An Old School kind of Love- Reyomi Roy

Do you know those moments, right before drifting off to sleep, you find your thoughts meandering?

In these elusive moments of solitude, I oft catch myself wondering

How refreshing it would be if our world had stayed immune to all the progress

No, not in science or technology, but in the realm of matters of the heart, yes!

From an age where thumbs swipe right tirelessly every night in search of a new thrill,

If only we could be transported back to an era of an old school kind of love, the one with no frills

From hastily scribbled notes in library books by lovers, and for a reply, the agonizing wait

When did it become acceptable for us to chat with multiple people vying for a date?

From the mass of one night stands who will leave no trace, come the first rays of morning

How do you find the one who will stay through the day sponging your forehead when you lay in your bed, with fever, burning?

From weathering the storm together till death, standing by each other strong

Why do we now have options lined up at our fingertips to fall back on, the minute something goes wrong?

From lovers braving the tempestuous perils of night to simply gaze at their beloved from afar,

When did we turn into a generation stealing furtive glances at our phones even when seated across our love, it’s truly bizarre!

From the swarm of lustful eyes that pine to explore every inch of your body & devour you whole

How do you single out the ones that yearn to see beyond, into what lights up your eyes & a fire in your soul?

From fighting for their love against all odds, valiantly with the kind of courage that would put a warrior to shame

Why do we now settle for the cowards who betrays your trust and hides behind lies & blame games?

Immortal is how we defined love before, one that transcended even the finality of death, suffused with unfaltering patience

“Out of sight, out of mind’ is how we define love now, like Wi-Fi connections, growing weaker with distance

To those who say, this is a mythical kind of love mean to be written within pages of a novel, definitely not in our fate

I say probably, but what if our world really could go back this old school kind of love, maybe it’s never too late…

I don't know- Eshita Singh

I don't know what it means,

But from a young age, I was suppressed from

Wearing what I loved by all means.

I don't know what it means,

But I was taught to cook food of all types and means.

I don't know what it means,

But my brother was taught to catch his fantasies,

While nobody cared for my dreams.

I don't know what it means,

But my brother travelled all around the world,

While I was stuck within the four walls.

I don't know what it means,

But my brother was taught to be strong and brave,

And all sorts of outdoor games,

While I was told to be calm, elegant and gentle,

And learn the household chores by heart.

I don't know what it means,

But my brother's tears had value more than gold,

While my tears had no value, that's what I was told.

I don't know what it means

But while I was learning ABCs,

I always dreamt of what I would be;

A pilot, a teacher, a doctor, a chef, or a scientist just like Marie Curie,

And weave my own inspiring story.

But my Baba's words, "Just marry",

Dropped me into a hole, deeper than a black hole.

Today I am 20 and with strength and hope, I got a job without Baba's permission

But when I came home there was silence and silence,

And no conversation.

I asked Ma what was the issue, But she stood there like a statue.

Surprisingly, I was not surprised,

She was always silent each and every day

No matter how much I cried and whined.

Today, I understood why Ma was silent all these days

But now it's enough,

It's time for a change by breaking all the stereotypical gates,

And throw away the Handcuffs in which freedom was till now tough.

So with lots of hope and a smile,

I went to Baba, thinking he'd realize and agree ,

That I'm no longer a child,

And my dreams are not little like a seed;

I've been a grown-up for quite a while,

And my never-ending dream tree is ready to reach the moon.

But I guess these cloud-like thoughts will eventually vanish away,

So,I suddenly tried to walk away;

When with a giggle and a smile, for the first time ever in my life,

My Baba spoke up

" Listen, my daughter, go live your dreams

In this modern world, you're forever free".

And finally today I know what it means,

Today I know the worth of my tears and dreams.

I went from being a nowhere nobody,

To being a special somebody.

