नया साल और मैं

फिर एक साल बीत गया
फिर एक नए साल कि अगुवाई है

फिर मेरे वहीँ सवाल, फिर मेरा वहीँ कन्फ्यूजीआपन
फिर लोगों के वहीँ जवाब, मेरे सवालों पर उनका खिसियापन

कोई कहता, नए साल में कोई रेजोल्यूशन लो
कोई कहता, नए साल में किसी बुरी आदत को अलविदा ही कहो
मगर हम  रेजोल्यूशन के लिए १ जनवरी का इंतज़ार नहीं करते
बुरी आदत को अलविदा कहने को हम मुहूर्त नहीं तकते

एक जनवरी हो या छब्बीस मार्च, सोलह सितम्बर या दिसंबर आठ
सुबह उठकर मुँह धोकर कुल्ला तो हर दिन ही करना होता है
फिर एक जनवरी में क्या ख़ास, क्या नए  साल की नयी बात
न दिन नया, न रात नयी
है दीन वहीँ, है ईमान वहीँ
है लोग वहीँ, है सोच वहीँ
कुछ नहीं नया, बस तारीख नयी

३१ दिसम्बर की रात पब, डिस्को में दीवाली होती है
खुद को खोकर, खुद से दूर, दुनिया मदहोशी के जश्न में खोती है

दिखावे कि निष्ठुर दौड़ में, संस्कृति अब पीछे जा रही है
आकाश अभिशप्त, धरती निर्वसन, हृदय दूषित और वायु विषाक्त नज़र आ रही है

जश्न हम भी मनाते हैं, नए साल का नहीं, हर नए पल का
खुद से  दूर जाकर नहीं, खुद को खुद के और पास बुलाकर

मदहोशी में नहीं, पूरे होश में आत्मालोचन कर
मन की बंद परते खोलकर
फिर खुद से कुछ बोलकर
हानि-लाभ का लेखा-जोखा नहीं
क्या खोया, क्या पाया का हिसाब नहीं
अब तक जिया हुआ जीवन तौलकर
और फिर जब हृदय से स्वर निकले
कि जो किया, सही समझकर किया
जानकर किसी का दिल नहीं दुखाया
अपना पकाया, खुद अकेले नहीं खाया
निष्ठुरता से नहीं, जीवन कर्म से जिया

तो आने वाला हर पल, हर साल मेरे लिए जश्न बन जाता है
जेब में हाथ डालकर तो देखा नहीं, मगर दिल मेरा राजा हो जाता है

पल बीते, साल बीते, दशक बीते
हम रहेंगे वहीँ, हमारे उसूल वहीँ

हम वहीँ, हमारी सीरत वहीँ, सूरत बदल जाये, तो  कह  नहीं सकते
हम वहीँ, हमारे सपने वहीँ, सपनों तक पहुँचने के रास्ते बदल जाये, तो कह  नहीं सकते
हम वहीँ, हमारे लिए तुम वहीँ, तुम्हारे लिए हम बदल जाएं,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, तो बताना ज़रूर,
फिर देखेंगे हम, बदला है तुम्हारा दृष्टिकोण, या वाकई बदल गए हम

Kuch to log kahenge............

Music has always been a significant tool for giving food for thought... Aah well,  neither this song, "kuch to log kahenge, logon ka kaam hai kehna" is new for me, nor the stuff which is been followed-up is new for the reader. It's the old generic thought which we all believe in but unfortunately, can't resist...
This song, I feel, is one of the best rated creations of Anand Bakshi which showcases a strong character of human psychology.

Starting from the kind of perfume we wear to the career field we adopt, we're damn so much influenced by the people around. It is bit crazy to see that every year some 5 lakh + students appear for JEE exam. I can't believe if more than a lakh out of these five lakh are actually willing to go for this over-rated exam.

Virodhabhaas ye hai ki kuch karne se pehle adhikaansh taur par ye socha jata hai ki chaar makaan chhod ke jo Sharma ji rehtein hain, unki teesri number wali bhatiji Priyanka ke Bombay wale phoopha ji kya sochenge ya kya kahenge na ki is baat se farak padta hai ki jo hum kar rahein hain uska niskarsh kya hoga, wo sahi hai ya nahi, usse mujhe ya mere apno ko kitni khushi ya santusti milegi, uska samaj par seedha asar kya hoga!!!

