Friendships Are All About Requirements

One dark night this cruel winter,
You asked me to come under the dazzling stars.
When I came and looked at your face,
It was radiant with happiness.
You gazed in my eyes so affectionately,
And acted that you cared for me a lot.
I was overwhelmed to reveal all my feelings,
But abruptly you changed your expressions.
You suddenly started to babble irrelevant things so mechanically,
That it was seeming all was planned earlier inside your grey cells.
Yes, I understood.
You won the argument and deliberately I remained silent…
I was taken aback!
You told me, “Friendship is not for eternity and it dies one day…”
Then tell me why it burns within my spirit,
When I knew it’s already over?
You again said, “Friendships are all about requirements.”
I asked you, "Then what about soul; what about love; what about emotions?"
You said, “Everybody is self-seeking here and keen to find their own interest even in sacrifice.”
I asked myself, then why do I still want your happiness
When we are not together anymore,
And I am also not eager for reconciliation?
“Money is the prime parameter which can judge one’s taste and standard.”
But it still cannot create another Shakespeare.
I would like to mention, personality is neither to deceive others;
Nor creating a wall around just to conceal one’s own truth.
Million thoughts were running inside my head,
All my feelings were choking my voice gradually,
And within a couple of seconds I was emotionally bankrupt.
Was feeling humiliated for a minute which I never felt before,
You made the sacred word “Friendship” so contemptible within a moment,
That there was nothing left to articulate…
But you couldn't understand.
Before we ended this absurd discussion I already realized,
We were not meant to be.
I thought a lot; thought the whole night just to reach a verdict.
I took a deep breath before I walked away from your life forever.
Feelings whispered silently, “You must move on,
Live your beautiful life in your own terms,
And save your emotions for someone truly deserving.”

Some Random Thoughts On Ray, Ghatak, and Ghosh

But for Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak could well have been India's finest cinema director. Ray, at heart, was an optimist [hence the changes to the novels 'Apur Sansar' and 'Mahanagar' while scripting/filming them] and was extremely depressed with the way 'Debi' had turned out, despite being impressed enough by the story to not change it while scripting/filming it, and this led to the birth of Ray-the-writer-of-his-own-films with 'Kanchanjungha'.

Was it Ghatak's profound sense of, and belief in, his own political ideals, that has kept him from being as well-accepted as Ray to people from all the layers and strata of the society? His vision of 'act of class warfare' was quite a bleak one [he may or may not have been aware of this, but even if he did, to his credit, he refused to compromise, unlike Mrinal Sen]. Despite his brilliance, he was unable to be objective about it and keep it separate from the language of Cinema, hence an all-pervading sense of bleak gloominess and apparent lack of humour.

Contrast this with the subtle vein of humour that runs through even the weakest of Rituparno Ghosh's films. Like Ray, he too did not allow his political beliefs to influence his understanding of the language of Cinema.

On Betrayal

How did we reach this corner of the world?

I mean, the world’s supposed to be round, right? How come it has so many corners, then? Some sunny corners, where friends meet and greet and talk and fight and make up and love and stand up for each other…

…and this dank, damp, dark, lonely, crowded-with-shadows corner, where the memories of yesterday sulk in silence, grimy tears of painful nothingness rolling up their cheeks to disappear within the hollows of the empty holes that once held shining bright eyes that lit up at the sight of each other?

How did we reach this corner of the world?

Or maybe it's not "we", but "I", thanks to your betrayal.

Long Live The Queen

You were 19, I was 10. Yet I could not help falling for you. Hopelessly, that too.

You taught me to fall in love with the drops of sweat that ran down that patrician nose. To pine for those firm hands that you used to wield your weapon. To admire your compass-precise grace when you accepted trophy after winner's trophy after ruthlessly vanquishing your opponents. To dream of those flowing golden tresses.

You are the reason why, despite his immense talent, I disliked your husband almost as much as I hated Monica Seles.

Happy birthday, Stefanie Maria Graf. I shall refrain from adding your other surname. I wish every man a first heartbreak as beautiful as you. Long Live The Queen.

Average Joe

No iron suit that helps me fly, nor a hammer to bring forth lightning and thunder.
No webs slung from my wrist, nor alien DNA that makes me super.

Just an Average Joe, who fights a greater battle than any superhero does 365x24x7.
A battle he knows he's sure to lose, but keeps going back anyway, to put his back to the grind and push, push, push.

Crashing each night, stripped of hope, bereft of light, waiting for the morning, when the parts will reassemble themselves.

Yes, I'm the Greatest Superhero Alive.

I'm your Average Joe.

A Dream That I Had......

After several minutes of tossing and turning, exhorting Hypnos to bless me, I slowly slip into a fitful state of unconsciousness that gradually turns into deep slumber. And while exploring the strange-normal-familiar-unknown-dark-light alleyways of my sleep world, I meet...the ethereally beautiful Charlize Theron, wearing a turquoise sari and a smile that lights up the entire room!!! And when she tells me that she is coming to India with me, I know that I was destined to have this dream.

When I wake up, after exchange of more smiles, some sweet, some coy, and promises, I realize that although it's still a 34-year-old body, the heart, at least for one day, has gone back to being an 18-year-old that believes itself to be the King of This World.

But was it Charlize I really saw? Or was it someone else??

Was it you???

To The So-Called 'God' Of Cricket

Dear Mr. Sachin Tendulkar,

Retiring gracefully with your dignity and honour still intact is a million times better than f***ing your own legend for the sake of a few million bucks.

Sincerely,
Someone who considered you a 'god' from November 1989 to April 2011.