फिर मिलेंगें | Kushal Narang

बीते हुए कल की यादें संजोए

फूल सा नाज़ुक मन जब रोये

तो प्यार से सहलाकर उससे बस यही कहना

कि ज़िन्दगी का नाम है चलते रहना

न जाने हम कितने लम्बे रस्ते चलेंगे

न जाने कौन सी मंज़िलों को पायेंगे

लेकिन बरसों बाद जब हम फिर मिलेंगें

तो आज के बारे में सोचकर मुस्कुरायेंगे

बीता हुआ कल तो बदल जायेगा

आज के ज़रिए आने वाला कल आयेगा

रह जायेंगी याद हमेशा वह सुबह, वह शाम

कुछ दोस्तों की बदमाशियाँ, कुछ दोस्तों के नाम..

Mind games - Sameera Deswandikar

Mind games

Once again on a silent dark street,

I sat in the corner where no light could reach..

Helpless I looked at the sky above me

Whose darkness was also filled with a silent scream.

Just like me the clouds held back,

And waiting for someone to hold them close..

They were also heavy with pain,

Only we understood each other

Completely tired and drained..

Filled with thoughts of anxiety and pain,

I was waiting for one last chance

to breathe freely again..

I finally let out a loud scream

Just loud enough for the clouds to hear me...

Then came down pouring rain,

And lighting bursting with flames..

They silenced my scream

To let no one hear

What goes on in my head when no one is near..

Slowly I went back to bed

With the monsters smiling in my head..

~Sameera

জানোঁ | Dr Jagadish Goswami

জানোঁ,

ওপজাৰে পৰা আজিলৈ

এৰি অহা সময়ৰ

বহু ৰহস্য বহু আচৰ্য্য জানোঁ,

জানোঁ মই,

হাত ডাঙিলে আকাশ খহিব

মুখ মেলিলে মানুহ ডুবিব

সলনি হ'ব

সাম্প্ৰতিক মানচিত্ৰ,

অক্টোপাছী হাতোৰাৰ কৱলত

বন্দী হৈ

নিশ্চুপে থাকোঁ,

এই পৃথিৱীৰ

কোনো এক অমূলক

বাসিন্দা বুলি

টুপাই বুৰ মাৰোঁ ---

জানোঁ,

দিনৰ কাৰচাজি জানোঁ

ৰাতিৰ বেজ্জ্বতিও বুজোঁ,

আন্ধাৰত খিলখিলাই থকা

অধম ইশ্বৰৰ

সঠিক ঠিকনাও জানোঁ,

পম্পটাৰ

পম্পট কৰা

নাটক চলক

চলক নাটক!

একো নাই ---

আমিতো জানোঁৱেই

সবিশেষ বুজোৱেই

নিজানৰ গৰ্ভত

নৈশব্দৰ কোলাত

অক্ষত হৈ ৰ'ব

অমলিন জুপুৰি আমাৰ!

আমাৰ আমি---

দুখৰ বান্ধৈ

হিয়াৰ সাৰথি?

Agapethos- Debashree Roy

I once heard a man recite some lines,

He named it agapethos,

Expressing love for his lover's bosoms,

And the thickness of her hips.

Yet, I pondered the beauty lost,

In the sunset within her eyes,

The hair, darker than the night, now amiss,

And her smile, outshone by moonlight's demise.

When did the lovers inside of poets die?

I wondered, is he truly her lover,

If he disregards her enchanting smile?

Can one be a lover if the body's the sole find?

What becomes of love,

When time weaves its threads,

And bodies fade, yet souls remain

When did the lovers inside of lovers die?

feminism and flowers | Anushka Das

I can tell that

my father is not a feminist

in the way, he calls

me and my sister

his rose and his dahlia

he is watering flowers

and not raising daughters

I can tell that

my father is not a feminist

in the way, he walks beside me

and in the way, he tells me

how to walk beside him

delicately softy gracefully

floating in the air like

a fairy

I can tell that

my father is not a feminist

in the way, he asks me to speak up

when he talks over me

my father has educated us

in science, in literature, in art

but he cannot teach us what

he does not understand himself

my father tells me

to go conquer the cosmos

to unfurl my wings and soar into the sky

but to come back home

before nine

my father loves us

but fears for us more

I can tell that

my father is not a feminist

when he says that

women have to hustle

harder longer

because we are built slower

he says it isn't our fault

it's our chromosomes

how our genes are coded

we are molded to be smaller

weaker with rounder shoulders

that cannot bear the weight

of this cruel unfair world

we have to wear armors

and be on guard with spears

this is a battlefield, darling

if you are too fragile to be the offense

at least be on your defense

why do I have to wage a war

to lay claim over my own womb?