Two real-life examples:

a) I know parents who have their kids studying in a school like DPS (R.K.Puram) (My non-sincere apologies, if any reader belongs to DPS R.K. Puram). These parents are so much confident that the surrounding & ambiance of such schools are strong enough to spoil their children. But what matters for them is their status among their office / non-office crowd. What their colleagues would say if their children would draw education from a school at some patli gali, so what if this chota school can teach their children a better science along with human ethics & values.

b) Another case: This is more insane and screwing.
Few months back, one of my friends , who was looking for a potential life partner for herself, called me up and expressed her dilemma regarding two guys. She had to choose one. Her description of the two started as: Guy A is good, amicable, from a nice family.... Guy B is also okay but still appealing :-P..... I asked her to rate them on the basis of intelligence, sense of humor & family values, on the scale of 10. She, without considering my parameters, rated A as 8/10 and B as 8.25/10 and now the rational behind this extra 0.25 took me almost to minor heart attack which luckily transformed into a two-minutes continued laugh...  :-D..... She said the guy B looks smarter ("looks" smarter) and his facebook profile is very much catchy..... Guy A is not so active on facebook.... :-P
I suggested to her to marry A and to send fb friend request to B ;-) But she got offended and disconnected the call by saying, "tumse to puchna hi bekar hai, kuch bhi bolti ho" :-D

If this is the criteria, then all matrimonial portals like jeevansathi.com, bharat matrimony.com etc. should add one more parameter on folks' profile, "No. of likes/comments on facebook profile pic"....along with a filtering parameter, "filter-out profiles with less than i) 50 likes ii) 80 likes iii) 98 likes........ :-D

(It will also help the people like me, as I'ld prefer someone with considerably lesser likes as that will give a virtual assurance that that the guy is having a life beyond fb as well)....

Besides, honor killing is one of the ugliest and most popular outcome of 'kuch to log kahenge' on a broad scenario. Height of insanity!!!

It's not that whatever we do, we should not listen or care for the society. Man is a social animal and living without caring for society is an impractical and immature solution to this.

I remember my father's words, how he once explained me the concept of life's circles & its balance.
He told me that we, as a family, live in the smallest and centered-most concentric circle, the second concentric circle belongs to our extended family, third to our relatives, fourth to society, fifth to nation and so on....... So, in order to maintain the overall balance without disturbing the circles' radii, we should first try to make the centered-most circle stronger and firm to lay the foundation to be the 'real you'. By disturbing the first & second, we can't balance with third, fourth, fifth........

In long-term, you can be accepted by the society (for which we bother so much), only if you & your people would accept you, otherwise you need to keep changing the faces or your outer shields, with the change of the society i.e. Sharma ji, Chaturvedi ji, Gupta ji etc. The healthier the smallest circle, healthier would be the largest one....

Signing-off with the lines of one of my favorite poems:-

ye zara zara si baat pe, tarah tarah ka ajab kyun
jo kisi se bhi khafa na ho, mujhe us khuda ki talaash hai

mujhe har waqt, har ghadi, koi tok'ta hai bar bar
jise kar ke dil dukhi na ho, mujhe us gunaah ki talaash hai... (Sighssssssss.....)

जय हो...

हर फ़लक से, हर ज़मीं पे,स्वर यहीं बस गूंजता हो

"जय हो" वतन तेरी सदा, प्रतिद्वंदी बन जब तू खड़ा हो

कलाम हो, रहमान हो या कल्पना की बात हो

रक्त के कण- कण में बस "जय हो" की ही फुंकार हो

कुछ इस कदर सीने में तेरे खज़ाना बसा हो इल्म का
न फिर कोई कहे "स्लम डॉग" को प्रतिबिम्ब हिंदुस्तान का

बेशक न हो यहाँ धन-कुबेर, पर स्लम्स भी न हो यहाँ
न हो कोई बच्चा यहाँ, भूख से फिर बिलखता हुआ

"जय हो" सदा उस देश की, जहाँ आतंक का प्रतिकार हो
हर नागरिक के खूं में जहाँ, एक अजब-सा भूचाल हो

मिलकर बनाएं हम सपनो का भारत, जिसमें अमन हो और ईमान हो

झुक जायें देवता भी करने जिसकी "जय हो",जय-जयकार हो

पर फुर्सत किसे है, ज़हमत कहाँ है???

