Letter to Prime Minister....(in the wake of recent Jan Lokpal protests)

(It seems like those essay composition topics that primary teachers used top give us in fourth grade but written sensibly and with serious thought it can be vehicle of opinion and discussion)

Dear Mr.Prime Minister,

Warm Greetings and Vande Mataram. Hope this letter finds you in good health. I am sure if you read this letter and within days of it being written, you would be under some stress due to the recent events in the country. The Jan Lokpal movement has caught imagination of many people and the other day I was surprised to see the size and composition of one such protest march which passed by my house. I thought of writing a letter to Anna Hazare, which I might later. But first I thought it was my right and duty, as law abiding  and tax paying citizen of India who has voted in every election since turning eighteen, to address the Prime Minister who represents my country and is responsible for running its affairs.

My knowledge about politics, policy formation and law making and socio-economic dynamics of the country is limited. Yet this letter is not a set of instructions or suggestions but a few things which I wish/hope/expect you would do in some form and measure.

a) Kindly acknowledge there is crisis and dissent in the country. Maybe the number of protesters, however large, is not large enough in comparison with India's exploding population. Yet the protests seem to grow stronger by the day. So kindly acknowledge that there is discontent amongst some section of the society and there is a need to address it.

b) Communicate: Yes, once you acknowledge the problem, let us know that you are working to resolve it. You spoke to us on Independence Day. The other day I saw you addressing a group of IITians. Please spare few moments for us common citizens. Do come on air, address the nation. The situation warrants frequent dialogue. If not a speech, at least issue some PR releases, let us know what you are thinking.

d) Frankly, I do not have in depth knowledge of the details of the workings of an institution like Lokpal and I get lost in all the legal mumbo-jumbo. But team Anna (as the media calls it) have made some serious and commendable effort in popularizing their version and explaining the difference between their version (jan lokpal) and the Government version. If you cannot accept Jan Lokpal, atleast let us know which points do you differ on and why. We want to hear it from your mouth.

e) We understand that you do not agree in entirety with Jan Lokpal bill and since we have entrusted you with the responsibility of running the country we assume that you know much more than us about law making and execution. However if you do not agree with jan lokpal bill give us reasons. Clear and precise reasons about each point - why you do not agree with each point. Kindly don't tell us that you do not agree with Jan Lokpal because law making is responsibility of the parliament or sanctity of the parliament is questioned etc. Frankly we don't see why if a good bill is proposed from outside the parliament, Government can't find a way to introduce it in the parliament. So if you don't agree give us concrete reasons.

f) People want to see the corruption eradicated and team Anna (again as media calls them) are offering a solution to this problem. If you do not agree with it, please suggest an alternative solution. Don't just tell us corruption is a complex problem and needs multi-layered solution. We know it. Question is do you have any solution in sight? If not, then we see no harm in accepting a solution proposed by someone else.

Lastly I apologize if I have written anything inappropriate. I have faith in India's democracy and I am sure we all will emerge as India Shining through all this.

Vande Mataram

I Believe...

I Believe,

They told me you only believe what you see,

The truth they said is plain and clear,

Sometimes its painful, sometimes dear,

But it will always be, right there in front of me,

Now I know they lied through their teeth,

For the truth, yes it was right there,

But thinly veiled, obscured, burried beneath,

And what I saw was fair, but not fair,

A polished smile to hide a thousand tears,

A dream of future to dispel today's fears,

And then I said I have the right to know,

That is when they were afraid to show,

For they knew that once I knew,

My vigour renewed, fresh and new,

I would ask them to be accountable,

Bring a change not just talks and fable,

I would not rest till they make if clear and fair,

Corrupted consciences clearly in despair,

The greed, the avarice has to stop,

Someone who questions the people at top,

Call it whatever you want to call,

Ombudsman, Investigator or Lokpal.

And I believe the change will come.

My countrymen rise and shine,

Its time to shout and not to whine,

Let our voice shatter the sleep,

Of those who rest in their slumber deep,

I know, the road is long and hard,

Let us hold each others hands,

And guide each other through each nook and bend,

Let us my countrymen walk to the end.

I believe....

Weekend Art

Monsoon Rain

The droplets from heaven descend,

In unending streams of happiness,

And touch your honey velvet skin,

Starting fire with a soft sweet caress,

Your hair catch a few diamonds,

But your eyes outsparkle their brilliance,

As the bright red of your lips,

Slightly smudged, commanding a glance,

The silk embracing your body,

And accentuating the contours of bliss,

The monsoon rain a raging fire,

The cold breeze a passionate kiss.

First Shower of Love - A poem inspired by first rain of the season

The wetlands of my heart,
Fragranced with first rain,
Droplets dripping from the leaves,
Leaving a cool tickling sensation,
The breeze playing hide and seek,
Green hopes taking root in the soil,
Clouds of optimism on the horizon,
Shading from harsh sun of reality,
As I am drenched in the first shower of love.