I can tell that

my father is not a feminist

in the way, he doesn't want to

change the world for us

but wants us to change

for the world

my father is a good son

a good husband

a good father

but above all, he is a good man

my father is a man

a man

so when my father told me

that he would finance my

higher education once

I get married to a suitable man

I agreed to marry

as long as I could wear

a plain white sari

on the wedding day

it would be as though

I'd be attending a funeral

my funeral.

Our Independence- Eswari Indrani

In Reverence we gather to Commemorate

Our Triumphant Victory on this date!

Flipping thru the pages of History, seven and a half decade back

The happenings then.....as we track

Evidently, 'Twas our Indian Freedom's long struggle

Claiming thousands of lives in its battle.

Its endless sacrifice...

Ultimately Winning its Prize !

With Non-Violence as (our) its only tool,

Persevered and ended the British Rule.

Marking it.....Seventy Five years ago

In our Capital, Khan's music did echo !

YES.....INDIA woke to LIFE at the midnight

When, all the world slept.

Tri Colour was unfurled first

In 1947 at The Red Fort on 16th August !

Our National Flag and Our National Anthem,

Will, in every dutiful citizen

Surge their PATRIOTISM !

JAI HIND !!!

ESWARI INDRANI

बारिश | Kavita Batra

जम के बरस जाना बारिश,

रंजिशें को अब तो खत्म कर जाना बारिश ,

बेहिसाब हुए हैं यार के दीदार पर चर्चे,

अब अपनो के दिल का मैल भी साफ कर जाना बारिश।

तेरा दूर से बरसना ,

मेरे तक पहुंच जाना ,

और मुझे फिर भी भिगो जाना ,

कभी आंखो से बहते हुए आंसुओं को भी पोंछ जाना बारिश।

तेरी तारीफ करूँ मैं,

जब भी तू बेहिसाब बरसती है ,

लेकिन जब भी बरसती है,

अपनी मर्ज़ी से ही बरसती है ,

जब भी कभी मेरे शहर में बरसे तू ,

मेरी भी मर्ज़ी से तू बरस जाना बारिश।

War and Peace- Aarushi Jithesh

Men are away for war,

They have gone so far,

Roads are now blown up tar!

Comes back in coffins,

Wreckage and destroyed inns,

The blood of people can't be rinsed!

The field of death,

People have lost their breath,

Coffins are covered with wreaths!

Lost our lives and homes,

Children and widows now roam,

Crumbling churches and domes!

Eyes filled with tears,

Men with ash and blood smears,

No more joy so sheer!

Grey sky with raining bombs,

Death comes with fine-tooth combs,

Now all are buried in graveyard tombs!

Oh, the fight for peace,

Time is now filled with crease,

Remember you can't take a life for lease!

Oh holy light, I bid farewell,

Oh black darkness, I welcome hell,

Oh Lord show mercy,

Like animals now we dwell!

One heart - Renao Kasomwoshi

A grandeur banquet which unfold and queer

Why granny's lip try ne'er move for tale?

So do her's granny in her aging year?

The grandeur feast of mine shocked me to pale.

Seen a man in wreck jumping up and down

Who cuddle the town owner with a glee

A black, white and naive alongst the brown,

A well renown man in a shame to flee

Here I in awe and quest, what kind of hoke?

Of feeble sight, not able, how they knot.

A mother's brother baffled leave to choke

What code or card they hold, here I in odd.

A man in murmur which passes through my ear

One heart! One heart! And solely that I hear.