देश की "जय हो", न कोई ऐसा कुछ कर रहा

रहमान कि "जय हो" के झूठे दंभ में संपूर्ण भारत खिल रहा

गर्व तो हमें भी है,"स्लम डॉग" को सफलता मिली जो ग्लोबली

बनी आइना वो हिंदुस्तान का , इसकी भी है शर्मिंदगी

आज हो रही है "जय हो" उस देश की:-
जो कभी मंदिर तो, कभी मस्ज़िद का नाम मांगता है

जहाँ काज़ी मुल्ला रहीम, और पंडित राम मांगता है

"जय हो" हो रही है उस धरती की:-

जहाँ जीवन का हर पल मर के काटती है वो गरीब माँ

जहाँ भूख से बिलखता उसका बच्चा रोटी सरे-आम मांगता है

"जय हो" हो रही है उस वतन की:-

जहाँ भीगी पलकें लिए राह तकती है वो सुहागन रस्ता जिसका

जहाँ उसका शौहर सरहद पे मिट आतंकी की शाम मांगता है

आज फिर उदास है मन, सोचता है:-

क्या वो सांचा टूट गया, जिसमें भगत,सुभाष,खुदीराम ढला करते थे

क्या उनके पास कोई काम न था

या इन्होने अपनी हर बाधा, हर इच्छा, हर मजबूरी का हवन कर दिया था

क्या इन्हें डर नहीं था मरने का

क्या इनकी माताएं बेफ़िक्र थी!!!

कुछ नहीं,बस वक़्त का ये फेर है, तब इन माँओं के लिए पूरा देश बेटा था

और आज के बेटों के लिए खुद की माँ ही गैर है

कैसी माँ, कैसी मातृभूमि और क्या माट्टी का क़र्ज़???

अब देश से ज्यादा, माँ से ज्यादा, खुद की सेवा इनका फ़र्ज़!!!

अरे! फ़िक्र करो नादानों, तुम्हारी बरबादियों के चर्चें हैं असमानों में
न समझोगे, तो मिट जाओगे, तुम्हारी दास्ताँ भी न होगी दास्तानों में...

देश को दो ऊंचाई वो, की सारी दुनिया नतमस्तक हो जाए

और जब बात हो हिंदुस्तान की, तो "जय हो" की ध्वनि सर्व दिशा में गूँज जाये...

(Written, when Jai Ho song won Oscar)

मुझमें बोलता मेरा मैं !!!

क्या बताऊँ, कौन हूँ मैं
जो दूर दूर तक फैला है, वो अमोल चिरमौन हूँ मैं

जो बुझ न सके, वो मशाल हूँ मैं
जो बीते न, वो काल हूँ मैं
हर दिल में आबाद हूँ मैं
हारकर भी नाबाद हूँ मैं

मौत से मैंने जीना सीखा
रो-रो कर मैंने हंसना सीखा

मंज़िल पास नहीं तो क्या
राह आसान नहीं तो क्या

मुझमें वो जूनून  तो है
कुछ करने को दिल नासूर तो है

अपनों का साथ नहीं तो क्या
सपनो का संसार तो है
रौशनी मिट गयी तो क्या
कम से कम अंधकार तो है

लेकिन फिर भी, फिर भी

ग़र कल मैं जीत न पाऊ, तो तुम मुझपर पाषाणों कि बरसात करोगे
और यदि मैं जीत भी जाऊ ,तब भी तुम मुझसे न बात करोगे

फिर क्या बताऊँ , कौन हूँ मैं
बेबस हूँ, लाचार हूँ मैं
मैं भी क्या जानू , कौन हूँ मैं
जीव हूँ, या निर्जीव हूँ मैं 

A tale of NaMo vs RaGa!!!

As the General Elections-2014 approaches fast, the leading candidates from the two leading political parties come together for a live debate on Times Now.

Arnab Goswami: Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to this historic broadcast of The Newhour. Today, we will have a live debate between PM candidates for the General Elections. Mr. Rahul Gandhi will face-off against Mr. Narendra Modi.

Narendra Modi: Arnab, hamari matrbhasha ro rhi hai, meri vinti hai aapse ki hindustani hone ke naate kripya ye vartalaap hind bhasha mein ki jaaye.

