Let it go…….

She was going through the pieces of papers for the last time. Was she missing someone in the letter? She re-read the three pages over and over again. Everything has been framed properly, just the way she wanted. As she lifted her head up, the golden clouds in the sky brought a big smile on her face. Finally, something in her life was going to be right.

She started searching around for her cell phone. After an elongated discussion with him, she ultimately bought it. The passion for photography was something she could not resist. So, why not take the picture of the last sun set in her life? 

“Clicked”, she said. “Am done! Let’s pack up!” she said it loudly from the 10^th floor of her building. As she walked to the corner of the water storage, another view caught her eye. This time, the rays of the pinkish shaded clouds was falling on the nearby lake. “Damn!” she shouted, “Why don’t you just let me jump? You idiot nature!” Again she took her phone out and clicked with tears gushing out of her eyes. 

It was getting dark and she knew there was no one at home to know about this accident. She has the time to jump again. The fear of death no longer makes her afraid. But the fear of missing everything was gripping her. 

Everything around her seems like breathing, even the cell phone. She has not been talking to him for last 3 weeks. In spite of intense hatred, she went through the SMSs again. There was fun, flirt and even a bit of seriousness in all the messages. With one click she deleted it all and stood up again to finally end itl. But while putting the phone down, somehow she touched her picture folder. She always hated touch phones and she could feel the same disgust even before committing the crime.

As she brought her Nokia set, close to her face, the very first picture took all her strength away. She shouted with all her anger and disgust….and she was back to senses! 

She can’t take it away because she is not the one to bring it on this earth. She has no right to kill except the right to live, and let others live. How can a single incident break a relationship that begins even before she has seen the blue sky? 

And she smiled. Crumbled the three pages in her hand and threw it away into the darkness.

Swopno Na Sotti

Sokaler rodh ta chokhe porar songe songei ek jhotkai ghum ta bhenge gelo. Prothom e bhablam ami kothai, tarpor bujhlam samner flat e royechi karon pichoner flat e rong cholche. Manush er mathai o booting korte j time lage seta aj hotat jano bujte parlam. Kintu jeta chintar bisoi seta holo, ami swopne thik ki dekhchilam r kanoi ba dekhchilam? Eto punkhanupunkho bhabe khub kom swopnoi dekha jai. Tobe jeta dekhlam seta besh lomhorshok. Impact ta je office er kodine dhore bhuture golpo sonar, seta bujhte baki roilona tar sathe kichu ase paser ghotona misiye bes masla mesano swopno bolle, khub ekta bhul hobe na.  

Bhumikata er cheye besi na bariye soja swopner kothai chole jai. Nijeke sadharotno swopne dekha jai na, tai amio nijeke prothom dik e swopne na dekhte peleo, ekta third person hoye ghotonata dekhchilam. Kintu shesher dike nijekeo swopner frame e dhuke porte dekhlam. 

Prothom e dekhlam ekta mobile phone bajche. Er pore opar theke ekta cheler gola vese elo, “Kire bolli nato? Jabi?” Ebare ekta meyer golai reply, bodhai amar e “Oh dekh bhulei gechi toke janate! Chol chol. Kintu kothai jachi amra chobi tulte? North Kolkatar lane gulo bhalo asbe. Ki bolis?” “Besh tai hok,” bole phone ta kete gelo.

Porer drisso, ekta soru rastar lane. Tar du dhare purono gocher lal bari, rong otha, kichu jaigai eit beriye ache. Kothao ba jongli gach er sikor jhulche. Besh romanchokor ekta poribesh charipas e r seikhane dujon camera niye chobir khonje hente choleche. Hotat cheleta bollo “Re dekh oi baritar gaye sign board e ki lekha?” ‘Shooting er jonne bari bhara dewa hoi’ ekta placard e lekha royeche. “Cho jai.” Thik ei muhurte ami nijer gola sunlam ebong khub atonker sathei ami chenchiye uthe bollam “Dhut, abar permission lagbe, jas na. Amra eikhanei chobi tuli. Koto subject ache. Abar barite dhokar tor ki dorkar!” Cheleta khonche giye uttor dilo, “Tui tham to!” bolei gotgot kore dhuke gelo barite.

Amio pichon pichon hata marlam ogotta. 

Dorja diye ghore dhukei ekta soru andhokar passage. Ase pase choto choto ghor r prottek ta sajano royeche, jano kono shooting er jonne set toiri kore rakha royeche. Konota bosar ghor, konota sobar ghor r sob e sundor bhabe gochano. Hotat kichu payer awaj pelam, jano onek e asche. Ami khub uttejito hoye bollam “Kara asche re. Chol bero eikhane theke!”. Kintu k sone kar kotha. Amar bondhu ro bhitorer dike chole gelo. 