We're All Just Potholes | Paridhi Poddar

The streets are riddled with potholes, the kind that make

you wonder if you could ever count them as you walked home.

I don’t mind potholes, for it is always easier

to drown in them like a tadpole with a penchant for endings.

I look at these potholes every day from the window seat of buses

and in this October heat, right after the cyclone, the water is dirty.

A little rainbow forms in them, glistening like a mirage

in this desert of a city, looking for something to quench

our thirst for tomorrow. This illusion is so light and fading

like the light in the ticket conductor’s eyes that I look away.

If I stare any longer, I will fall in like it is quicksand

and miss my stop. That would not bode well for I just started

this journey and the roads seem friendlier each morning but

grow estranged every night. The street lights flicker and

the mirage goes to sleep, its nose whistles till a pigeon

flies past, dipping its neck, colouring itself pink, green and silver.

The next day the news reads that too many potholes

might lead to accidents , and something should be done.

When I leave for college, the omnipresent potholes look

unsettling as if they know something I don’t.

On the bus, I hear a kid saying that what if

the potholes are just stars, not in the Milky Way

but in this city. When people die, they become potholes.

Maybe, that’s why they form little rainbows to let the others know.

A Likeness of Anna Freud- Chinmaya Puri

things i think killed my father:

1. keeping dead flowers

2. breaking that one glass

3. using scissors without any use of them

4. the drinking

5. the blood pressure

6. the anger he couldnt stop from falling out his mouth like flies from a carcass

7. not listening when he told me the story of his pictures

8. and his friends

9. and his child

10. saying he was sick

11. listening when he said he was dying

12. listening when he said i am the eldest so i must do what he did and live as he did

13. listening to the instructions on what to do when he dies

14. not if

15. when

16. wishing i was gone

17. wishing he was gone

18. not letting him touch me

19. not letting him hold me

20. not letting him in my life

21. not telling him to come closer when he sat on my bed

22. letting him sit at the edge of my bed

23. letting him sit at the edge of my life

24. letting him sit at the edge of his life

25. why didnt i do something

26. why didnt i scream at him to stay home

27. why did i fall asleep to my own headache to the sound of my heart pumping blood

28. selfish selfish girl

29. why cant you stay up for him

30. why cant you get him the doctor

31. why didnt you get him the help he needed

32. you knew

33. you knew and you did nothing

34. when you know your fate and read those of those around you like the lines on your

own bloodied hands

35. why do you run

36. when you were never meant to be young and unworried why do you try

37. when you knew you were the one who lives

38. why would you let him die trying

39. was he in pain

40. was it the medicines and the alcohol that mixed in his throat like the elixir he prayed

for it to be and so it drowned him in it that way too

41. or was it that he choked in his own vomit from the parties and the life and the booze

42. or did he just choke from the life

43. was it the sadness that killed him

44. did his organs give way like a factory shutting down

45. a home filled to the brim with lives lived not enough photos scattered seats still warm each room turning off its lights on it own

46. could you feel it

47. please tell me you were asleep

48. please tell me it was a kind dream

49. please tell me life was kind to you though i know it wasn’t

50. please tell me i was kind to you though i know i wasnt

51. how long did he lie there as the breath went out like cold fog did it freeze over him or

was there mist

52. there must be from how cold he was

53. god was he cold

54. he was blue he was the arctic he was grief

55. his eyes were closed please tell me he knew where he was leaving for

56. did he try to live for us

57. or did you leave me as this rotting thing you ask me to work and live as again