Arnab Goswami (outraged, as usual): You're not supposed to jump-in before I call your name Mr. Modi. You've disrespected me on national television. This is not at all tolerable.

(Arnab Goswami walked out)

Narendra Modi: Arnabbbb,,,Arnabbb,,,acha sorry.....aao angrezi mein hi baat karein.... .Arnabbbb...Arnabbbbb!!!!!

 Rahul Gandhi (giggling): Kisse panga le liya Modi ji... :D

(The sets of Newshour has been replaced by the sets of the Prime Time, and Mr. Ravish Kumar enters as the news anchor) 

Ravish Kumar: Namshkar! Parichay to ho hi gaya. seedhe mudde pe aate hain. Pehle chaltein hain Congress ke sarvochch Rahul Gandhi ke paas. Rahul ji, kyun lagta hai aapko ki 2014 mein Congress sarkar banane mein kamyab hogi?

Rahul Gandhi (confused): Mere papa, meri dadi ne desh ki bhot sewa ki hai......

Narendra Modi (interrupting Rahul): Aur isliye Shehzaade aap chahtein hain desh aapki sewa kare!!!

Ravish Kumar: Rahul ji ko dekh kar lagta hai wo jawaab dene mein asamarth hain, phone se judtein hain pradhanmantri Manmohan Singh ji se, jaante hain wo kya sochte hain is baare mein.

Rahul Gandhi: Ek minute Ravish ji, Manmohan ji phone pe jawaab kaise denge. unse baat karni hai to aapko ek SkyPe connection aur ek face-reader chahiye hoga.

Ravish Kumar: O haan! koi baat nhi Rahul ji. yahan hum jud rhe hain Sonia ji ke saath, jante hain unke vichaar.

(Trin Trin..... Trin Trin....)

Katrina Kaif:  Hello! Katrina Kaif here...

Ravish Kumar (muddled): Hello Katrina ji, Prime Time se Ravish bol rha hu, ye number to Sonia ji ka hai na???

Katrina Kaif: Yes, Ravish ji, I and Sonia ji are in Hindi-speaking classes. Sonia ji is busy in a one-to-one session. You can connect to her after one hour.

Ravish Kumar: Sonia ji se bhi baat nhi ho paayi hamari. baat karte hain Salman Khursid ji se.

Rahul Gandhi: Nahi Ravish ji, Salman ji ko phone mat kijiye. wo Daundiakhera gaye hue hain, unka number roaming pe hai.

Narendra Modi: Dekh rhe hain Ravish ji, abhi sona nikla bhi nahi ki ye Congressi pehle hi wahan kataar lagane lag gaye.

Rahul Gandhi: Aisa nahi hai Modi ji. Salman ji ko mummy ne bheja hai wahan, wahan media ki coverage mil jayegi aur desh janega ki Congress ke neta kitne secular hain. Sona to nahi niklega abhi :-D

Ravish Kumar: Itne vishwas ke saath kaise keh sakte hain aap?

Rahul Gandhi: Sibbal ji ASI se baat kar rhe hain ki abhi isko ek afwah karaar dekar khudai rok di jaye. fir jab 2014 mein desh ki nazrein chunaav ke natizon par hogi, tab Congressi khud Daundiakhera jakar khudai karke sona nikalenge. Iske liye humne Italy se 200 fawdon ka order bhi de diya hai!!!

Narendra Modi (in anger): Fawdon ka order Italy se kyun....hamare desh mein bhi ache fawde milte hain.

Rahul Gandhi (about to cry): Aap kya samjhenge Modi ji, aap to roz thepla, fafda khate hain, kabhi socha aapne mummy kitna miss karti hain Italy ko. Bas mummy ka hi man rakhne ke liye humne fawde Italy se mangwaye hain, (delighted) aur saath hi 2.25 rupaiye ka commission bhi mila hai har fawde par .

Ravish Kumar: Jab tak Rahul ji aur Modi ji apni vyaktigat baaton mein vyast hain, aaiye phone se judte hain Congress ke neta Digvijay Singh ji se.

(Trin Trin...Trin Trin...)

 Digvijay Singh (Irritated): kaun gadha hai...raat ko 10 baje phone kar rha hai.....

Ravish Kumar: Digvijay ji, desh aapko sun rha hai... Ravish bol rha hu Prime Time se. Aap se jan'na chahenge ki aapko kya lagta hai itne ghotale, itni mehgayi ke baad bhi janta aapko kyun vote degi?

