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...

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...

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...

Trust

A rarity, that measure, which man doth know not
Of friends, of caring, all balderdash and rot..
There is but one heart, that beateth in care
And that is his own, and that too very rare

For many moons, doth that man, refuse to believe
What common sense, and judgement do easily reveal
And then too, his grief, through his heart doth so cleave
His foolishness, now evident, nothing else does he feel

There might have been mountains, conquered in quest
But love none yet has enslaved, that is one Everest, 
When push comes to shove, there is no real love
And his own skin is all a man looks to save, and how!

So forget all the roses, the ribbons and the cake
And believe cold hard reason, for your own little sake
Every yes has a reason, every no, even more so
And you'll be a little liberated, more than you know...

An Ode to my Wife

I see through my eyes,that lovely look she gives

A little glimmer of joy,a little fun, it makes me wanna live

Each day henceforth, towards making her smile

Towards holding her tightly, in my arms all the while...

That happiness in her laughter, which melts me in a flash

That infectious little mischief, inherent, yet a surprise

And I know, I've fallen for her, hard, like I was in a crash

And yet I love the feeling, with every passing sunrise...

My wife, my lovely wife, what a treasure to behold

In sickness and in health, till we both grow very old

I sit here and ruminate, on my blessings tonight,

And I wonder, what more can I do, to bring her some delight...

Yes, A poem, she had asked of me, for her, this night

A lyrical ode, to the love of my life, I must now recite,

What words do I say to her, she means so much to me

Would "I love you" suffice for my lovely lady?

How goes your day?

It has but begun, and mornin sun
Has yet to scorch the squalid sky
And chirping birds, aft doth fly
Asketh thou in the evenin, when day has run….

How went thy day, Oh warrior great
In anonymity, in mere mediocrity
And how we spent an hour or eight
Waiting, just waiting with alacrity..

With shaded, eyes searching, searching
For the sun, amidst the clouds dark and mean
For the velvet sky, and the birds perching
And every other thing i thought i had seen…

Ragged breaths, with the innocent morning mist,
Furrowed brows, and with a limp wrist
What good came of today? Who knows how it was spent?
Tomorrow, I will know, how my today went…

Madness

it is but a veneer, a mask,
it is a little brown flask,
where rides the waters blue and red,
it stops when i go to bed

and happiness, it doth hide
beneath that little sheath,
and it comes out to slay, aside
the demons of sanity, to lay a wreath...

and hope, it holds high
a flag, of serenity, yet fluttering
beneath the darkened sky
a thousand curses, muttering

of why I couldn't smile,
when the world wants me to
and walk that extra mile
to do what it wants me to

And this madness, there is a cure
But no one knows yet, for sure
And here laughing, I lie, tonight
in Madness, grounded,yet in flight...

Novelty

The excitement in waiting, for something new,
The tingling of the spine, in anticipation and more
When some sweet dreams doth God weave true;
Like an unknown feeling, one you've never had before

A brand new bat, a cricket ball,
The sweet sweet smells of a new book's pages;
A shirt, you've always wanted, a trip to the mall
Happiness that grows, like a tree, in stages...

Novelty, like mist, like a morning dew spread,
Over fresh green grass, on a summer's morn
It wilts away, like a dry flower, dead
Until some new feeling is once again born...

And yet we look back, on days that are past,
For fond remembrances, for the happiness that we had last,
Thus, novelty, like an old photograph, will one day fade,
To remain a sweet memory, an everlasting charade...

A sunset

I watch a sunset, its shades a hundred,
In various hues, orange and red,
A tangerine glow, a metallic gold
Vermilion some days, a crimson bold…

A carmine red, some days it does feel,
A satin peach, on the horizon there
A blazing scarlet, or an orange peel
Sometimes it turns amber,as i stare..

When clouds cover it, in purple haze,
When i just can’t see it on rainy days
It burns in an arid desert blaze
It burns and burns, in so many ways…

As the city basks, happily, in the afterglow
Of a glorious sunset, this i know
The wonders of a sunrise await me now,
Before His majestic landscapes i bow…

Ye Raat...

Ye raat, abhi bahut kuch kehti hai,
main samajh nahi paa raha bas, yehi adchan hai...
Iski kuch paheliya suljhane mein mast hokar
Maine dekha, isme khudko, ye darpan hai

Aur kya dekha maine, ye mann bhi
mera, in taaron ki tarah, timtimata hai...
Na jaane ye kitni door hai, phir bhi
kitni roshni hai, kya muskurata hai...

