Compromise

Mulayam garm samjhaute ki chadar ,

Yeh chadar mein ne barson mein buni hai ,

Kahin bhi sach ke gul boote nahi hai ,

Kissi bhi jhooth ka taanka nahin hai ,

Issi se main bhi tan dhak loongi apna,

Issi se tum bhi aasooda rahoge ,

Na khush hoge, na pashmarda hoge.

-- Zehra Nigah

(Warm and soft, this blanket

Of compromise has taken me years to weave

Not a single flower of truth embellishes it

Not a single false stitch betrays it

It will do to cover my body though

And it will bring comfort too,

If not joy or sadness to you)

Shake Your Groove Thing

Remember when you were a kid and your biggest worry was, like, if you'd get a bike for your birthday, or if you get to eat cookies for breakfast?

Being an adult? Totally overrated. I mean, seriously, don't be fooled by all the hot shoes and the great sex and the no parents anywhere telling you to do. Adulthood is responsibility. Responsibility, it really does suck. Really, really sucks. Adults have to be places and do things and earn a living and pay the rent. And if you're training to be a writer, holding a manuscript in your hands... Hello! Talk about responsibility. Kinda makes bikes and cookies look really really good, doesn't it? The scariest part about responsibility: when you screw up and let it slip right through your fingers. Responsibility. It really does suck.

Unfortunately, once you get past the age of braces and naughty boy shoes, responsibility doesn't go away. It can't be avoided. Either someone makes us face it, or we suffer the consequences.

And still, adulthood has its perks. I mean the shoes, the sex, the no parents anywhere telling you what to do. That's pretty damn good.

Bombay In Pictures 4

Bombay In Pictures 3

Bombay In Pictures Part 2

Bombay In Pictures

Bombay Part II

It happened. Again. The city of blinding lights.

But this time it was a trip of mixed experiences. At one end I saw these Mercedes and Lexus hungry multi-million dollar industralists eating with their fingers and loving the very ordinary daal-roti bought from the street and on the other end I saw attitude from people who claimed of an intense desire to meet up with me.
What I can say though, is that both left with a slight sour taste in my mouth. But it does seem to me that Bombay is somehow attracting me to its shores. The things I had put off, are back to chase me and this time I didn't give it up...the chance to perhaps be someone. I have gone and grabbed it. But now is the scary part, which I realised only as the plane took off.
As I looked out of the plane window and in the darkness of the night I saw my face reflected into the billions of sparkles of yellow blubs which light up this city. What I saw was a fractured and dismembered me gazing back at me. Was that a prediction of things to come? Or just a little bit of multiple lights at play?
This time it was different for me in Bombay, I roamed around on my own, taking pictures (uploading soon) of ordinary life and wondering if I could see myself as one with the crowd. I tried very hard to look like that person again. You the guy who blends in really well with the crowd and goes completely unnoticed? The one with a brown skin that merges with the scenery and you forget that he exists. I failed. Even the sea failed me. It did give me some pretty sunsets, but that is not nearly enough.
Life goes on they say and one just has to take chances. And this time I am taking mine.

22nd Surajkund Crafts Mela

In a completely random order ofcourse!

All You Need Is Love!

Aria

"It was during that sorrow that
love came to me!
A voice filled with harmony
That said...
Lie still, I am Life!"

"I am the god that descends
From the heavens to the earth
To make of the earth
A heaven!"

"I am Oblivion!
I am Glory!
I am Love, Love, Love!"

untitled

No, nothing at all, I regret nothing at all
Not the good, nor the bad. It is all the same.
No, nothing at all, I have no regrets about anything.
It is paid, wiped away, forgotten.
I am not concerned with the past, with my memories.
I set fire to my pains and pleasures,
I don’t need them anymore.
I have wiped away my loves, and my troubles.
Swept them all away.
I am starting again from zero.

No, nothing at all, I have no regrets
Because from today, my life, my happiness, everything,
Starts with you!

You.

I make the stupidest remarks in your presence

me. who is like a ribboned rock.

carefully planned so as not to be late.

me. who is out of synchronisation

like forgotten people of the jungles.

I write in grand fury those complete letters

so you would read and smile to yourself

all your tears I wish I were.
so beside you I shall flow, down your cheek, and

know your woes,

I would roll, watchfully, make no eye contact lest you see me there

watching

and caress you as I go

even inadvertently

helplessly enchanted by wit by folly by elements put

to make that love I have for you.

untitled.

at night
i sat by and watched you sleep
dreaming of dreams making you smile
and when you got up and told
me you were dreaming of
me kissing you
you were beautiful.

Keep Breathing

The storm is coming but i don't mind.
People are dying, i close my blinds.
All that i know is i'm breathing now.
I want to change the world...instead i sleep.
I want to believe in more than you and me.
But all that i know is i'm breathing.
All i can do is keep breathing.
All we can do is keep breathing now.
All that i know is i'm breathing.
All i can do is keep breathing.
All we can do is keep breathing now.
All we can do is keep breathing

A. For you.

I don't know anyone who isn't haunted by something...or someone. And whether we try to slice the pain away with a scalpel or shove it in the back of a closet, our efforts usually fail.

So the only way we can clear out the cobwebs is to turn a new page...
Or put an old story to rest...
Finally. Finally to rest.

Ashes to Ashes. Dust to dust.

Bombay

A week in the city that never sleeps. Long late night walks by the sea. I still have sand in my shoes. Squashed between cars on the road from suburbs to town. Glamour and celebrities who are no longer just celebrities but almost friends. A book. And a book deal. Cafe Mondegar. Leopold. Ferry on the muddy brown sea. Heritage buildings and decaying facades. Kalaghoda. Jazzy taxis. Poison. Juhu. Mocha. Alcohol. Sex. Cosmopolitan. Sweet breeze. Siddhivinayak. Filmcity. Groovy music. Freaky people. Matted long tresses. Anorexic women. Haute couture. Jimmy Choo. Versace. Big office. White walls. Black hearts. Jealousy. Cold vibes. Ego's colder than ice.

Am tired.

As I stepped off the plane with my bag in my hand, the first gust of cold wind on my face made me realise that I didn't like the city of dreams. I was just so happy to be home. To be in my own bed. To just be here. Yes I know if I go back, I could be 'someone', but for now I think I can wait a little. I think I can just be myself and wait for it to come to me in its own due time.

What will be. Will be. Afterall.

...

"The truth is, I probably don't want to be too happy or content, 'cause then what? I actually like the quest, the search. That's the fun. The more lost you are, the more you have to look forward to. What do you know? I'm having a great time and I don't even know it."

Mistakes

In life, only one thing is certain...apart from death and taxes...no matter how hard you try, no matter how good your intentions, you are going to make mistakes. You're going to hurt people. You're going to get hurt.

Truth and nothing but the truth.

Writers give back so many things. We give fantasy, we give advice. And most of the time, we give our undivided attention. But by far the hardest thing we can possibly give someone is the hard truth. The truth is hard. The truth is .... akward. And very often truth...hurts. I mean people sat that they want the truth. But do they really?

The truth is painful... Deep down nobody wants to hear it, especially when it hits home. But sometimes we give the truth, because the truth is all we have to give. And sometimes we tell the truth, because we need to hear it out loud just for ourselves. And then are times when we need to tell the truth because we just cant help ourselves.

And then there are times when we must tell the truth, because we owe everyone atleast that much.