Alone

The crimson is still settling on the silver horizon,
The sparkling white dots taking shapre in the sky,
On this crumpled ochre beach I am sitting all alone,
Dare I ask myself atlast, how and why?

The allure of glittering gold holds no more,
The silky midnight blue nights,
Softened with muted cyanine lights,
Hightened senses drenched in sparkling red,
Of brightly painted lips and pink on the bed,
The clatter of coins and velvet of cash,
The laughter of arrogance and fake smiles,
Short lived relationships held together,
By thin feeble thread of desire.

I wonder did I miss the innocent white,
That shone in your blue eyes,
Did I miss those soft pink hands,
That could have held mine under the skies.

क्षितीज

जसा पावसाचा वावर,
उभ्या क्षितिजावर,
सूर्यकिरणांच्या रेषांतून,
इंद्रधनुचा बहर,
मेघ सावळे दाटले,
डोंगरमाथ्यावर,
कधी तहान भागते?
तृषा धरणीची अनावर,
आता बरसून सरी,
चिंब भिजल्यावर,
तुझ्या डोळ्यातले भाव,
आण ओठांच्यावर,
मन माझे उधाण,
भिर भिर वाऱ्यावर,
आता सांडू दे जरा,
तुझ्या प्रेमाचा सागर,
जसा पावसाचा वावर,
उभ्या क्षितिजावर,
उभ्या क्षितिजावर.

Naked Baby By The Road...(Poem)

The naked baby by the road,
Like a supine feline or docile canine,
Permeable and porous,
Vulnerable to vultures,
Discombobulated by the barbarousness,
Of honking honkers going bonkers,
Eyes flittering like tadpoles,
Groping for parental attention,
From beings busy with survival instincts,
Left alone for acculturation,
To the world outside the womb.

Romeo and Juliet

O! Romeo, A heartbeat and a wink,
A length of a breath, A lifetime,
Did you wait ages, to live a moment,
Or die in a moment, to live forever,
A dazzling diamond teardrop, a silent revelry,
A Golden Champagne, A silver moonlight,
O! Juliet , A soft pink silk, A sweet strawberry,
Velvet sands beneath, A starry night,
Did you weep in dark, or let a deafening cry,
Or tears ran dry when you saw your love die,
A story of love told and retold, a countless times,
In innumerable pages of prose, and countless rhymes.

Beggar and the Beast..

You stoop so low that my eyes can’t see you,
I hold up my head so high, I can’t perceive,
Your broken back, the weight of the world,
I shiver at your gruesome, grimy touch,
A fear of disease, a disease of fear,
A mute appeal, syllable I can’t hear,
Your twisted arms evoke no sympathy,
Filled with apathy, my insides, just apathy,
Your insides, eaten by invisible emptiness,
A beggar you are, a wretched tale,
An ignored reality, smothered voice
A beast I am, closed ears, blind by choice.

Edifice....(Poem)

A grand edifice of a humble thought,

A penniless life, glory in death it bought,

Ravenous rumbling of hunger in earth's bosom,

Grave understandings of vaccum suction,

Dark black, red, brown and white,

Dry sands and wet sands, granite,

A virtuos deed, a dime a dozen,

Gone, Long lost and forgotten,

Jasmine buds and roses red and white,

Dry sands and wet sands, granite.

Random Humanity....(Poetry)

The undulating fabric of human existence,
Of all hues and shades, of lackluster and radiance,
A whole with a whole lot of holes,
Silver lining lined with dark substance,
A slimy grimy mixture of tar and dust,
Off the hands of a labourer, poor but robust,
Or pale and pampered child of abundance,
Malnourished melodies unsung and lost,
Or overfed hearts pumping oil in blood.
Of diamonds and distress living alongside,
In far reaches of the African forests,
Of Siberian winters with chapped hands of woodcutters,
And summers on the French Riviera.
Of magnificient Taj and miniscule hutments,
Of Vietnam and Afghanistan,
Thousand soldiers felled by a single bullet,
And all the rich men washed out in tsunamis,
Along with the poor, poorer and poorest,
Lest we forget, we are all humans.

Skipper

The glittering surface of the water,
shining in the moonlight clear,
Broken by the ship's bow,
Ripples scattering the silver,
spilled by the moon, The wind
kissing the water, While whistling
its tune carried from faraway lands,
The lone skipper on the deck,
His eyes fixed on the farawy horizon,
His ears sharp and alert, His mind
on the mission he had set forth for,
His mate alseep amidships, His deckhand
working the aft rigged sail
on the mizzenmast, His quartermaster
counting barrels of rum, His love
waiting for him ashore,
Was she awake? thinking of him?
Yes, somehow he knew she was,
As he was, He smiled and again
fixed his eyes on the journey ahead.

Thank You....

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you,
I would never have realized the hypocrisy,
Thank you for breaking my heart,
Thank you for making me cry,
Now the no one can tear me apart,
Even my tears have run dry.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you,
I would have carried on through the pretense,
Thank you for smashing the illusion,
Thank you for getting me out of day dream,
Now I will never fall prey to hallucination,
Now I will never run behind any delusion.