58. was this some sick lesson or were you just tired

59. please say something

60. im so tired please say something

61. im not meant for this dad please tell me what to do

62. how will i take care of them

63. i know youd say as i have been but

64. im too young

65. i know you were too but you promised

66. you cant leave me with this you promised

67. its not the first one youve broken

68. we were supposed to do so much together

69. you showed me every hope you had and secretly i made them my own

70. and now i am to go on and live the life you were meant to

71. and so i will stay and get my degree

72. and i will raise my brother

73. and i will raise my mother

74. and i will raise myself

75. and i will go to london and stay there

76. and have a love that doesn’t leave

77. and money that doesn’t run out

78. and i will be happy and not question whether i am hated

79. for you, i will be loved

80. its some sick joke that the dream they had progresses by one each generation

81. each firstborn a dreamer taken too soon

82. i will break it

83. the sons in our family run out but i am no son and i will keep us safe

84. i promise you i will keep them safe

85. you told me i am my fathers daughter

86. you and i reflection of each other, every time i raise my voice i hear you cough from

the strain in my throat

87. my vocal chords expand to the size of a casket and no words come out to tell anyone

how angry i am anymore

88. i cant let the venom you spit out die with you but i refuse to sting and so the poison dissolves my own throat

89. in my laugh there are your jokes

90. in the way i talk there is your charm

91. id rather be blank canvas id rather burn this character sketch that looks me in the eye

to mock me as i exist

92. it is less picture more mirror

93. i am you in every way that i can be and i wish i cut could it out of me the same way

you told me to man up and cut the meat we bought myself like a big girl

94. who cares if its dead you respect what it died for, you said

95. dont be afraid, you said

96. you take the knife and you cut it and you say thank you for dying for me

97. i cant forgive or forget or go on or be brave

98. but i will live with the shards you keep shattering me to

99. i will do what i must with what you have left me with

100. and i will make sure you are proud of me 101. i wish you knew how loved you are

102. i hope you liked me 103. i liked you

104. i loved you

105. i love you

106. i miss you

107. please dont leave me this way

108. please never come back to this

109. i hope you can breathe now that you dont have to

110. goodbye. i will keep you alive.

A Caress Of Nature-Our Erstwhile Abode | Shruti Kakkar

The left turn down the mud path led to our heaven on earth,

The pungent smell of molasses…priceless was its worth.

Rolling up our windows yet loving the muddy sight,

Our excitement knew no bounds, our thrill was at its height!

Ancient and rusting, was the gate to the right

closed always, day or night.

The serene and calm lake on the left

I would carry it along if it could be heft.

Narrow pathways lined with eucalyptus,

Our jubilation was such that nothing could afflict us..

Running through the gate painted white and red

Devoured by ecstasy, for the lovely time ahead.

For us, at 10 am the sun used to rise,

Or at 11 or at 12, depending on whenever we open our eyes.

Lazy mornings extending till afternoon,

God knows how days reached from sun to moon.

Pure meals, pure milk, pure life, so rare,

Sleeping and playing and about nothing to care..

Running around in the humungous open courtyards

And climbing the guava trees to eat and content our hearts!

Black maroon Mulberries, tasting sweet and sour

Plucked from a tree, high as a tower.

Exotic fruits and tress to call just our own,

Gone are the days when these gems were grown.

Evening saunters saw us to the lake

Glimpses of hornbills and kingfishers to take.

Fields of sugarcane on either side,

Majestic for us was that bullock cart ride!

Trolleys of tractors, bonnets of our cars,

We have mounted on all, to travel near or far.

Nearby dams for picnics, weekly bazaars close to the tarn,

Or amusing ourselves leisurely, with calves in the barn.

Opposite our farmhouse was a delightful acreage,

Pretty as a picture, its beauty hard to gauge.

Weeds, bushes, crops and trees, all along,

This land was modified at every furlong.

With dusk, appeared the stooping old priest,

Commencing the prayers from the northeast,

Crooning the devotional songs was done by all,

But ringing the bell was a matter of brawl.

Nights arrived with anticipation anew,

Spine-chilling ghost stories would now begin to brew.

Drawing our chairs close to the fireplace,

Insane with excitement, our hearts would race.

Our most magnificent days are now over,

But this is intoxication, where perpetual is the hangover.

We are overcome with nostalgia while travelling down the memory lane,

Realizing it’s all lost engulfs us in pain.

Yes, we will not lay eyes on it ever again,

But why agonize ourselves in vain?

