up this chance.
The darkness surrounding the rest of the room enveloped the pool of light, and he felt its strength compress his soul as it did the light. Something on a metaphysical level was at work here.

The screen changed, The moment of truth.

"Hey, what happened ? ", asked someone from the phone. "Its done. I'm outta here. See you guys soon.", he said, relief flooding his eyes, his mind and soul.
The screen said "CONFIRMED". That was all he needed. He hit a couple of keys and the printer came to life again. As soon as they spewed out his papers, he snatched them up and carefully placed them in a folder in his bag.  Then scooping up the bag, he slammed down the phone without even a good-bye and left the room, carefully placing the handwritten letter he had under the keyboard.

He had already booked a ticket on the Indian Railways website, after three hours of a mammoth struggle in the morning. This was his last deployment task before leaving. He was going on vacation for two weeks. He would come back and put in his papers, literally throw them in his manager's face... The grin on his face couldn't be erased even if he wanted to.  He was going to keep this promise to himself, to travel across the world. And all these years of hundreds of hours slogging away to earn the money he needed were finally bearing fruit.

"Damn, I didn't shut down the PC!" he thought, as he took a step backwards. Then he realised, it was this attitude he had to relinquish. He was no longer a slave.The step moved forward, the grin never left his face....