Faila aasman mein kaala andhera. Par fir bhi
Ujala hai, ik chaand se, aadha hi sahi
Ye iccha hai, drid nischay hai, aur maine bhi
Pehchaana khoob ise, mann ke andhero mein kahi

Woh door kahi ek lakeer se kheecha hai,
Upar waale ne, waha se din nikalta hai
Ab hoga woh din ka ujala, bas kuch pal aur
Mujhe haske ye raat bhi bitani hai...

My stupid greedy heart...

There's never peace in my heart,
It lusts for more and more
Of this, of that, like a big shopping cart,
It keeps all my wishes in store...

It'll keep beating away today,
Like it did yesterday,
To say,happiness can never be mine
And I know,I can never be fine...

Try as I might, but it seems so so tough,
My heart can never be truly satisfied
With the little things, that I say are enough
Somehow, it knows that I lied....

And I hope that some day, when I stand on a hill
And look down on all that is mine, so vast
I'll find it in me, some humility still
And find some peace,somewhere, at last...

Tonight I yearn, to write down a song,
But somehow it seems to comes out all wrong...
And how I wish I could hum along,
To a tune, thats stuck in my head so long...

And I know, it ain't just a feeling now,
Its what I've always wanted to do,
And I just know, I just don't know how,
These words, I wanna sing them out to you...

And when I try to sing, I just can not,
Without a little tear drop escaping me
And it leaves me all muddled,sad,distraught,
Why? For it is a happy song you see...

That only I could see, a hundred ways
That each word evoked memories and brought tonight
Of you, of the smile on your face,
When I sing this song, to you, tonight.

Some days again...

Some days, you need to feel free,
Some days, you just need to be
What no one could see,
What no one could be...
And just let emotions, run through your mind
Just let your inner self, take it all out,rewind
Take a deep breath, make a promise
To be just you, to be fine
Take a walk through the garden,
And look for the sign...
That says you're just human,
That says its ok to be flawed
And you'll find, you're now happy again,
And you'll thank Almighty God...

my first attempt at a few lines in hindi...

Na saha jaaye,haye ye kaisa hai dard
ho aurat tum aakhir,
kya jaano kya sehta hain mard..
kab se liye firte hai,
is dil mein ye chhoti si kahani,
hai zakhm ye purana,
hai daastan ye purani
na milo fir kisi raah par,
ye dua karta hu main,
na milo fir kisi raah par,
ye dua karta hu main,
na mita sakenge fir hum tumpe ye jawani...
aur kya kya zulm dhaaye hai humpar,
is ishq ne yun beraham bankar,
bas reh gaye hai kuch yaadein,
bankar tumhari nishaani...

Peace

And so peace descends tonight
tranquil,serene,like moonlight
like softly falling snow,upon the earth
Like ripples on a lake, glistening in mirth
Like a warm blanket, a yellow hearth
It brings strange thoughts to mind
Like the soft rolling bells,of a distant church,
Makes you leave your worries behind...
And the waxing,gibbous moon delights
in showing you the way
Through whistling trees,where insects star in raucous fights,
like silhouettes in black and gray
And slowly crawls that wisp of light
Through the inky black of night
And soon 'tis time for a clear blue sky
When peace leaves you,makes you wanna cry...

A song for you...

I know this sounds crazy,
but i know that its true
I thought it was an angel,
but baby it was only you...

I saw those blue eyes look at me,
and i froze,deep down inside
And I don't know what came over me
But baby i knew it felt right.

When fate brought us together,when fate took me higher
For a single moment, it felt,that night
Like the world was on fire,
And yet,it felt alright...

You had me waiting for that minute,
You had me waiting all my life
But baby i knew,i knew it was worth it
When i knew how you felt,when you smiled...

I was blown away,when you said my name
I felt in my heart,that we'd be together
I knew that moment, it wasn't a game
That baby you'd be mine,only mine forever...

Night....

The setting sun, in brilliant gold,
Sets awash the sky azure
For night’s armies to march on, take hold
To bring a cool breeze, lilting, pure…

And starry skies, dimpled in silver,
With stars, so far, but clear
Fills my heart with emotions new
And lends it some new songs to hear…

The cries of birds returning,
The gurgling ballads of the streams,
The crickets and cicadas call in yearning
To meet the love of their dreams…

And thus passes the night, again
Begins the sun another day, new
I wait again for Mother Earth to embrace
Another night, to cure me of my pain…