Digvijay Singh: Dekhiye Ravish ji, hum 10 saalon se desh pe raaz kar rhe hain... har cheez ki seema hoti hai, ghotale, bhrashtachar..ab hum chah kar bhi nahi kar sakte...hamare Swiss bank ke accounts upper cut-off cross kar chuke hain....to ab agar hamari sarkar aati hai to hamare paas desh ki sewa karne ke alawa koi aur chara hi nhi bachega...aur agar......

Rahul Gandhi (interrupting Digvijay Singh): chara!!!!! chara ghotala mein hamara koi haath nahi tha....

Digvijay Singh (offended): O pappu!!! kitni bar kaha hai,,, main jab bolu, beech mein na bola kar..... Ravish ji, kuch aur puchna chahtein hain aap???

Ravish Kumar: Nahi...Shukriya Digvijay ji humse judne ke liye.

Ravish Kumar: Rahul ji, Modi ji.... kyun desh ke janta chune Congress ko ya BJP ko....

Narendra Modi: Agar BJP satta mein aayi, to jo growth model Gujarat ka hai, wo 5 saalon mein Hindustan ka hoga.

Rahul Gandhi: Agar Congress satta mein aayi, desh ka koi bhi bachcha raat ko bhukha nahi soyega.

Narendra Modi: Rahul ji, usmein aap kya karenge,,,bachcha bhookha hoga to kaise soyega!!! :P

Rahul Gandhi: Hum satta mein aaye to Mandir-Masjid dono banwayenge

Narendra Modi: Hum desh ke har nagrik tak prashadhan ki suvidha uplabdh karayenge

Rahul Gandhi: Godhra kaand desh ke kisi raajya mein nhi hoga

Narendra Modi: Hum aaye ya na aaye satta mein, Sadbhavna Mission bar bar hoga

Rahul Gandhi: Hum desh se garibi mitayenge

Narendra Modi: Hum har nagrik ko rojgar dilayenge

Rahul Gandhi: Hum desh ko brashtachar se muqt karayenge

Narendra Modi (smiling): Ravish ji, Rahul ji bhi ab BJP ko hi samarthan denge

Rahul Gandhi (annoyed): Nahi! aisa kab kaha maine

Ravish Kumar:  Aap hi ne kaha Rahul ji, aap desh ko brashtachar se muqt karayenge :-)

(Suddenly. Arnab Goswami is back, The banner of Prime Time and logo of NDTV are being replaced by Newshour banner & Times Now respectively)

Arnab Goswami: I've come back in nation's interest.

Arnab Goswami: The nation wants to know Mr. Modi what is your strategy for General Elections-2014?

Narendra Modi: We are...

Arnab Goswami: Alright Mr. Modi. We got what you would like to convey. We are following your rallies, there is no point to listen everything here again.

Narendra Modi: But, Arnab....

Arnab Goswami: No, no Mr. Modi. We're running short of time... Over to you Mr. Gandhi. What is your strategy for elections-2014?

Rahul Gandhi: My dad, my grandmother......

Arnab Goswami: My question is regarding General Elections going to be  held in 2014, Mr. Gandhi, not about Sooraj Barjatya's upcoming family drama.

Arnab Goswami: So Mr. Modi, the nation wants to know who is your biggest fear for the elections?

Narendra Modi: No one.

Arnab Goswami (shouting in higher pitch): The nation demands your answer Mr. Modi.

Narendra Modi (scared): Sobhan Sarkar's follower Om baba (http://news.oneindia.in/india/gold-digging-sobhan-sarkar-upset-on-modi-comments-writes-a-letter-1327654.html)

Arnab Goswami: Why didn't you answer my question at the first go, Mr. Modi. Tell Mr. Modi, you have to answer in nation's interest.
Mr. Modi.......

 Narendra Modi: My apologies Arnab.

Arnab Goswami: Okay, Mr. Rahul Gandhi, Your biggest fear?

Rahul Gandhi: My dumbness.

Arnab Goswami: First time ever, I'm listening you speaking something that makes sense. Thank you Mr. Gandhi for speaking truth in national interest.

Arnab Goswami: So, the nation wants to know, when Mr. Modi would become India's prime minister, what would Mr. Gandhi get?!?

