Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Bitter, sweet, sour... this new year


New life, new living, a fresh beginning
Like everything that blossoms in Spring
The season of rejuvenation
The season of mirth, joy and revelry
As the nature seems to blush like roses
As trees in full bloom turn yellow and pink
Gulmohurs waiting to spread cheer
With their bright orange and red hues
Hidden there would be some koel or myna
Waiting to break into a fresh morning song.

New thoughts, new ideas
Unfurling like the tender mango leaves
A whole bunch of tender mangoes
Green little, sour things reminding me
That sourness is a taste to savor.

I walk past the whiff of sweet scent of Neem flowers
The huge neem tree covered with delicate white flowers
Frail little bitter things reminding me
That bitterness is also a taste to savour.

Far away there seems to have been an early shower
The familiar smell of first showers on dry earth
The sweet smelling air reminding me
That sweetness is not just in sugar
It's an everlasting taste of all things pleasant.

The days get longer and warmer
Signs of impending summer
Perhaps a severe one, hotter than the previous one
Sweltering, scorching and sizzling
Forcing me to be indoors till the Sun goes down

The tender coconut vendor
Sits there around the corner
Under the shade of huge green tree
Quenching the thirst of a passer-by
Or selling the refreshing drink to as many

In the evening
The bazaars are graced by the divine Jasmine
The heavenly perfume fills the air
As the buds slowly bloom into flowers
Making every evening a special one
For the dame, adorning her long hair
Or as earnest offerings at places of worship.

Taking together
Sweet with bitter and sour
Just as the tastes of nature are many
A melange of several feelings and experiences
Isn't this true of us, as we step into another year.


Image courtesy: http://in.ygoy.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/ugadi.jpg

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Our sweetest songs are those that tell you of ...

Our sweetest songs are those that tell you of sad thoughts, bitter-sweet realities, existential and profound truths- to extend Shelley's famous lines. Isn't this true of most of our movie songs? There's a mystical charm about songs that make us feel exalted, elevating our spirits while experiencing the lyrics, the music and the singer. The way these songs are composed brings out the best in the singer, making us feel the emotions vicariously - poignant and cathartic -intoxicating and liberating - existential and transcendental. The lyrics of each song, highly poetic, composed and rendered with utmost artistic appeal. Such sublime beauty is rare to find these days when songs have become 'musical' commodities, created, packaged and distributed - legal or pirated. Most of these songs have remained as masterpieces with everlasting listening pleasure for the discerning listener. Here are some of my eternal favorites:

Yaad kiya dil ne kahan ho tum jhoomti bahar hai kahan ho tum...
Ae dil-e-nadaan, arzoo kya, justaju kya hai...
Yun hasraton ke khwab mohabat main dho liye, khud dil se dil ke baat kahi aur ro liye...
Hasne ki chaah ne itna mujhe rulaya hai, koi hamdard and dard mera saya hai...
Chingaari koi bhadke to sawan use bhujhye, sawan jo agan lageye use kaun bujhaye ...
Main to ek khwab hun, is khwab se to pyaar na kar...
Suhani raat dhal chuki na jaane tum kab aaoge, hawa bhi rukh badal chuki...
Tujhse naraaz nahi zindagi hairan hun main, tere masoom sawalon se pareshan hun main...
Yeh jeevan hai is jeevan ka yahi hai , yahi hai rang roop..
Katra katra milti hai, katra katra jeene do zindagi hai, behene do pyasi hun main pyasi rehene do..
Tere bina zindagi se koi shikwa to nahin, shikwa nahin...
Aane wala pal jaane wala hai, ho sake to isme zindagi bitalo pal jo yeh jaane wala hai...
Jaane woh kaise log the jinke pyaar to pyaar mila, humne ne toh jab kaliyan maangi kaanton ka haar mila...