Will we ever forget it?? Oh never!!!

These cherished memories of our precious childhood will fill our hearts forever!!

தாய்மை-Kanimozhi B

தங்கமான நின்

தாமரைக் கரங்கள்,

தூக்கத்தில் என் மீது

தவழும் போது,

இக்கணமே சிலையாகி

இதுவே என் நிலையாகி விடாதோ

என்றெனது தாயுள்ளம் ஏங்குதடி!

இரவும் பகலும் தெரிவதில்லை

உன் அருகில் இருந்தால்!

சுற்றும் பூமி நின்று விடும்

என் கண்ணே உன் அழகைக் கண்டால்!

உன் மழலைச் சிரிப்பில் மழைக் கால சாரல் கண்டேன்!

உன் கொஞ்சல் பேச்சில் இளவெயில் தரும் இதம் உணர்ந்தேன்!

பகலவன் எட்டிப் பார்க்கும் வரை,

உன்னை அருகினிலும்,

உன் நினைவுகளை அறிவினிலும்,

அசை போட்டுக் கொண்டே நகர்த்துவேன்

இந்த இனிய இரவுப் பொழுதை!

Quest for Eternal Glory- Tianna Shethna

Admist the world of illusions

We create our own dilemma

of agony and fantacies

A mind engrossed in worldly desires

, leads to a  heart enslaved in grief

Our mind runs in the haze and gaze of empheral fancies, 

where true conscience and faith is not evoked but rather outpowered by

the delusional fear and avarice that resides within

If this is where you are trapped

I beckon its a Neverending quest ,

As you will end up where you began

The pearls of desires would be met

but the true sapphire of purpose of your life would be uncherished , that would suffice your ego , but not satiate your pure  soul.

குழந்தைப் பருவ நினைவுகள்- Shalini M

ம்ம்ம்....

பெருமூச்சோடு ....என் சாய்வு நாற்காலியில் ...ஒரு உறக்கம் தேட நினைத்தேன்!!

விழி வரை வந்த உறக்கத்திற்கு உள்ளே செல்வதற்குள் அவசரம்...ஓடிவிட்டது !!!!

திடீரென அமைதி...இருள் மூட்ட மேகமாய்..

நினைவுகள் ஜொளிக்க விட்டத்தைப் பார்த்துக் கொண்டே ஒரு நினைவூஞ்சல் பயணம்!!!!!

பல நினைவுகளைக் கடந்து சென்றது என் நினைவுப் பயணம்!!! ஒரு கடல் போல்....

அந்த ஆழ் கடலில் ஒரு மீன் கண்டேன்....

துள்ளிக் குதித்து வலைந்து ஓடும் மீன்...

எதிர்காலத்தைப் பற்றிய கவலை இல்லாத மீன்!!

வெகுளித்தனமாய் பல கேலிகள் செய்த மீன்...

என் கண் முன்னே நிழலாடியது...

பெரிய பொறுப்புகள் இல்லாத ...உறவுகள் பற்றிய கவலைகள் இல்லாத .....கஷ்டங்கள் இல்லாத அந்தக் குழந்தைப் பருவம் ....பார்க்க முடியாத பிஞ்சுப் பருவம்....

இனி நினைத்துப்பார்க்க மட்டுமே....

மீண்டும அந்த மீனைப் பார்க்க ஆசை....

ஒரு புதிய நினைவுகளை சேகரிக்க....

Unbridled mistake - Uma Pc

Even though one's self broader,

Whitman's wits i see no longer,

For the after taste of sunburn mist ,

Makes this life much easier in fits,

why am i still just a mother?,

Why are the chains still locked longer?,

I'm sorry dear mother in law,

If I couldn't cater to your son's needs,

Even i had dreams of becoming a poet,

when that finds no value in the house,

I feel it unfair to be devoted to him,

And I'm no longer a poets shade,

Crowded indeed are the fleshes,

For what walt ones spoke,

In my life finds no shelter,

Thus how am i at stake?,

And how am i the mistake?!