Kapil Sharma (in guest appearance): Baba ji ka thullu!!! :-D

Arnab Goswami (completely outraged): Mr. Sharma, this is Newshour set, how you dare to enter? Speak Mr. Sharma, the nation needs to know!!!

Kapil Sharma: Arnab, Arnab....ruk ja yar.....what nation wants to know! nation wants to know! ye public hai ye sab janti hai... You're the most unaware person of the country. You have so many doubts & queries in your head, which you keep asking to these innocent people like Rahul in the name of nation. You always take advantage of benefit of doubt by not mentioning which nation wants to know.... India thinks, probably, China wants to know. China thinks, may be, America wants to know...No one knows who wants to know........ Today, our nation needs to know Mr. Arnab, you are getting popularity, high trp rates, what our nation is getting...???

Arnab Goswami: Baba ji ka thullu!!!...................oops..... cut cut cut!!!!

Arnab Goswami: As you saw ladies and gentlemen, how Mr. Modi is having a clear vision for upcoming elections and how Mr. Gandhi is still running away from important questions and shying away from debates of national interest. But, we will not run away from our responsibility. We will keep asking straight questions that the nation wants to know.


* If the nation wants to know why I've made fun of Arnab Goswami, it actually happened mistakenly with the entry of Kapil Sharma. Mr. Goswami is my personal favorite, so my apologies to all Arnab's fans :-D

A Girl's Story!!!

Dedicated to all the women I know & people around them...




Everywhere around, girls are being raped, they’re being killed in domestic violence

Few people are outraged, few are on the road, protesting in silence

In the whilst, on women’s day, I’ld love to acknowledge the sunny side of a woman’s life

How honoured it feels to be a daughter, a sister, a mother, a successful professional & an admiring ...wife

So, here it goes…

I was my father’s princess, when I was five

Amazing were those days, I wish I could revive



When I turned thirteen, I hated to be a girl

I didn’t like to be cared and shielded like a pearl

I never understood why I was precluded from all the fun

Uff!!! Wherever I wished to go, I was always accompanied by my mum



At the age of nineteen, I realized the perplexity of life

When I saw the world around from my parent’s eye

How sweet were them to answer all my weird questions tho’ being mild

Then, I understood “How difficult it was in this world to foster a girl child!!!”



This turmoil and fear in a girl’s parent’s eye can be deleted

If everyone treats a girl like they want their daughter to be treated



Well, then the wedding bells rang when I turned twenty-five

I was bit excited, little scary to step-into this uncertain phase of life

I remember the sweet and loving gestures of this new family I found

The gladness it gave me valued much more than a thousand million pound

How I felt myself fortunate to find this man of my dream

He was very amicable and sweet with an extra add-on of cream

Yes, sometimes he showed his insolence, he took me for granted

It’s not I couldn’t understand, I just did not mind it

Who says it’s hard for a woman to pursue what she wants in life

When I stepped-up to fly, my whole world supported me with no strife



Then came the most wondrous phase, I became mother & I reached cloud nine

The feel of having this beautiful angel of mine was so pure and divine



When I was a daughter, I filled my parent’s home with laughter

When I was a sister, I was always there to give my brother bread & butter

When I was a wife, I gave zest to his life

When I was a daughter-in-law, I always gave my in-laws a feeling of awe

When I was a professional, I won many crowns which were laurel

When I was a mother, I gave my angel a life which I always wanted to discover

I relish my womanhood, I owe to God & people around me for this

It was never possible without them to make my life truly bliss



I agree many of your lives are probably full of turmoil with no peace & rest

But when you’ve to choose from ‘Live Life’, ‘Crib Life’ , ‘Quit Life’, choose to live life, it’s undoubtedly the best!!!

Ray of hope!!!

…And hence, the story concluded with a melancholic but gracious end


It, of course, didn't leave me with empty hand

It led to evanescence of darkness and gifted me light

My gratitude to the Almighty for being so benevolent & kind



I insisted myself to stay serene and to have rest for a while

Now, I’m ready for my journey to discover another acumen to smile

I'm ready to discover another acumen to smile!!!

खलबलाते रिश्ते

चाहतें तो हैं कहना बहुत कुछ
पर अल्फाजों की बंदिश है यहाँ
जो हो तुम्हारे कर्ण-प्रिय
वो शब्द हमारे पास कहाँ

कहदें ग़र जो दिल में है
तो हो जाओगे रुस्वा तुम
तुम्हे न खोने के डर से
खो रहे हैं खुद को, खुद से हम

Pinjare Wali Muniya!!!