Hotat amar chokh porlo ekta ghorer chobir frame er dik e.  Ekta kather frame er modhe ekta hater chobi. Hath ta kemon udbhot dhoroner, kalche r holdete rong mesano. Hater sira gulo dekha jache. Ga ta  siure uthchilo. Hotat ghorer bhitor theke r ekjon beriye elo. Take dekhe ami obak, e to amar e bondhu. Kintu o to amader sathe jaini ami bhebacheka kheye gelam. Se amake dekhe ekta bas er toiri faka mombati stand niye egiye elo. Ami chilliye uthlam, “Rakh na ki dorkar tor sob jinis e hath dewar”. Se amar kotha sunlona. Besh rag holo kintu hotat kore abar payer awaj sune bes ghabre giye ami palate chesta korlam. 

Kichutei kano j ghor gulo theke berote pachilam na, k jane. Ekta dorjar samne ese thomke dariye gelam. Hotat hawar moddhe theke ekta hath beriye ese dorja ta atke diche dekhe ami bhoi pelam. Re eta to sei frame e dekha sira otha hath ta, ekebare jano amar gayer kache dhire dhire chole asche. Ami kichu second er jonno thomke dariye chilam, sese chenchiye chutte beriye elam bari ta theke. 

Porer drisso, amar barite bell bajche onek khon dhore. Uthe giye dorja khultei ekta lok amar dike egiye ese sei mombati stand ta hate diye bollo “ Apnar bondhu Aniket, gotokal mara gache.”

Bas tokhuni amar ghum ta bhenge gelo. Khat e bose kichu khon bhablam, Aniket ke? Amar ekhono porjonto ektao oi nam e bondhu nei. R kanoi ba orom ajgubi swopno dekhlam. 

Sedin e bose analysis korlam. Ja bujlham se ta holo…

Amar ek school er bondhur sathe onek din dhore chobi tulte jawar plan kore cholechi. Kintu hoye r othena. Dwitiyoto, 14^th February te ekta shooting er practical chilo Mass Communication er jonne, r sei holud hath ta chilo officer ek colleague er mobile er wall paper.

Sob kirom khap e khape bose gelo. Kintu prosno ektai roye gelo........ Ke ei Aniket?

The Supposed Day!

21^st December 2012, the happening Mayan prediction finally proved wrong. Years back when the movie 2012 was released I was actually terrified with the concept of the world coming to an end. The crack on the road or the tornado hitting buildings was undoubtedly petrifying. So, when I came to know about the prediction that 21^st December was the doomsday because the Mayan calendar do not show dates after the ‘supposed day’, I was perplexed.

Actually, I was not worried at all. Dying is a painful thought only if you think you are alone. But in this case, am not the only one, the whole civilization is coming down. Therefore, staying alive alone without anyone to talk with is an option I better let go.

What would I do if I know that tomorrow is the last day to live? This is a thought that often comes to my mind. Well the answer is ‘Nothing’. It would be the usual life. For instance, if Mayan prediction was right then today I would not have been writing this blog. Most of the people would have mocked the whole concept. Amidst all this, living normal daily routine life is all I have done and I believe many others would have done the same. Finally, when the floor starts to shake we would have said, “What the hell!!” and by the time we tried to reach home, things are already drop dead.

Ah! But we are alive, ready to enjoy this weekend and next 100 years weekends (am talking about my descendants as well), until and unless another tribal calendar forgets to count the dates.    

Kolkata Journal…

Let me start by reminding you that I do not live in the southern hemisphere. So, the idea of getting up at 5 in the morning was really getting on my nerve, especially when the month is December. Finally it was decided that we will be starting our trip around the nooks and corners of the city at 6 am. Now, I rest in peace (1 hour does make a lot of difference because it is a Holiday). This was decided via chat and suddenly the door bell rang and my US wala brother entered our home. I was really excited to see him and when he heard about the Saturday plan, he synced in because even after coming to Kolkata for last 20 years, he hardly knew what the city is all about.

The alarm rang like anything and I switched it off thinking there is still time. Suddenly my Mom called me up and I found myself left with only 15mins to get ready. Well, am kind of a sonic personality. Sharp at 6 am, both of us were ready, waiting for my friend at Lake Town, Jessore Road.

Boarded on a taxi, all three of us set our journey towards Burrabazar Folpotti.  

Photo Courtesy: Kunal Chakraborty

The route was a very known one because every time you take a bus or a car to Howrah, you need to cross this place, provided you are traveling from North Calcutta.  As we got down trying to find our way through the huge trucks, I already found my subject, so did my friend. We went around clicking and my brother was looking at the huge trucks loaded with fruits with dazed eyes. 

