Tujhe doondte hain log

Mandiron aur masjidon mein

Tumhe khojte hain woh

Girjon aur gurdwaron mein

Apne dil ko chodkar

Har jagah batakte hain log

Phir tahash me aakar

Ek doosre ko marte hain log

Agar samay nikalkar

Apna hi dil tatolte

Dekh tumhe khush hote

Apni hi zindagi sanwarte

Itni akal agar unme hoti

To khoon ki nadi na behti

Mazhab ke naam par

Ye duniya na ladti

Koi tumhe kanha kahe

Toh koi kahe tumhe  khuda

Koi tumhe nanak kahe

Toh koi tumhe isa

Par tum to bas ek ho

Jo har dil me baste ho

Is choti si baat ko

In nasamjhon ko bata do

Varna nafrat ki is aag mein

Sab kuch jhulus jayega

Na mandir rahegi na masjid

Na girja na gurdwara

Tere hi naam par

Sab khatam ho jayega

Tune hi banaya

Ab tu hi bigaad raha hai

Ai khuda ye bata

Ye bhala kaisa insaaf hai ?

jo beet gayi so baat gayi

aaj phir nayi ek subah hui

man me phir ek tarang hai

kuch kar guzarne ki umang hai

kal kya ho ye pata nahi

par aaj ab hai yehi sahi

yehi ek pal to apna hai

phir kal kya hai bas sapna hai

jo beet gayi so baat gayi

aaj phir nayi ek subah hui

tum jo saath mere ho

iska mujhe ehsaas hai

dikhte nahin ho par tum ho

iska mujhe ehsaas hai

tumhare karam nirale hain

iska mujhe ehsaas hai

andaaz tumhari anokhi hai

iska mujhe ehsaas hai

gum aur khushi do pehlu hain

iska mujhe ehsaas hai

saath tum ho to darna kya

iska bhi mujhe ehsaas hai

kalam hath mein hai meri

par likhane wala woh hai

kadam mere hain zameen par

par chalane wala woh hai

man mein hain kayi baatein

par bulwane wala woh hai

nazaarein kitne hain saamne

par dikhlane wala woh  hai

charon taraf hain sur haseen

par sunane wala woh hai

hum to bas katputle hain

nachane wala to woh hai

bigadne wala bhi wahi

banane wala bhi woh  hai

In the bigger picture of life, tiny specks we crawl

If our problems are big, spare a thought for him

He who made us all.

He has more on his plate than all of us though

Does he make a noise, does he put on a show?

Does the sun stop shining or the moon not glow?

Why is it then that each one thinks

no problem bigger than his own?

When will we learn that the world

does not revolve around us alone?

Eulogy to my uncle

How do you capture the ocean in a bottle? How can you describe a phenomenon

in a sentence? My uncle, KLN, was a giant among men. He was the epitome

of selflessness. He was someone that others can only aspire to emulate. He was a

genius at everything he did.- a true all rounder. I cherish fond childhood memories

of the uncle who got me my first Enid Blyton from the library and introduced me

to the fascinating world of books. He would quiz me at the end of a book to make

sure I understood what I read. Till the end of my education, I knew that if I had a

mathematical problem, there would be one person who could solve it – my uncle. I

would leave the problem beside his bed and wait till he got home from a busy day at

the hospital. By morning, the servant would deliver my solution along with the milk.

We shared a common love for books, cross word puzzles and quizzes – probably

the genes had something to do with it .He was a whiz at chess, caroms, card games

– anything you did, he could do one better. He remains the only doctor I know with

beautiful handwriting. The beauty of his entire personality was his understated,

unassuming profile. He never craved for the limelight. Although he was a wonderful

writer and orator, he let other people do the talking whilst for him – his actions spoke

louder than words.

He was a self made man who lived and died by his ideals. Never did I see him wallow

in self pity even in the face of insurmountable personal losses like the death of his

babies. He took everything that life threw at him as a challenge and moved on without

complaining.

If he had so wished, he could have made a fortune in his career by moving

to the west. However, he chose to stay and work for the poor and mentally

challenged of Kolkata till destiny played a cruel hand in snatching him away.

Those whom the Gods love die young. However someone who lives in the memories

of so many never really dies – he just moves on to a different world. I just feel blessed

that I had the good fortune of having him for an uncle. If I go through life being a

fraction of the person he was I would have led a meaningful life.

Is a nation separate from it's people?

If India is disgraced, we are disgraced. If India has failed, we have failed.

Wherever we are, whatever we do, we are Indians. We have ourselves to blame for the state of affairs.

We are quick to speak of India and Indians in the third person when it suits us. We take more pride in the foreign citizenship we choose to have and speak with pride about the adopted country and shower abundant praises on it. Had we but shown the same pride for India, it would not have come to this.

We are the most selfish people and never look beyond our own comfort. We will clean our home and litter the road. We are quick to keep the pavements clean when in a different country but will spit our gum on the road outside the International terminal when we land in India.  We will indulge in voluntary activities in a foreign land but are loathe to lend a helping hand to our own people.

The NRI community, while discussing indian affairs refer to indians as “they.” They take pride in the fact that their money has not been wasted in the Commonwealth Games. Have you ever seen another national behave in this way about his country?

If you are so ashamed of your country why do you need to be an Overseas Citizen of India? If you are so embarrassed to be an Indian,  why don’t you surrender your citizenship once for all?

When will we learn?

Blame it on others when it happens to us

When will we learn to accept faults without a fuss?

You are affected only by you

Why then is there so much ado?

Quick to point fingers at others too

Take time to sit down and reflect, will you?

When it comes to us, excuses galore

When it comes to others, the accusations flow

When will we as a nation realise

We cannot be separate from the nation’s pride.

We make the nation, not the other way round.

Need to drill that in for a turnaround.

Commonwealth games - my take

The bridge collapses, the ceiling falls
The writing seems to be on the wall.

It is India’s pride which is at stake
Politicians busy counting their take.

How long will you, your coffers fill?
No shame, no guilt , no sense or skill.

If you really want to be the best
Rise to the occasion when put to test.

We have but ourselves to blame
For electing the same despite knowing their game.

Like a Phoenix from the ashes, will India rise?
Will the Games be a success to everyone’s surprise?

Miracles do happen, but will it this time?
Or will millions be blamed for someone’s crime?

Will the guilty be punished? Will lessons be learnt?
Or will we just move on with fingers burnt?