I can remember my right hand running along a lined sheet of paper with a lead pencil awkwardly poised on my little fingers, a five year old mind on a three thousand years old question- “What I want to be when I grow-up?” These visions are like black & white photographs, whispers of past. I realize now that my identity as a professional had little to do with my dreamy decisions in kindergarten what I hadn’t taken much into considerations. I believed every kid has such dreamy wavy fascinations as we, as a kid, do not understand the pragmatic & realistic aspects of lives.

Aah! So here I met this girl whom I rated as the smartest kid I ever met. No, I didn’t meet her in some cyber world or in a GK quiz, but on the road, while I was on my way to the office.

Last Monday, while I was on my way to the office, I stuck in this annoying long traffic jam.

A five-six year old little girl with untidy clothes & hair came to my car and knocked the window pane. These street kids do the similar activity every now & then whenever the car stops at red lights and we never used to respond them (I, personally, don’t believe in any kind of charity on roads.). Unlike every time, I opened the window this time.

Girl: Didi! Paisa dedo, bhookh lagi hai.

I: Bread ya biscuits khaogi?

Girl: Nahi, paisa dedo

I: Paisa kyun chahiye, bhookh lagi hai na to khaane ke liye le lo kuch, seb (apple) logi?

Girl (irritated): Paisa dedo na, ghar le jana hai, nhi le gayi to pappa maarega.

I(baffled): Pappa matlab tumhare papa, wo maarenge agar paisa nhi diya to!?! Mere saath chalogi? ( I knew even if she would say ‘yes’, I couldn’t take her with me, but silly I’m, this question originated from my heart and before it reached my mind, it came out of my mouth)

Girl (sceptically): Kyun? Aapke saath kyun aau!!!

I: Tumhare papa tumhe maarte hain na, wo tumse pyar nahi karte

Girl: Aap bhi kaam pe jaa rhe ho, nahi jaoge to aapka pappa bhi aapko gussa karega na!!! to matlab kya wo aapko pyar nahi karta!!! (her answer actually left me stunned)

I wanted to let her know the difference between 'work to earn' and 'beg to earn' but in her perception, begging was her work and she was to complete her daily targets by begging and collecting some amount of money. And I did not want her to lose gratitude either for her work or for her father.

I took out a 20 rupee note from my wallet and gave to her. Probably, she was expecting some one, two or maximum five rupee coin, her eyes shone, she gave me a million-dollar smile and left. I curled-up my window.

I was still in the traffic, my car was on the same point since almost 20-25 minutes! I laid back on my head rest and closed my eyes.

After 3-4 minutes, again I heard the knock on window, the same girl! I scrolled-down the window.

Girl (bit hesitant): Diddi! Biscoot….de doge….. ???

I always keep this small pack of my favourite biscuits krackjack in my bag, which I took out along with an apple and offered to the girl. She, surprisingly, looked at the biscuits and asked me, ‘poora lelu?’. I replied, ‘haan, le lo’. She took the biscuit but left the apple (usual kids’ dislike for fruits, I guess). Then, she took-out this pink flower from her dirty small bag and extended towards me. I asked, ‘ye kisliye, kya karu iska main?’. She answered, ‘aapke liye wahan (pointing at a roadside plant)  se leke aayi, ache ho aap, isliye lelo’. I smiled and took it, she smiled back and left. My eyes followed her till she disappeared.

Every day this little girl wanders on streets to beg money, but she was actually living inside a cage where she does not know the outside world, her rights as a child, her fear as a girl. She was very much happy and contended in her own cage. She is so sharp that she understands that though all parents love their kids, but they express it more when the kids reach their expectations, so what if the expectation is to beg! She knows her priority which is beg & collect money and no one can baffle her by offering biscuits or breads. She is so sensible to know to say thanks, in return, for any sweet gesture offered to her.

Awesome girl she was... Wasn't she!?!  I wish, she never come out of this cage of unawareness and remain happy always! Nothing can make one happier other than mental contentment, and she has this contentment more than anyone else I met before...

Every morning, my eyes look for her at the same place, but couldn't get to see her after that. I've kept this another packet of biscoot for her in my bag!!!