Photo Courtesy: Kunal Chakraborty

These people were really sporty, coming ahead and ready to pose in front of the cameras. Initially I was thinking the idea was crazy because I was carrying a simple SX150 whereas my friend was holding a DSLR in hand. But then I realized, what’s in camera, it’s all about fun.

 

As we end our session at Folpotti, the next stop was the Greek Church. It was massive but simple with huge columns and a long aisle. The alter was nicely decorated and there was no one inside, except the long wooden chairs and the big organ.

A Jewish synagogue was located on the opposite side of the road and I so badly wanted to see it, but we didn’t have the permission. 

My brother said, “Let’s play a foul.” He went straight to the caretaker and with an US accent he spoke in Hindi. Referring himself as the representative of Jewish Federation in USA, he said that he has come to Kolkata for carrying out a photo session in Maghan David Synagogue. In the meantime, he took my friend’s phone number and then asked him to call up the company (God knows what company!) to know about the detail regarding this appointment. I realized, things were going to be really funny and I have to zip-up my laughter.  So, with acute interest, I was trying to read the Jewish scripture. Yes, it was all Hebrew to me!  All of a sudden, my brother called up someone and passed on the phone to the caretaker telling him, it was priest on the phone. The conversation continued and I hardly had the idea that it was my friend who was talking as the priest. Finally, the manager called up and we were not allowed to enter the Synagogue. 

  

In spite of a failed plan, we laughed like hell the moment we got out of the premise of Moghan David Synagogue. My friend said, he was trying to find out a name when the caretaker asked who he was talking to. Anyway, it was real fun. 

Next, we went to Dalhousie and arrived in front of the Writer’s Building. Strolling on the open wide road, we visited Lal Dighi and then walked towards the bank of Ganges. We thought of going to the Princep Ghat and hence took the trailing tracks to reach as fast as we could but it was pretty far and we had to drop the idea. 

 

It was already 8:45 am and as per my friend, too much sun is not good for photography. Therefore, the journey came to an end. But before calling off the trip, we decided to visit Indian Coffee House at College Street for breakfast. Describing my brother the reason for the popularity, we ordered 3 cutlets, sandwiches and 3 coffees. Oh! I forgot to mention our morning tea in ‘bhanr’ (earthen cup) with fresh made Jelabi at the road side tea stall. My US wala brother cherished it; after all it was his idea and we tuned in. 

The trip for the day ended and we boarded on a private bus and we were back to Lake Town by 11 am.

Winter mornings are always hard to kick out from the bed but once you hit the road, you can appreciate the beauty of the foggy and silent Kolkata. There were people sleeping on the roads, covering themselves with a thin blanket. Life for them is hard, whether it is in the scorching heat of summer or in the chilling night of winter. But they know how to live even in the hardest moments of life. May be the smiles on the faces and the fun on the roads are the magic salts that give them the hope to breathe forever.

 

She

She bears it all,
    she never says….

Her eyes get moist,
    but she smiles away……

She hides all her despair,
                 with the rhythmic steps………
Gallantly she stands,
        to face ahead……

I know that’s you
I have seen you like this.
Best things does take time
          But it is on your way…..

Aum, Amen and Amin- Think About It!

I should be completing my dissertation but I have been forced to drag on to something else after reading the book… The Krishna Keys… Well, as a matter of fact I have not yet completed it, but what I liked is the fact that somebody is actually touching the roots of Indian History and by which I mean the famous line of Dayananda Saraswati, “Back to Vedas”, to write something hard core. I am here not to write a review but to share about a theory that I have learned back in my post graduate history classes. But unfortunately, I do not remember the propagator’s name, it can be Vico or I may be wrong. 

He states that when two civilizations develop at same point of time, they share some common ideas. They exchange thoughts, stories and even cultures. This is the very reason that gave rise to stories or folk tales that share common baselines. It can be an inspiration or mere description of events that has been witnessed by both of these civilizations. 

 Now, here is my point. If I follow this theory then can we say Hinduism, Christianity and Islam are contemporaries of one another?  I do not wish to hurt the religious sentiments of anyone. But have you ever given a deep thought to these three words….. ‘Aum’, ‘Amen’ and ‘Amin’? Don’t you feel that they sound on common note? 

Aum is the symbol for Hinduism, Amen for the Christianity and Amin for Islam.

Which is the oldest religion on this earth? A question that swells up a lot of discussions and debates! But if I say these three religions developed at the same point of time and they shared some common ideas and at times customs as well. 

Am I exaggerating? 

Think about it!